Caribbean Taíno Societies (1240s)

Timeline

1. 1241–1245Central Valley of Hispaniola · HispaniolaTaíno grew cassava, sweet potatoes, and maize in conuco mixed-cultivation plots, with coastal and river-valley settlements growing in population; bohío thatched villages clustered around cacique residences and ceremonial grounds, with social rank maintained by the division of labor between nitaínos and naborias.
2. 1246–1250Sea lanes from Puerto Rico to the Virgin Islands · Greater AntillesCanoes exchanged stone tools, shell ornaments, and cotton cloth between islands, while areíto ceremonial song and dance and cemí idol worship spread across the islands; indirect contact with Yucatán and Mesoamerica may have continued via circum-Caribbean sea routes, and Taíno society reached its pre-contact peak by the late 1240s.