Western West Indies (964 – 1107 CE): Taíno Expansion, Tortuga Gateways, and Cayman Seasonality

Geographic and Environmental Context

• Anchors: Tortuga–Port-de-Paix (western Haiti), Massif du Nord (western slopes), Gonâve Gulf (island and peninsulas), north–central Cuba (bank fisheries, cays), Jamaica’s leeward plains, and the Cayman Ridge.

Climate and Environmental Shifts

• Continued warm period supported denser villages and larger gardens, punctuated by hurricane seasons.

• Lagoon productivity and fertile alluvial pockets in Gonâve and Jamaica sustained surpluses.

Societies and Political Developments

• Taíno lifeways matured: plaza-centered villages, enlarged bohíos, ritual seats (caneys), and incipient caciquescoordinating labor and exchange.

• Tortuga–Port-de-Paix consolidated as a trans-shipment node between Massif du Nord valleys and the passages to Cuba and Jamaica.

• Cayman Islands: seasonal fisheries and salt stations tied to western Hispaniola and Cuba; no permanent chiefdoms.

Economy and Trade

• Conuco intensification: cassava dominant; maize, aji peppers, sweet potato, peanuts, and cotton expanded.

• Inter-island traffic: cassava breads, cotton cloth, polished celts, and zemí carvings; turtles, dried fish, and sea salt from Cayman/Tortuga circuits.

Belief and Symbolism

• Zemí shrines multiplied; ballcourts (bateyes) appeared as ritual–diplomatic spaces; cohoba (vision snuff) began to mark chiefly rites.

Long-Term Significance

By 1107, a Taíno western network cohered: Cuba–Jamaica–western Haiti linked by Tortuga–Port-de-Paix and the Gonâve Gulf, with Caymans provisioning the fish–salt leg of the salt–fish–cassava system.