Ecuador Travel

Afro Ecuadoreans in Esmeraldas

The northern coast of Ecuador has a long and extensive human history. Organized societies have called this region home for a millennia. The legacy of these successive civilizations is preserved in archeological sites scattered around the region, and there is still significant ethnic diversity in the northern coast region.

Though humans arrived on the northern coast earlier, the archeological record shows that sedentary villages appeared around 1500 BC. These communities belonged to the Machalilla culture, which fished and hunted the southern shores of Manabí until roughly 1000 BC. Machalilla burial sites are notable for the presence of ceramic turtle shells covering the tombs, and the culture introduced the practice of decorative skull-flattening to the coast.

Following the Machalilla, two other important civilizations took root on different parts of the coast. In the north part of the Esmeraldas province and in southern Colombia, the La Tolita culture united around 600 BC and lasted until 400 AC. It was centered around the Esmeraldas island of La Tolita, where archeologists have found countless examples of the civilization's fine goldsmithing. A century after the La Tolita culture emerged, the Bahia culture took shape in southern Manabí, near the city of Bahía de Caraquez. The Isla de la Plata was the religious center for this civilization, which lasted until the 7th century AC.

The province of Manabí hosted two civilizations that stretched from the early centuries of the common era until the Spanish conquest. In the province's north, the Jama-Coaque culture centered around the modern-day town of Jama. Meanwhile, the Manteño civilization covered a stretch of coastline running from Santa Elena to Chone River in Manabí. Its religious and administrative center was at the town of Agua Blanca, where artifacts from the culture have been preserved in a community museum.

Indigenous societies survived the Spanish conquest, and some of the most famous indigenous groups in the country currently inhabit the northern coast region. One such group is the Chachi, who inhabit the lowland forests in the Esmeraldas province. The Chachi traditionally subsisted by fishing and hunting, but increasingly they have turned to cultivating bananas, cacao and other crops in the dense jungle. In the last few years, they have also opened their communities to eco-tourism.

Meanwhile, the province of Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas is still home to its namesakes. The Tsachila, scattered in villages around the provincial capital, are famous for the achiote dye that the men use to color their hair red. Most economic activity centers around farming. The Tsachila are also renowned healers, using a variety of plants from the surrounding rainforest in order to cure physical and emotional ailments.

Esmeraldas is home to the country's largest population of Afro-Ecuadorians. Over 150.000 Afro Ecuadorians live in Esmeraldas province, making it the most highly-populated province by Afro Ecuadorians. They are the descendants of West Africans who escaped slavery in Colombia and Peru by taking refuge in the dense forests of Esmeraldas. Today, the province's Afro-Ecuadorians can be found in the major cities, as well as in fishing villages and jungle farming communities. Afro-Ecuadorian culture is renowned for its marimba music and dance, as well as its distinctive, coconut-based cuisine.