Creolization in the Dutch-speaking Caribbean

Hey guys! Welcome back to another episode of "My Music Blog" with Ches, your favorite blogger. So far we discussed creolization of the English and French speaking Caribbean countries so today we will talk about the Dutch-speaking ones.

Honestly, I didn't even know we had Dutch-speaking Caribbean countries, I just knew of the English, Spanish and French speaking ones. But now that I'm all caught up, we will look at two of these countries and how they are creolized in some way. 

The two countries I chose are Sint Maarten and Aruba.

According to Tour De Force, Sint Maarten has a national dance called "Ponum" or "Panam". It is a rhythmic and energetic dance emerged from celebrations of freedom of slaves. It was said that the ponum was danced under a poinciana tree with dancers waving its branches. This dance is a good example of creolization. I say this because it was performed by the enslaved and the book mentioned slaves being brought from Africa to work on sugar plantations. So the dance is influenced with West African culture. 

Below is a picture of people performing the dance. I honestly chose this picture because I didn't have much options and it was the most lively looking one. I wanted something that captured more of the celebration aspect of the dance with excited faces but we'll settle for this.

Source: https://smn-news.com/index.php/st-maarten-st-martin-news/40697-department-of-culture-invites-the-community-to-learn-the-ponum-dance-in-prep-for-the-emancipation-day-diamond-26-run-for-freedom.html

Below is also a video of people performing the Ponum dance. I chose this video because of the unexpected history briefing at the beginning of the video. Not only that, the musicians are also featured in the video so we can see what instruments were used to make the rhythms they dance to. It's a little long but worth the while.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSIX4BQHNEw

Now let's look at Aruba. Aruba has a creolized style of music called Tambu. According to Tour de Force, Tambu includes call and response singing with rhythmic accompaniment provided by the clapping of hand and stomping of feet. Tambu has clear roots in colonialism and slavery and strong connections to African inspired traditions. In Tambu, couples face each other without touching. Flat footed, shuffling steps and hip gyration distinct to African influenced dances are involved. This music style can be compared to calypso.

Attached below is a photo of a man playing the tambu drum. I was going to upload a picture of just the drum but I felt as if this was more suitable seeing that it's culture related. Its giving Caribbean social studies book cover page.

Source: https://doi.org/10.5406/blacmusiresej.30.2.0197

Below is a video of the musical dance. I chose this video because of it's title. Because it was mentioned in Tour de Force that Tambu was banned at a point of time.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHFhV67Rfr0

Another example of creolization in the Dutch-speaking Caribbean islands is 'Keshi Yena', a dish native to Curacao and Aruba. According to tasteatlas, Keshi yena consists of a large portion of cheese, stuffed with spiced meat that can either be served baked or steamed. It came about from slaves that used the wax rind of cheese that their masters ate stuffing it with meat and vegetables. 

Attached below is a picture of the Keshi Yena. I chose this picture because it was the clearest and neatest looking photo of the dish. 

Source: https://recipes.frescocooks.com/en-US/1294-keshi-yena-curacao-stuffed-cheese-casserole

Below is a step by step video on how the dish is prepared. I chose this video because this gentleman gives an account of his personal experience and also a little bit of background information. Plus he's old, who doesn't like old people??

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8UwObrkyA4

References

De Jong, N. (2010, September 22). The Tambú of Curaçao: Historical Projections and the Ritual Map of Experience. Black Music Research Journal; University of Illinois Press. https://doi.org/10.5406/blacmusiresej.30.2.0197

LeGrand, C.G. C. (2019). Tour de Force: A Musical Journey of the Caribbean. [VitalSource Bookshelf].

              Retrieved from https://online.vitalsource.com/#/books/9789769624900/ 

SMN NEWS TEAM. (2022, June 22). St. Martin News Network - Department of Culture invites the community to learn the “Ponum Dance” in prep for the Emancipation Day “Diamond 26 Run For Freedom.” https://smn-news.com/index.php/st-maarten-st-martin-news/40697-department-of-culture-invites-the-community-to-learn-the-ponum-dance-in-prep-for-the-emancipation-day-diamond-26-run-for-freedom.html

T. (2016b, February 16). Keshi Yena | Traditional Meat Dish From Aruba, Caribbean | TasteAtlas. https://www.tasteatlas.com/keshi-yena