History and Sociology Essay question: Describe how migration is a cultural trait of Caribbean people. Migration is said to be a cultural trait of Caribbean people. Migration is the movement of people from one place to another. It allows for the diffusion of ideas and cultural traits. Culture is the way of life of people, while traits speak to habits or customs of people. Therefore cultural traits refer to the habitual activities such as, values, attitudes, norms and beliefs, which characterizes the way of life of people.
When people migrate there is a transfer of these traits ND because the Caribbean people are known for migrating, it can be said that migration is a cultural trait of Caribbean people. There are a number of reasons why migration is a cultural trait of Caribbean people. These reasons include: the fact that migration has been occurring over a long period of time with the Caribbean, it is a consistent response to the economic and social situations faced by the Caribbean people, it is a part of the belief system of the people of the Caribbean that migration can provide social stability, and the number of people who have migrated.
In writing this essay I will examine the history of the Caribbean people and migration from 1492 to present. Migration has been occurring over a long period of time, from 1492 to present, and as such it is a cultural trait of the Caribbean people. In 1492 during the encounter period, the Taints migrated from Asia along the bearing strait to the Caribbean where Christopher Columbus found them. Columbus had migrated from Spain to the Caribbean which he referred to as the ‘New World’. He was in search of fortune and wealth. Shortly after Columbus titles in the Caribbean, other Europeans migrated to the Caribbean.
These include the British and the French who came, fought for power and colonized territories. When they colonized the islands they imported slaved from Africa to work on plantations. During the slavery period thousands of slaves migrated to the Caribbean as forced laborers. When slavery abolished in 1838 migration continued in the Caribbean. In 1800 to 1848, East Indians and Chinese migrated to the Caribbean as indentured servants. From the post emancipation period through to the pre independence period, migration was s ongoing trend among the Caribbean people.
People migrated within the Caribbean region in an attempt to find employment. They migrated from the more populated countries such as Jamaica to countries that were less populated such Trinidad. They also migrated within the Caribbean region among non-British countries and the Central and South America. The people migrated to countries such as Cuba, Costa Rica and Panama. In the sass many of the Caribbean people to Panama to work on the trans-isthmian railway, and between the 1 sass and 1914 more than 1 00,000 people grated to work on the Panama Canal.
During World War 1 and World War 2, people also migrated Britain to aid in the fight. During the pre- independence era people living in British colonies also migrated to England in search of employment and social stability and migration did not stop there. In 2005, many of the Caribbean people migrate to the USA and Canada. According to Dry. K. Schmidt, approximately five million people have migrated since 2003 from the Caribbean to the USA and Canada in search of employment, educational opportunities and social stability.
They migrate to hose developed nations as a response to the economic crisis they face in their native country. As such migration is consistent among Caribbean people as more people are migrating in response to the crisis situation existing in their native country. In concluding, it is evident that migration is a cultural trait of the Caribbean people because it has been happening since 1492, has consistently been used as a response to economic crisis, has been a belief that is provides social stability, the number of people who have migrated and the growing number of people who are still migrating.
