~ by Susan AtkinsonLife in 14th Century ParadiseLife in 14th Century Paradise

Life in 14th Century Paradise

When the Conquistadores arrived, the Indians either fought or fled inland to more remote areas, often burning their own villages and crops behind them. The Chorotegans (who descend from the Mayans) live in the Nicoya peninsula and are the largest and most technologically advanced tribe.

Unlike the Borucans, who literally scared away their invaders garbed in scary, devilish-looking masks, the Chorotegans fought as an organized military group, wearing only padded cotton armor. They only had bows, arrows, and wooden swords to face more sophisticated weapons.

Due to the peninsula's geography, the Chorotegans were trapped and conquered.

The Spaniards killed the Chorotegans for speaking their mother tongue, enslaved them either into the slave trade with Panama and Perú, or turned them into domestic servants.

They changed their housing to adobe longhouses and tried to convert them to Christianity. The Spanish brought many diseases, such as smallpox, causing the indigenous population to decline rapidly.

The Chorotegans' area centers near Guaitil (Santa Cruz county), in Guanacaste. The soil is mostly clay, which was used to make the bricks for the new longhouses.

Today, Chorotegans produce beautifully handcrafted pottery and cookware that are sold to the commercial and touristic markets, as well as honey from their beekeeping.

Our next issue will continue to tell you about the natives who fled to the more remote regions of Costa Rica.

Visit our website to learn more about the Borucans (Los Diablitos), the only Indigenous group to NOT have their territory conquered by the Spaniards.

INFO: www.borucacostarica.org

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Life in 14th Century Paradise