What is the Caribbean Region and is there such thing as Caribbean Region culture?
The Caribbean Region, sometimes referred to as the Circum-Caribbean or the Caribbean Basin, is an expanded definition of the Caribbean (which in the modern-day typically refers to the Caribbean Islands/Antilles) in which it includes all cultures around the Caribbean Sea plus some additional nearby. This cultural zone is not based on geography alone, but also on historical and cultural connections.
The Caribbean Region has been interconnected since the days of Pre-Columbian America. Archeological research has revealed that this has been a trading region for the indigenous peoples of the Americas for at least over a thousand years before the arrival of Columbus [1]. After the arrival of Columbus the region would continue to be interconnected through trade within the various colonies that formed there [2]. Continued inter-migrations during and after the colonial period of the Americas further contributed to the connection of Caribbean Region cultures [3]. And there is more to the story than this (we touch on this a little more in the next section), but this is all thanks to the geography of the region: a sea surrounded by land masses. This produces a similar cultural dynamic as the Mediterranean Sea has done for the cultures inside of and surrounding it: some degree of similar cultural attributes.
As mentioned in the Vision Statement, a common identity among the cultures surrounding the Caribbean Sea doesn’t exist. Should it ever exist?
That is for our people of the region and it's diaspora to collectively decide for ourselves one day. But the goal of this brand is simple. It is to offer a positive message for the region: stop looking at what makes us different and start looking at what makes us similar.
Sources for those interested in further reading: