Curaçao
Where and what is the island of Curaçao?
Curaçao, or Kòrsou, is an autonomous island nation in the Caribbean Sea that is a part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Prior to 2018, it was a part of the Netherland Antilles. Curaçao is located right off the coast of Venezuela, and lies in between its former Netherland Antilles counterparts, Aruba and Bonaire. Together the three islands are referred to as the ABC Islands. Curaçao means “heart” or “center”. First colonized by the Spanish, and then the Dutch, the island became a major trading center for the Dutch West India Company, which was a primary operator of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Since its inception as a colonial place and space, it has been a multicultural society, a product of African slaves, European traders and enslavers, refugee Sephardic Jews, and the Arawak natives.
Curaçao is located outside of the hurricane belt and close the equator. The island enjoys hot, pretty dry weather all year long.
There are many languages spoken in Curaçao, but the three main ones are: Papiamentu, Dutch, and English. Almost all locals speak Papiamentu; which is a creole language - a mixture of Portuguese, West African dialect, Dutch, English, and Spanish. If you speak Spanish, Portuguese, or Cape Verdean Creole, Papiamentu may sound familiar to you.
Where and what is the is the island of Curaçao?
A melting pot of culture and different languages, and a Caribbean creole called Papiamentu. Join me as we take a quick dive to see exactly how this all came to be in Curaçao. The island where my mother was born.
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