The Jíbaro Nation
xíbaro-ximarrón
jímaran
xímaran, jímaran
xí.ma.ran, jí.ma.ran, n. 1. word of indigenous origin, arrow fired from the bow 2. escaped from the dominion of man 3. fugitive, escaped, risen, brave 4. applied to domestic animals, which escape and turn wild and also to men, first indigenous and later Africans who escaped seeking freedom away from the dominion of the master
cimarrón
ximarrón, cimarrón
xi.ma.rrón, ci.ma.rrón, n. 1. maroon: escaped slaves of African origin who escaped seeking freedom away from the dominion of the master 2. escaped from domestication 3. applied to domestic animals, which escape and turn wild 4. fugitive, escaped, risen, brave
jíbaro
xíbaro, gíbaro, jíbaro, xívaro, gívaro, jívaro
xí.ba.ro, jí.ba.ro, gí.ba.ro, n. 1. mountain folk of the island of Puerto Rico; a term used to describe a Puerto Rican peasant; anyone from the countryside 2. word of indigenous origin; applied originally to one of the numerous groups or nations in which the caribes (Caribs) were divided; the Jíbaro nation was characterized by its mountainous habits (Salvador Brau) 3. indians who escaped into the hills to avoid forced servitude under Spanish colonial rule (Sued Badillo) 4. (Sp. orthography) jíbaro “forest man”, i.e. native, term with which Spanish sailors identified the natives, or “mountain people” in Central and South America 5. racial classification applied to crosses between Blacks and natives in Spanish Colonial System, (in Brazil) local term of Tupi origin applied to various crosses between Blacks and natives 6. (in Ecuador & Peru) Jíbaro, Jívaro, Xívaro, Chíwaro North West Amazonian ethno-linguistic family group (i.e., Shuara, Shuar) with long history of survival and defense against outsiders and a reputation as fierceness warriors in battle, who engage in guerilla tactics and headhunters
The word jíbaro (modern spelling in PR) represents today a “true and genuine Puerto Rican.” The jíbaros were originally the mountain folk of Puerto Rico. A term used to refer to peasants or anyone from the countryside, which probably developed from an indigenous word (xímaran/jímaran); an arrow fired from the bow, no longer under the archer’s control, escaped from the dominion of man or an escaped fugitive. The word has been applied to domestic animals, which escape and turn wild, and also applied to men, first indigenous and later Africans who escaped seeking freedom away from the dominion of the colonial masters. It is closely related to the term maroon, derived from the Spanish cimarrón (also from xímara/jímaran) and referring to fugitive slaves of African origin who escaped seeking freedom away from the dominion of the master or escaped from domestication, also applied to domestic animals, which escape and turn wild. The term is also applied to plants in their wild, natural or undomesticated state, which suggests that it is the act of existing independently and not to the act of escaping from dominion.
On June 2nd of 1820, the work titled “Coplas del Gíbaro”, were published in the newspaper El Investigador. In 1835 "xibaro" surfaces in French and American documents. In 1849, Dr. Manuel Alonzo, published his book, "El Gibaro." The word jíbaro (spelling in Puerto Rico), generally refers to mountain folk of the island of Puerto Rico. It is a term used to describe a Puerto Rican peasant or anyone from the countryside. A word, which apparently was originally applied to one of the numerous groups or “nations” in which the Caribes (Caribs) were divided; the Jíbaro nation was supposedly characterized by its mountainous habits (Salvador Brau). It was also applied to indians who escaped into the hills to avoid forced servitude under Spanish colonial rule (Sued Badillo).
The word jíbaro and its many variations (xíbaro, gíbaro, xívaro, gívaro, jívaro, etc.) means “forest man”, or native. It was the term with which Spanish sailors identified the natives, or “mountain people” in Central and South America, those they had not yet conquered. It was also a racial classification applied to crosses between Blacks and Natives in the Spanish colonial system. In Brazil it is a local term of Tupi origin applied to various crosses between Africans and Natives. The terms Jíbaro, Jívaro, Xívaro and Chíwaro (in Ecuador & Peru) are applied to a North West Amazonian language family group (i.e., Shuara, Shuar) with a long history of survival and defense against outsiders and a reputation as fierceness warriors who engage in guerilla tactics and headhunting.
To say jíbaro in Puerto Rico is to refer to the most “native,” or “national” identity of the Puerto Rican people, that which is genuinely Puerto Rican. From the late sixteenth century until present times, native or national culture in Puerto Rico has carried the imprint of, not only the European culture imposed by Spanish colonization, but also strong and significant traces of Native and African cultural elements. Most cultural manifestations of the island have fallen within the wider framework of Criollo or Jíbaro civilization, without disregarding the influences of the non-Hispanic Caribbean and the US.
Up to about the second half of the 19th century, the mountainous central range of the island, known as the Cordillera Central, was an agricultural settlement dedicated to the production of coffee and other minor products. Its settlers, pioneers of Mediterranean and Peninsular descent, along with the base of indigenous presence and a strong and significant influence of numerous imported Africans, slowly developed into the foundations of what is recognizable today as the distinct culture and folklore of the region. The traits of the Native population, the peoples of African descent, and later the European settlers and immigrants during the mid-19th century greatly influenced Puerto Rican customs and traditions to eventually form what can be described as the jíbaro (mountain folk) culture characteristic of the region. Some of the most important aspects of these people’s way of life were projected directly on the daily lives and the social and cultural expressions of the population of this area. For various circumstances, the inhabitants of this area were until quite recently, subjected to an extreme geographical and social isolation. This allowed for the preservation and development of cultural traditions with respective regional peculiarities. The Puerto Rican mountains were a thick wooded area with few and far between roads. It was actually easier to travel to the other side of the island by boat than to travel across the Cordillera Central. This isolated the jíbaros as they developed their distinct identity.
Traditionally a jíbaro was a “mountain folk” (like the American hillbilly), someone from the mountains, el campo (the countryside) or la altura (the hights) in Puerto Rico. A jíbaro was the poor campesino with a strong oral tradition. Some traits traditionally associated to jíbaros are honesty, bravery, hospitality, self-sufficiency, stubbornness, and pride. A jibaro knows how to live of the land. A jíbaro, is a jíbaro, regardless of where he/she is. Whether living in the mountains of Puerto Rico, in Old San Juan or in El Barrio, NYC. The important thing is that he or she lives in a "jíbaro" state of mind, uncompromised to that which is not to his/her community’s best interest.. The "jíbaro" isn't identified with any of the particular racial or ethnic roots, which make up the Puerto Rican, it is the jíbaro’s beliefs, philosophy and way of life, which make him/her a true "jíbaro". Yes, the jibaros, originated or developed as a particular identity generally associated with the central mountain range of the island of Puerto Rico, yet you can take the jíbaro out of the monte, but you cannot take the monte out of the jíbaro.
And what was the foundation of “jíbaro culture”? How did our ancestors, who became the symbolic representation of who we are as a people, “live” their lives? Jíbaros were jíbaros because they carried out their own independent way of life, away from the colonial yoke. How did they do this? Well building their social organization on the foundations of organic collectivism or communalism inherited from the pre-industrial traditions of our Indigenous, African and European ancestors. And what is “communalism”?
organic
organic, n. 1. characteristic of, pertaining to living organisms. 2. growing and developing in the manner of living organisms.
collectivism
collectivism, n. 1. the political principle of centralized social and economic control, esp. of all means of production.
communalism
communalism, n. 1. a system of government whereby each commune is virtually an independent state. 2. the principles or practices of communal ownership. 3. strong allegiance to one’s own ethnic group rather than to a society as a whole.
commune
commune, n., v. 1. any community organized for local interests. 2. the government or citizens of a commune. 3. a close knit community of people who share common interests. 4. a place for group living and sharing of work and production. 5. to converse or talk together intimately. 6. interchange of ideas or sentiments. 7. to partake of the Eucharist [back formation from COMMUNION].
One of the crucial problems faced by Puerto Ricans is our ignorance of our own traditional (jíbaro) concepts of life and community. The lack of knowledge about the jíbaro way of life confronts our nation with the inability to act in its own interest since we generally ignore these traditional social patterns and value systems. The imposition of colonial capitalist systems has practically erased from our collective memory our original concepts of identity and community.
According to the old folks, a jíbaro community could have been made up of anywhere from 100 up to maybe even 1,000 inhabitants. There was not a single policeman, no jail, no secret agents, no law enforcement officials. Doors remained unlocked, strangers were always welcome, but rapidly noticed. Everyone felt responsible towards everybody else in the community. If a community member suffered, the whole community as a whole suffered.
These jíbaro communities were communalistic, i.e., each community self-determined their own social, political, economic and leadership organization. The leadership in these communities was organic, there was a minimum dependence between different community segments and no private ownership of the land or the means of production. Each local community was relatively independent. The socials divisions basically were as follows; the immediate family first, then the community, and finally the association of communities, habitually scattered, but uniting or collaborating in case of need.
These communities were democratically ran by a process in which decisions were made collectively by all the members of the community. The inhabitants worked together to grow food on land that was used by all but owned by none. They stood together to defend their community against common threats and any quarrel among them was considered as a community affair. The immediate family was the smallest but most important institution in jíbaro social and organizational structure. It was within the family where basic cultural education was carried out: language, social relationships, general knowledge of the environment, community history and social values in general.
Jíbaros acquired the means of their livelihood collectively. It is in this way, that they worked hand in hand with other members of their community to ensure their own welfare and prosperity. They all worked for one another and piled up the outcomes of their activities. That is to say, each person worked to provide some of the means and made them available for all. Then all individuals gathered the outcome of their activities in proportion with their activity and social status, in accordance with their positions and the extent of their endeavor. All the adult members of the society took a share of the means and use it to manage their own personal lives.
My father often uses a popular saying, which he learned from his father: "Cumple con tus deberes y disfrutaras de tus derechos". 'Comply with your duties, and you will enjoy your privileges' (Hostos). In a productive society or community, its members acquire the means of their livelihood collectively. A productive society is an organization, a structured system, or closely integrated group of human beings living in companionship with each other within a community. This community provides them with protection, continuity, security, and collective identity. It is held together by mutual dependence and exhibits division of tasks. This is the way in which the jibaro communities functioned up until the 19th century or so.
If you ask any elder about the foundation of the jíbaro way of life, they will tell you that it was asistencia-mutua (mutual-aid). Mutual-aid is a feature of the greatest importance for the maintenance of life, the preservation of any group, and its further evolution. Mutual-aid (which leads to mutual confidence, the first condition for courage) combined with individual initiative (the first condition for intellectual progress) is infinitely more important and productive than mutual struggle. Throughout history, mutual-aid societies have emerged from humanity’s struggle for survival, but as a social and even biological expression of a universal pattern of organization. These values were reflected in the village society, which was the predominant form of jíbaro social organization up through the 19th century. Jíbaros where people of common origins or with mutual social bonds grouped together to provide for they’re collective needs and for their mutual defense, support and justice without imposing on the individual or family.
A mutual-aid society can be described as a tribe, a clan, a community, a nation, etc., which provides protection, continuity, security, and collective identity to its members. It is held together by mutual dependence and it exhibits delegation of labor or tasks. It is a beneficial association (at least to its members) in which human beings prosper collectively. At the same time it organizes and gives meaning to the life of the each individual member. It is the natural state and highest level of Human interaction. A mutual-aid society is a collective identity, which provides stability, and meaning within the context of a fragmented culture that has lost its sense of community.
community
community. n. 1. a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and have a common cultural and historical heritage. 2. a social, religious, occupational, or other group sharing common characteristics or interests. 3. Ecol. a population of organisms occupying a given area. 4. joint possession, enjoyment, liability, etc.: community of property. 5. similar character; agreement: community of interests. 6. the community, the public; society.
In a true jíbaro community, every child was your son or daughter, every peer was your brother or sister, and every elder was your father or mother.
Modern societies have turned away from the effective processes of initiation, from the importance of family, tribe and nation. We are an uprooted population without home, land or fellowship. Without a functional collective identity, our relationships to family and community have become disposable in the pursuit of a materialistic “higher standard of living”. The difference between modern society and others is community or lack there of. Industrialization, globalization and consumerism have utterly destroyed the natural tribal or communal environment and have isolated modern humans.
Humans are social beings, it is in their human nature to coexist socially. It is an inherent drive or characteristic of human beings in their natural state of existence. When was the last time you observed humans in their natural state of existence? Could you even if you wanted to? Any organism, which is obligated to exist outside of its natural state, it is in captivity. It is either in a state of bondage, servitude, imprisonment, or incarceration, i.e., not jíbaro. And being in any of these states of existence one certainly cannot experience happiness (welfare and prosperity). These conditions also imply a forced isolation from other organisms. Isolation is not just being alone, it means being separated from others. The more isolated you are, the less power you have, and the more captive you become. As mutual-aid societies, jíbaro communities, promoted unity, they brought individuals together. The modern ideal of individualism serves the opposite function.
As a jíbaro, I believe in “organic collectivism or communalism”, I reject the capitalist system for it is disconnected from the most basic necessities of the masses, it dehumanizes material property and lumps the people into uniform masses doomed to desperation. Consumerism and the obsession with money drives people away from all spiritual foundations of life, creating at the same time mayor differences between those who have and those who don’t have. On a national level, Capitalism is a system whereby the work of the majority of the people produces the wealth for a minority of individuals who own the means of production. On an international level, capitalism is a system by which the world’s developing nations provide the work and raw materials for the benefit of the wealthy minority. In other words, the slavery of human by human is the basic source of capitalism and its expansion throughout the world. I do not believe in a struggle between classes, for it is through mutual-aid and harmonious coexistence that a sovereign nation is built. In the same way, I reject the Marxist concept of Communism, for it establishes a materialistic sense of human existence, which clashes, with a spiritual vision of Humanity. Communism is a system that tries to control the wealth and the land of a nation in the name of the “state,” pretending equality among its citizens. I cannot accept a doctrine, which inherently rejects my deepest spiritual beliefs, such as the principle of individual freedom we are all created with.
We should strive for the existence of higher values, superior to material interests, and create a sense of collaboration with a common mission. Both Capitalism and Communism are equally imperialistic systems. But organic collectivism or communalism is a system whereby the material resources of terrestrial life, belong not only to individuals or to the state, but to the essential fundamental community and all of its members, be they poor, rich, scholars or simple, young and old. With all having full access to the material resources of the community. This is a system in which the “leaders” or heads of the community are symbols or representatives of the community and the where the true authority belongs to the people of the society entirely.
It is not my intention to idealize the jíbaro way of life and portray it as a utopian world. In any society, as in all of life, the activities of individuals are linked with those of others, since everyone wants to benefit from the results of these activities, violence, inconvenience and conflict of interests are inevitable elements of this complex relationship of constant contact and interaction. It is needles to say that material benefits are normally the source of all kinds of differences, animosities, and loss of sincerity and respect. I am not an Anarchist either, since I believe that in order to maintain harmony among people, a society requires a series of regulations, the observance of which prevents disturbance and chaos. But the effectiveness of these regulations is based on the social, moral and spiritual values they are founded upon. And it is the jíbaro values of self, family and community, which I want to bring to our attention as an alternative to the dysfunctional system of modern materialistic values, which has been imposed on us as a people.
Our Consecrated Teacher, El Maestro, Don Pedro Albizu Campos (yes, I am a Nationalist) taught us that humans are free by their very nature. Which means we are subject to rights and, as individuals subject to rights, we are free to form families, and with other families develop a society. And that society constitutes a community; a Transpersonal Other or Collective Self. With other communities, we build a free nation, which has its own identity or personality within the world we inhabit. That is the Law of Nature, the living expression of the Truth!
All nations are ultimately the product of not just centuries, but millennia of tradition and evolution, a continuum of the legacy of their ancestors. Many of us have been disconnected from these traditions and societies through the process of enslavement. But the Light continues to shine attracting the lost members of our great family.
"What thou shall hear in thy ear proclaim to other ears from your rooftops. For no one kindles a lamp and sets it under a bushel-basket nor puts it in a hidden place, but rather it is placed upon the lamp-stand so that everyone who comes in and goes out will see its light."
-The Gospel According to Thomas
Ay le lo lay le lo lé
lo le lo lay le lo lé
Soy Jíbaro Borinqueño
Y le puedo asegurar
que ni aquí ni en ningún lugar
yo tengo amo ni dueño
Yo trabajo con empeño
señores ese es mi oficio
Ese mi fín y mi inicio
No soy esclavo de nadie
pues vivo como mis padres
con Valor y Sacrificio
Carlos "Tato" Torres
Luz y Progreso
Amor y Caridad
Paz y Justicia
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