Yamni Balram (Welcome!): A Miskitu Grammar and Workbook

Yamni Balram/Welcome! is an indigenous Miskitu language grammar and workbook, designed to assist English-speakers learning to speak Miskitu in the field. The book developed over years of teaching Miskitu during the KU summer Study Abroad program and is a compilation of materials used in classes. More than a grammar, this book is an introductory textbook with exercises to help English- and also Spanish-speakers practice Miskitu language

"Hauks, Chip, Grate, and Squeeze": Recipes of the Honduran Bay Islands

This is a revised and expanded version of the 1998 publication, ""Hauks, Chip, Grate, and Squeeze": Recipes of the Honduran Bay Islands."" The original work was published through the Honduran Government’s Subcomponente de Educación Bilingüe y Intercultural as part of the Proyecto Mejoramiento de la Calidad de la Educación Basica (PROMEB)."Hauks, Chip, Grate and Squeeze" is an ethnographic cookbook based on field research Laura Herlihy completed in the late 1990s in the Honduran Bay Islands. Herlihy worked as part of the Honduras Subcomponent of Bi-Lingual Inter-cultural Education project to describe and promote Bay Island English (BIE). Her research assignment was to collect speech events on a specific theme – Island cuisine – and highlight language use in the traditional context of cooking. What resulted was a cookbook of recipes in BIE, collected from women (and some men) in Roatan, Guanaja, and Utila. The book also includes maps; pictures of the Bay Islands and of those she interviewed; a section on fieldwork and ethnographic methods; an index organized by food groups, and a glossary that provides translations of BIE terms to standard English

Indigenous Masculinities in the Global Lobster Economy

Indigenous Miskitu men have worked as deep-water divers in the international lobster economy for the last forty years. Because of the long-term "boom" in the lobster economy, Miskitu society has become increasingly involved with monetized economies, agriculture has declined, and families now purchase their subsistence foods from stores. This article's main research question asks how the global lobster economy has helped shape Miskiru masculinities on the Honduran Caribbean coast. Ethnographic fieldwork draws from the author's doctoral research (I 997-1998, supported by a Fulbright grant) in the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve (RPBR), Honduras. The research combines participant observation with the collection of oral texts. The research is unique because it highlights indigenous men's sexuality, a topic for which there is relatively little anthropological information (Gilmore 1990; Analysis and comparison of the older and newer songs reveals that Miskitu manhood is defined consistently throughout the texts. Despite the economy in which men have participated, masculinity is defined as the ability to provide resources and money to women. Therefore, this article argues that local constructions of Miskitu manhood have not changed dramatically as a result of the lobster-diving industry. However, song texts and ethnographic data recorded reveal that relations between women and men have become highly commodified. Conclusions suggest that the commodification ofMiskiru identities and gender relations has intensified during the latest "boom" in the coastal economy, but that this commodification has developed alongside the globalization of western values and monetized economies that have influenced the Caribbean coast since colonial times (see also Connel

Miskitu Identity in the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve, Honduras

This article examines how Miskito individuals construct their ethnic identity in the inter-ethnic relations of the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve, an internationally designated protected area in Honduras. The field research focuses on the ethnic terms of reference and stereotypes that Miskito speakers use to distinguish between themselves and Others. The presented data illustrate the situations in which Miskito individuals manipulate cultural markers to define themselves as "Sambos" (stressing their Black ancestry) or "Indians" (stressing their Amerindian ancestry). Conclusions suggest that the Miskito people's ability to construct situational ethnic identities during social interactions, while remaining essentially Miskito, may be a key factor in the success of their population group within and beyond the reserve

"El tigre y la paloma": Una entrevista con Brooklyn Rivera

On August 23rd, 2009, in Managua, anthropologist Laura Herlihy interviewed Yatama leader and Nicaraguan deputy Brooklyn Rivera. Rivera answered questions on a broad range of topics, including his childhood and leadership qualities, the new Miskitu independence movement, Yatama’s alliance with the Sandinistas, the Sihkru Tara, and recent problems in Honduras. An introduction by Herlihy provides the background and context of the interview, which was conducted in Miskitu, revealing the way that Brooklyn Rivera expresses himself in his native language. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5377/wani.v59i0.259Wani No.59 2009 pp.66-71En Managua, el 23 de agosto del 2009, la antropóloga Laura Herlihy entrevistó al líder de Yatama y diputado en la asamblea nacional de Nicaragua, Brooklyn Rivera. Rivera respondió a una amplia gama de temas, incluyendo su infancia y sus calidades de liderazgo, el nuevo movimiento independentista miskito, la alianza de Yatama con los sandinistas, el Sihkru Tara, y los problemas recientes en Honduras. Una introducción de Herlihy nos informa sobre el contexto y trasfondo de la entrevista la cual fue realizada en miskito revelando así la manera en que Rivera se expresa en su idioma nativo. "Limi bara butku wal":Broklin Rivera ra sturi makabi walanManawa ra, Sikla kati 23, mani 2009 ra, Waitna sinska laka stadi munan mairka kum nina (Antropóloga) Laura Herlihy bui Yatama ta brabrira bara Nikarawa Asamblea Nacional wi bara sin Diputado Broklin Rivera ra Sturi makabi walan pana una skakan sturi ailal dukiara, naha purkara witin kau tuktan kan sturka nani sin bara ta upla takan ba sturka sin, miskitu nani nikbanka raya kum yakan dakwi takaia dukiara aisi banghwiba dukiara, Yatama nani Sandinista nani wal wilkanka laka briba dukiara, sihkru tara dukiara, bara Honduras ra nawas trabil takan ba dukiara sin. Herlihy bui taura ulban bara wan wisa naha wauhkataya dukiara bara sturi makabi walan pana una skakan lukanka nani ba miskitu bilara nahak ku wan marikisa Rivera witin ai yapti bila pain aisiba dukiara. "Nawah dawak butku karak": Broklin Rivera kau yul yulwi dakanaManawa kau, kurihbin mani 23, kurih 2009 kau, muih al sinsni lani tadi munna”Antropologa” yalni as ayangni Laura Herlihy yaklauiwi Yatama tunan muihni dawak Asamblea Nacional atwa yakat diputado Broklin Rivera ka yul yulwi dakawak biri kalyulna yul mahni yulni, adika minit yakat witin baisa walabis dai taimni yulni balna bik, dawak ampat tunan muihni kalna yulni balna bik, wayah balna alas dakwi kalalahnin atwada di balna yayamwa kidi yulni, Yatama balna dawak Sandinista balna karak la as sitwi duwa bang kidi yulni, Warminit Honduras sauni kau trabil sak kidi yulni bik. Herlihy yaklauiwi tatuna kau ulna yakat mai yulwi adika wauhnitaya yulni dawak yul balna yulwi dakawak biri kalyulna kulnin lani tuhni kidika dawak nininkawi Rivera ampat witing nanangni tuni yamni yulwa kidi yulni. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5377/wani.v59i0.259Wani No.59 2009 pp.66-7

Mujeres Levantándose con la Iglesia Morava, la guerra y los ONGs

Este artículo se centra en la situación actual de las mujeres indígenas y afrodescendientes  y la participación política y su acceso a puestos de liderazgo. La investigación exploró el proceso desde el cual las mujeres miskitu y kriol en Nicaragua han catapultado posiciones de liderazgo en el grupo matrilocal en altos cargos políticos. Los datos recogidos en Bilwi-Puerto Cabezas demuestra que mujeres las miskitu y kriol lideresas en los últimos 30 años han accedido a puestos de liderazgo político a través de su participación con la Iglesia Morava, la revolución sandinista, y después de 1990 las organizaciones de desarrollo. Estas etapas de empoderamiento pueden combinarse para favorecer el liderazgo de mujeres.SummaryThis article focuses on the current situation of indigenous and afrodescendant women, their political participation and access to leadership posts. The research explored the process from which the Miskitu and Creole women in Nicaragua have catapulted leadership positions in the matrilocal group in high political posts. Data collected in Bilwi-Puerto Cabezas shows that Miskitu and Creole women leaders, in the past 30 years have had access to political leadership positions through their involvement with the Moravian Church, the Sandinista revolution, and after 1990 due to the development organizations. These stages of empowerment can be combined to promote women leadership.</p