Flag |
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Total population | |
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(600,000) | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Honduras, Belize, Guatemala, Nicaragua, United States | |
159,653 | |
Languages | |
Garifuna, Spanish, Belizean Kriol, English | |
Religion | |
Ancestral spirituality: Dügü, generally Roman Catholic with syncretic Garifuna practices (Rastafari, Islam and others Christian denominations) | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Island Caribs (Black Carib), Afro-Caribbeans, Afro-Latino |
The Garifuna (/ɡəˈrɪfᵿnə/ gə-RIF-uu-nə; pl. Garinagu in Garifuna) are mixed-race descendants of West African, Central African, Island Carib, and Arawak people. The British colonial administration used the term Black Carib and Garifuna to distinguish them from Yellow and Red Carib, the original Amerindian population before the Africans intermixed and those deemed to still look Native by the British. Those Caribs who were deemed to look Native and had less African admixture are still living in the islands of the Lesser Antilles. The Island Caribs lived throughout the southern Lesser Antilles, such as present Dominica, St Vincent and Trinidad. Their ancestors are believed to have conquered these areas from their previous inhabitants, the Igneri.
Since April 12, 1731, the Garifuna people have been living in Central America, where they speak the Garifuna language. The Garifuna people mostly live along the Caribbean Coast of Honduras, but there are also smaller populations in Belize, Guatemala, and Nicaragua. There are also many Garinagu in the United States, particularly in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, Houston, Seattle, and other major cities.