A direct translation of the word "Taíno" signified "men of the good".[23] Additionally, the indigenous people of Hispaniola used this term to indicate that they were "relatives".[24][full citation needed] The Taíno people, or Taíno culture, has been classified by some authorities as belonging to the Arawak. Their language is considered to have belonged to the Arawak language family, the languages of which were historically present throughout thе Caribbean, and much of Central and South America.
Thе early ethnohistorian Daniel Garrison Brinton referred to the Taíno people as the "Island Arawak", expressing their connection to the continental peoples.[25] But, contemporary scholars have also recognized that the Taíno had developed a distinct language and culture.
Taíno and Arawak appellations have been used with numerous and contradictory meanings by writers, travelers, historians, linguists, and anthropologists. Often they were used interchangeably: "Taíno" was applied to the Greater Antillean natives only, or including the Bahamian natives, or adding the Leeward Islands natives, or all those, excluding the Puerto Rican and Leeward nations. Similarly, "Island Taíno" has been used to refer to those living in the Windward Islands only, to the northern Caribbean inhabitants only, as well as to the indigenous population of all the Caribbean islands.
Modern historians, linguists and anthropologists now hold that the term Taíno should refer to all the Taíno/Arawak nations, except for the Caribs, who are not seen to belong to the same people. Linguists continue to debate whether the Carib language is an Arawakan dialect or creole language. They also speculate that it was an independent language isolate, with an Arawakan pidgin used for communication purposes with other peoples, as in trading.
Rouse classifies as Taíno as all inhabitants of the Greater Antilles (except the western tip of Cuba and small pockets of Hispaniola), the Lucayan archipelago, and the northern Lesser Antilles. He subdivides the Taíno into three main groups: Classic Taíno, from most of Hispaniola and all of Puerto Rico; Western Taíno, or sub-Taíno, for the population from Jamaica, most of Cuba, and the Lucayan archipelago; and Eastern Taíno for those from the Virgin Islands to Montserrat.
Thе early ethnohistorian Daniel Garrison Brinton referred to the Taíno people as the "Island Arawak", expressing their connection to the continental peoples.[25] But, contemporary scholars have also recognized that the Taíno had developed a distinct language and culture.
Taíno and Arawak appellations have been used with numerous and contradictory meanings by writers, travelers, historians, linguists, and anthropologists. Often they were used interchangeably: "Taíno" was applied to the Greater Antillean natives only, or including the Bahamian natives, or adding the Leeward Islands natives, or all those, excluding the Puerto Rican and Leeward nations. Similarly, "Island Taíno" has been used to refer to those living in the Windward Islands only, to the northern Caribbean inhabitants only, as well as to the indigenous population of all the Caribbean islands.
Modern historians, linguists and anthropologists now hold that the term Taíno should refer to all the Taíno/Arawak nations, except for the Caribs, who are not seen to belong to the same people. Linguists continue to debate whether the Carib language is an Arawakan dialect or creole language. They also speculate that it was an independent language isolate, with an Arawakan pidgin used for communication purposes with other peoples, as in trading.
Rouse classifies as Taíno as all inhabitants of the Greater Antilles (except the western tip of Cuba and small pockets of Hispaniola), the Lucayan archipelago, and the northern Lesser Antilles. He subdivides the Taíno into three main groups: Classic Taíno, from most of Hispaniola and all of Puerto Rico; Western Taíno, or sub-Taíno, for the population from Jamaica, most of Cuba, and the Lucayan archipelago; and Eastern Taíno for those from the Virgin Islands to Montserrat.
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