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LOCAL            Monday 24 June 2024
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            The Aruban Cunukero

            From past to present


            (Oranjestad)—Aruba’s       culture                                                                           carded.
            consists of rich historical traditions
            that  make  up  the  Aruban  identity                                                                        Because of the dry climate in Aru-
            and  lifestyle.  However,  the  life  of                                                                     ba,  growing  food  for  commercial
            the  cunukero  (farmer)  is  perhaps                                                                         purposes  was  not  popular.  The
            the  most  important  aspect  of  our                                                                        focus  was  mainly  on  cattle  herd-
            culture, in a sense representing to                                                                          ing  and  taking  care  of  livestock.
            locals the true essence of the Aru-                                                                          However,  livestock  need  food  to
            ban.                                                                                                         survive,  and  when  Aruba  experi-
                                                                                                                         enced its duper dry climate, many
            Historically, cunucus (farms) played                                                                         farmers would see a big loss in their
            a huge role in the early social and                                                                          livestock, and hence profit.
            economic development of Aruba,
            and  its  relevance  dates  back  to                                                                         Although the WIC at one point did
            the early days of the colonization                                                                           try to come up with an initiative to
            era.  Upon  being  discovered  by                                                                            get more people to have land on
            Spanish  conquistadors  in  the  late                                                                        the island, the climate never really
            15th century, Aruba was used pri-                                                                            allowed  real  profit  from  farming.
            marily  as  a  ranch,  housing  horses                                                                       Because  of  the  climate,  Aruban
            and  cattle  brought  from  Europe.                                                                          farmers in general could not keep
            During the Dutch colonization era  through stealing or through secret  group  among  Caribbean  farmers  large  quantities  of  livestock.  At  a
            where  the  West  Indian  Company  exchanges  with  other  slaves  from  at the time.                        certain  point  toward  the  end  of
            (WIC)  dominated  the  economic  different plantations.                                                      the  18th  century,  the  climate  got
            sphere on the island, using the land                                    The WIC placed a lot of restrictions  so bad that many farmers decided
            to set up cattle farms and ranches  However,  the  Aruban  cunukeros  on  these  indigenous  farmers—a  to leave the island for a while.
            remained popular.                   back then are hard to place, and  method  to  safeguard  their  cattle
                                                their history may explain why.      deposit  on  the  island.  The  indige-  For this reason, the farming econ-
            Anthropologist  Sidney  Mintz  divid-                                   nous farmers were mostly granted  omy on the island remained small.
            ed Caribbean farmers back in four  From  1636  (beginning  of  Dutch  less  than  7  acres  of  land.  Those  As the years went by and people
            categories:                         colonization era) to before the oil  who  owned  bigger  land  were  ei-  noticed  that  these  farms  could
                                                industry  in  1924,  Aruba’s  popula-  ther once affiliated with the WIC or  not really produce any sustainable
            1.      The  “squatters”,  who  were  tion  consisted  of  mostly  farmers.  were colonists who settled on the  profit, farmers kept their small piece
            mostly  comprised  of  illegal  and  These  farmers  were  mostly  indig-  island to try their luck at farming. In  of land just to live off of. This is why
            poor colonists, runaway slaves and  enous and were characterized as  1767,  there were  about  120  hous-    the Aruban cunukeros only played
            deserters who took advantage of  peasants. They weren’t allowed to  es/cunucus on the island.                a very tiny role into the plantation
            the Spanish’s weak supervision on  participate in trading, but instead                                       economy.
            Caribbean  islands  like  Cuba  and  were  granted  a  piece  of  land  to  These  Aruban  farmers  were  also
            the DR;                             live  off  of.  However,  in  exchange  limited  to  the  amount  of  cattle  In modern Aruba, cunucus and cu-
            2.      Then you have “Early Yeo-   for  this  grant,  these  indigenous  they could keep. Most kept goats  nukeros still exist on the island, for-
            men”, who were legal farmers who  farmers were obligated to work for  as cattle, as only those who were  tunately  with  more  freedom  and
            came to the west under contract.  the WIC, doing daily tasks such as  affiliated with the WIC could keep  more  opportunity  to  tap  into  the
            Once their contract expired, they  taking care of or hunting cattle—    (more) sheep. Of the 76 goat herd-   agricultural  market.  These  farm-
            were given a plot of land for inde-  large majority of which were des-  ers on the island, about 45 of them  ers usually  sell their produce on a
            pendent use;                        tined  for  Curacao,  clean  water  had less than 30 goats, and only 7  smaller  scale,  like  during  farmers’
            3.      Proto-Peasants  were  plan-  tanks  and  chop  wood,  among  of them had more than 60 goats.         market events  and  other types  of
            tation slaves who were allowed to  other things.                                                             (holiday) events.
            have a small piece of land to grow                                      It wasn’t until the WIC was defunct
            food  for  their  own  consumption.  As much as these farmers were giv-  in  late  18th  century  that  these  Source:  “Arubaans  Akkoord:  Op-
            This  was  to  curb  the  cost  of  living  en to opportunity to live “free” with  farmers were able to obtain more  stellen  over  Aruba  van  voor  de
            on the plantations;                 a plot of land, their exclusion from  freedom as cunukeros. After 1824,  komst van de olieindustrie (Aruban
            4.      Lastly  you  have  the  “Run-  the trading and business world, as  the government gave these farm-   Accord:  Essays  on  Aruba  Before
            away  Peasantries”,  usually  com-  well as being deprived the chance  ers official permission to keep live-  the  Arrival  of  the  Oil  Industry)”  by
            prised of runaway slaves who ac-    to become real property and cat-    stock,  and  the  obligations  once  Alofs, Luc; Rutgers, Wim; Coomans,
            quired  farming  tools  and  cattle  tle  owners,  made  them  a  unique  placed on them were officially dis-  Henny E. red.



            Aruba to me



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