#Trinidad and Tobago history

[panafrocore]

The Origins and Evolution of Kalinda also known as "Calinda" or "Kalenda: A Martial Art and Dance Tradition

Kalinda, also known as “Calinda” or “Kalenda,” is a captivating stick-fighting warrior dance deeply intertwined with the history and culture of Trinidad and Tobago. With its origins tracing back to the Kongo Kingdom, encompassing regions of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, as well as parts of Angola and Gabon, this traditional artform holds a special place in…

[factsbybriggs]

The Steelpan in UK History...

www.factsbybriggs.com

[agentfascinateur]

Bravo Trinidad and Tobago on recognizing the State of Palestine! 👏🏼👏🏼

Now at 141 countries 💜

[belle-keys]

Artists: Michel-Jean Cazabon (1813-1888)

[yourdailyqueer]

Raymond Choo Kong (deceased)

Gender: Male

Sexuality: Gay

DOB: Born 1949  

RIP: Died 2019

Ethnicity: Chinese

Nationality: Trinadad and Tobago

Occupation: Director, producer, actor, activist

[forgedfromlove]

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A post shared by The National Archives of T&T (@nationalarchivestt)

From @nationalarchivestt:

“#DidYouKnow This month is African History Month in Trinidad and Tobago? Since 1976, November has been dedicated to the celebration of the people of African descent who have shaped our nation.

It is fitting that African History Month follows Calypso History Month because calypso is in itself, rooted in our African heritage.

While research on the roots of calypso is ongoing, many sources point to Kalinda/Calinda (stickfighting) bands during the era of slavery as the origin of the genre in T&T.

The well-known calypsonian & anthropologist Hollis "Chalkdust" Liverpool has written about the function of the chantwell/chantuelle in Kalinda, describing them as persons who sang songs to inspire stickfighters into action. They also provided melodies for carnival masqueraders during Canboulay.

These songs, called cariso songs, were usually about protest against the ruling upper class. The power of the chantwell & their songs is reflected in the names that were chosen by them.

Tobagonian anthropologist & folklorist J. D. Elder wrote that "chantuelles identified themselves with the heroes of war and named themselves The Iron Duke, Pharoah, the Duke of Marlborough, Black Prince, etc." This culture of naming among chantwells, and later, calypsonians, continued into the 20th century.

Known as a sobriquet, these names were calypsonians' stage names. From the early 1900s, we see the continuation of sobriquets inspired by war and conflict like "Atilla the Hun," "Black Stalin," "Sir Lancelot," "Dictator," "Lord Invader," and "The Mighty Bomber."

Some calypsonians adopted ironic and witty sobriquets like "The Mighty Sparrow," "Tiny Terror," and "Bitterbush." Others chose to retain part of their birth names in their sobriquets, like "Lady Baldwin," "Singing Sandra," "Singing Francine," "Lord Nelson," "Singing Sonia," and "Marvellous Marva."

This photo shows some of "The Great Calypsonians" from "120 Years of Calypsoes to Remember" by the Mighty Sparrow, c. 1963, which is part of the National Archives of Trinidad and Tobago Calypso Booklet Collection. At the time, the calypso music industry was still male-dominated, as is reflected in this photo.”

[preethecaribbean]

Dâaga was one of the leaders of the St. Joseph Mutiny that occurred on the night of June 17, 1837 among the First West India Regiment of the British Army in St. Joseph, Trinidad, which was a part of the British West Indies at that time.

“The soldiers, under Dâaga’s leadership, chanted Yoruba war chants and burned their garrisons to distract the white officers while they continued to the armory and seized weapons. Although these black rebels did face off against their white officers, no white soldiers were killed... Dâaga became a powerful symbol of black resistance in Trinidad.

Dâaga’s name was adopted by Makandal Dâaga (Geddes Granger), a leader of the 1970s Black Power movement in Trinidad, who adopted the name to honor the leaders of the 1837 rebellion. Earl Lovelace also utilized Dâaga as a character in his novel Salt (1996). The auditorium at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine campus was renamed in Dâaga’s honor.” (Peoples of the Historical Slave Trade)

[feline17ff]

Me: Oh that's so cool! My language has Caribbean dialects! I wonder how tho

*looks it up*

Slavery by any other name 🥲

[historyfiles]

Trinidad and Tobago: #Britain took #Trinidad in 1797, while also controlling #Tobago at the same time, while #Spain formally ceded it in 1802 and #France twice grabbed control, finally giving up in 1803.

[sexypinkon]

Sexypink - know more about Cazabon.

[badgentsclub]

Something I think should be in our media and a part of early school’s history classes .

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“Canboulay is a celebration of resistance and emancipation which re-enacted the days when enslaved Africans were driven with cracking whips to put out fire on sugarcane plantations.”

We are a people that have a powerful history.

Carnival is not evil. It is not “devil thing” .

It is a part of our rich heritage … it speaks to the freedom we all fight for & a celebration of how far we’ve come.

❤️‍🔥

[galleryyuhself]

Galleryyuhself - Carnival splendor put to the page.

[ghostacolytev2]

Fort King George (Tobago) was built by the British in the late 18th century. The fort was named after King George III and it served as a strategic military base for the British during their control of Tobago.  Today, it is a popular tourist attraction.

[mymusicbias]

[forgedfromlove]

Tobago’s Mystery Tombstone

Photo by Captain Martini on Flickr.

From a Trinidad Guardian article by Elspeth Duncan:

“Walking up the incline from Plymouth jetty to return to my car, I notice the sign for the Mystery Tombstone. I have heard and read about this tourist attraction, but have never seen it. Now is my opportunity. The simple grave is painted black with white words etched onto its surface. The best known portion of the text, featured in most tourism literature, reads: "She was a mother without knowing it and a wife without letting her husband know it except by her kind indulgences to him."

I ponder: Did Betty Stiven die during childbirth and never have the opportunity to know motherhood? And her husband…how could he not have known? Interested in hearing other perspectives, I ask a few random people.

My first conversation is with a woman from Carnbee who suggests that Betty Stiven was pregnant, but died before giving birth…and that she was married, but had an "outside man" whom she treated like a "husband" but never told about her legal husband…Or maybe she got a man drunk and married him without his sober knowledge.

A shop owner in Crown Point says of the inscription: "I felt it was totally confusing and I wondered if it was for real!"An elderly fruit vendor tells me that he has heard about it but has never been to see the grave."But if I read out the inscription to you, will you tell me what it suggests to you?" I ask.

"No, because seeing is believing," he says. "I would have to actually see that grave to know what I feel about it."Later, while buying supplies in a small Bon Accord grocery, I ask the cashier if she has heard about the Mystery Tombstone. She looks at me with wide eyes, slowly shakes her head and states that she "'fraid dem thing."

"It's nothing to be scared of," I say.

"It's a tourist site–a grave with this inscription written on it."

As I start to read the words, recognition sparks on her face. She has heard this apparent riddle before, but never quite understood it. “Maybe the slave master did rape she and she mind she son without knowing it was she own," she offers. A man standing nearby pipes up: "You want to know the story? You want to know the real story?"

Convinced by his confidence, the cashier and I are all ears. I begin to scribble down the words as his version of the story unfolds…

"In those days on the slave plantation there was something called 'the Bull Pen' with big black men. When young slave girls did first see their blood, they would be sent up to the Bull Pen, but they would have to pass the Master's house first. They would blindfold her so she wouldn't be able to see who do what.

"The Master would do he business, then they would send she in the Bull Pen. They used to breed them like pig to produce more slaves for work."When the child born, it was red. They send away the child to Scotland, but when it grow and come back, it saw this same slave woman, fell in love with her and married her, not knowing she was the mother."

One can also go online and read a variety of theories about the grave, but the answers from people on the street, are very creative and could give even the most popular soap opera a run for its money.”

What do you guys think?

References:

Duncan, E. (2015). “A Multifaceted Mystery,” The Trinidad Guardian, 23rd August. Retrieved from: https://www.guardian.co.tt/article-6.2.368428.f36e89ec06 (on 7th November 2024).