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Dominica is a small island in the eastern Caribbean that is home to the last known surviving tribe of Carib Indians. The Caribs are the descendents of two Amerindian groups, the Arawaks and the Kalinago, a people that ventured north from the Orinoco River delta, of what is now Venezuela, some 7000 years ago.
The two tribes lived together peacefully, melding their cultures for thousands of years. This peaceful cohabitation went uninterrupted until Christopher Columbus' explorations brought Europeans to the Caribbean. The Carib people, with fierce determination, have remained independent to this day.
Although the country of Dominica has only been independent since 1978, the Caribs have been an autonomous group since 1903 when the British granted them 3700 acres of land, "The Territory", in some of the remotest regions of the island. Today there are approximately 3500 Caribs living in the territory.
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