Location: In the West Indies, maintaining the far west of Hispaniola surrounded by the Caribbean Sea, the Golfe de la Gonave, and the Atlantic Ocean.
History: Haiti is best known to be discovered by Christopher Coulumbus, but there were many cultures that inhabited the land before his arrival in 1492. The first known settlers were the Ciboneys, who migrated from what is now known as North America in 450 A.D. Then in 900 A.D., the Tainos, who belonged to the Arawak nation settled in large villages. They Arawak Indians called the land ‘Ayiti’, which means ‘land of mountains’. Christopher Coulumbus arrived on the island on December 5, 1492, but did not stay long because there were other lands to explore. He left Spaniards in charge of the land and while Columbus was away, they became responsible of almost terminating all of the Arawaks and then moving westward towards what is now Mexico and Peru. This caused the island to be empty for many years until the French colonized the land in the middle of seventeenth century. During France’s reign, Haiti became one of the most prominent countries in the world. Resources such as sugar cane, cotton, cocoa, and coffee became the most important sources to Haiti’s wealth. These resources became a high demand by European markets and because of the increase in demand, the French needed cheap labor. As other countries did, the French looked towards
Africa for slaves and since the slaves were not treated fairly, they soon became France’s downfall. The slaves became the most important thing to Haiti’s economy and future and in the year of 1791, the slaves planned a revolt against the French and became successful. In 1804, the slaves took over Napoleon’s reign and Haiti became the first independent black nation headed by General Jean-Jacques Dessalines. Dessalines misused his power and his death was the effect of his misuse. The country was split into two in 1844, making Haiti and the Dominican Republic; and for years after came an abundance of poverty and an inability to find leadership for Haiti. It was not until the second World War when the Americans occupied Haiti to make sure no other countries like Germany would invade.
Because of the American Marines, Haiti was able to build roads, hospitals, houses, and sewage systems. The country was looking up until the Americans left and the fight for power between the voodoo followers and the Catholic Church started. There were many leaders, but none that could make an effect on the country until Francois Duvalier named himself president of Haiti. Duvalier was finally able to make a government that could stand on it’s own, but it did not help the people or country in any way. After Duvalier’s death, his son took over but only made things a little better for the people. Since then, there has been many tries to find a leader that can make a difference for Haiti and help solve the problems, and just recently they have elected president Rene Preval who might be able to solve them.
Features and Haiti Today:Today, Haiti’s population is over five million people and is poor and highly urbanized. It has struggled economically after winning their independence and has not found a solution to their poverty problems. Things have not changed and they still find themselves at the bottom of economic power. The people of Haiti are mainly of black-African origin and speak either Haitian Creole or French and are Roman Catholic and Protestant or voodoo worshippers. Voodoo has been the best known feature of Haiti and has gained an image of being a country of sorcery and zombies. Many exaggerate the sense of voodoo in Haiti, but the people of the land keep it within the limits of the family.
Haiti(1996) http://www.magicnet/~lmorris/index.html.
“The Art of Haiti.”(1996-2000) http://www.medalia.net/Hhistory.html.
“The Early History of Haiti.”(1975,1978) http://pasture.ecn.purdue.edu/~agenmc/haiti/history.html
Written by: Adam Daly