The document provides information on the Caribbean region, including its definition, characteristics, and impacts of historical processes. It defines the Caribbean geographically, geologically, historically, and politically. It describes Caribbean society and culture, including characteristics like cultural diversity, social stratification, and hybridization. It then discusses historical migratory movements and systems of unfree labor. Finally, it outlines geological features such as plate tectonics, volcanoes, and earthquakes, as well as environmental hazards including hurricanes, tropical storms, and soil erosion.

1. LOCATION AND DEFINITION OF THE CARIBBEAN REGION
Definition of the Caribbean Region
Geographical
This describes the area washed by the Caribbean Sea and is oftendescribed as the Caribbean Basin. It
would therefore include mostof the islands of the Lesser Antilles, Greater Antilles as well as themainland
territories in Central America (Costa Rica, Belize,Panama, Honduras) and Northern South America such
asColumbia and Venezuela. The common link here is the CaribbeanSea.
Geological
There are deep seated structural features of Caribbean geologywhich also identifies commonalities. It is
the area that is defined bythe Caribbean Plate and which experiences similar tectonic,seismic and
volcanic features and processes.
H
istorical
It describes the area that saw the impact of European colonization,slavery, indentureship and the
plantation system. this refers to allthe territories so that one way of defining the Caribbean is toidentify
those countries that experienced the rule of specificEuropean countries. Thus the Caribbean may be
defined as being broken up into the English, French, Dutch and Spanish speakingcountries and
territories.

2. Political
In the Caribbean at least three types of governmental systems arefound. They include Independent
States, Associated States andColonial Dependencies.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SOCIETY
Society
Society is a collection of people occupying a defined geographical area over a long period of time.
Society in the Caribbean is often considered the boundaries of a nation state.
The sociological understanding of the term society stresses the interaction amongst its members.
Culture
Culture is widely regarded as the way of life for a people.
It is often defined as the learned behavior of a people. Culture issub divided into
material
and
non-material
culture.

3. M
aterial culture includes the products of people such as their stylesof architecture, types of food
preparation, economic organizationsand their forms of technology.
Non-material culture refers to the cherished values, ideas, beliefsand ideas.
Cultural value
refer to a set of rankings people in a society confer on to a myriad of social behaviors.
Norms
are standards of behavior that are culturally accepted and emanate from the realm of cultural values
that we share.
CHARACTERISTICS OF CARIBBEAN SOCIETY ANDCULTURE
Page 2
Cultural Diversity
Cultural Diversity is the existence of sub-cultures within a main culture or different cultures in a larger
area such as the Caribbeanand the US.
Social Stratification
This is the social arrangement of society based on criteria such asrace, wealth and education.

4. Social Mobility
This is the movement, usually of individuals or groups, from onesocial position to another within the
socially stratified system inany society.
Hybridization
This is the admixture of cultural traits and exchange of values fromother cultures.
Cultural Erasure
This is where traits or practices of a culture are no longer practicedover time.
Cultural Retention
This may occur as a result of the deliberate desire to keeptraditions alive and help some groups to
preserve their sense of identity. It is also defined as the process where past cultural practices are
practiced presently.
Cultural Renewal
This is where cultural practices that were once done are beingrevived or the fashioning of new practices
based on those of the past.
IMPACT OF HISTORICAL PROCESSES

5. Migratory Movements
The ancestors of the pre-Colombian Amerindians may have comeout of North Eastern Asia across the
frozen Bering Straits toAlaska during the fourth Ice Age some fifteen to twenty thousandyears ago. The
nomads wandered southwards through North,Central and South America evolving distinct physical and
culturacharacteristics.
Over hundreds of years the Amerindians moved and some settled.Some of the familiar names are Aztec,
Maya and Inca.
The Orinoco Basin and the Guianas in South America were theoriginal homeland of the Caribs and
Arawaks who migratednorthwards through the Lesser Antilles to the Greater Antilles. By1492, the main
Arawak groups which inhabited the West Indieswere the Lucayans in the Bahamas and Tainos in Cuba,
Jamaica,Haiti and Puerto Rico. The greatest Amerindian civilizationflourished on the mainland of
Mesoamericas and South America.
It is perhaps the constant movement of people into and out of theCaribbean that led Richardson to refer
to a regional
migrationtradition.
This propensity to migrate, he argued, took off immediately after emancipation in the 1830¶s when
thousands of men and women most notably from smaller islands, migrated toTrinidad and British
Guiana in search of higher wages and better conditions. By 1845, more than 10 000 migrants from small
WestIndian Islands had travelled to Trinidad and over 8000 others hadgone to British Guiana.
Many of these emigrants eventuallyreturnedhome displaying the fruits of their labour. This
movementcontinued from a long time as a feature of Caribbean people, thatis, to move from small
islands of the Eastern Caribbean to larger ones in a complex inter-island migration.
Encomienda System (System of UnfreeLabor)

6. Hispaniola was the first test ground for Spain¶s Indian Policy.
Page 5
At this plate margin, the plates move away from each other and iscalled a constructive plate margin as
new crust is formed. Thisresults in gentle volcanis and earthquake activity.
Magma is forcedupwards and new crust is created. E.g. the Caribbean and NorthAmerican plates move
away from each other to form the CaymanIsland Ridge.
T ransform plate margin
At this plate margin, the plates slide past each other withconverging or diverging. It is also called a fault.
Volcanic activitydoes not occur here, instead only seismic activity is experienced.E.g. the Cayman Island
Trench.
V
olcanoes
A volcano is an opening in the earth¶s crust through which moltenrock, ash, steam etc are ejected.In the
Caribbean:
Mt. Pelee-Martinque
Erupted in 1902, and killed 30 000 people.

7. A nueeardente (glowing cloud filled with super heated ash andgases) descended on the village and thus
suffocated the residents.
Earthquakes
Earthquakes are sudden earth movements or vibrations in theearth¶s crust. They are caused by the
development of faults in thecrust which result from collision of plates or from the movement of molten
rocks below or within the crust or the sudden release of stress that has slowly built up along the fault
plane at a transform plate margin. The
focus
is the point at which the earthquakeoriginated. The
epicenter
is the point on the surface of the earthdirectly above the focus.
Risks involvedwith Earthquakes
T
remors
The ground vibrates during an earthquake. Waves travel outwardsfrom side to side. Walls may crack and
windows may break.Utility poles fall and buildings collapse.
Ground Fissures
The ground splits and cracks.

8. Liquefaction
Liquefaction is the process whereby reclaimed land or loosesediments behave like a liquid during an
earthquake.
Flood s
Fires
Port Royal- Jamaica
(1692
)
The entire city of Port Royal slumped into the sea as a result of liquefaction.
Over 3000 people died as a result.
K
ingston Jamaica
(1907
)
Registered a 6-6.5 on the Richter scale
Caused fires

9. 800 deaths
85% buildings destroyed
Ground fissures over 15cm apart
Jamaica
(1993
)
5.4 on the Richter scale
2 deaths
Page 6
Triggered landslides
M
ore than 500 homes destroyed
D
ominica

10. (2004
)
6.3 earthquake
3 historic churches destroyed
Hospital damaged
Landslides
Wall collapsed
I
ndonesian Earthquake and Tsunami
(2004
)
Occurred off the island of Sumatra
Upward displacement of 10m
Tsunami travelled at speed of 800km/h
Hurricanes

11. A hurricane is a low pressure system formed in warm waters. Allhurricanes develop over the sea. They
do not develop close to theequator as they require a surface temperature of 27 degrees.
B
efore a hurrica
n
e
Calm weather, high humidity and strong swells
As hurricane approaches, cloud cover builds up and windsintensify
D
uri
n
g a hurrica
n
e
Wind strongest near the eye of the storm
Eye: calm, down draught of warm air
Wind drops suddenly after eye passes and starts again

12. A
fter a hurrica
n
e
Wind speeds gradually drop
Heavy rain may continue
I nddamage
40% increase in wind speed doubles the destructive power
¡aved amage
Waves may reach 8m high
M
ay be severe beach erosion
M
arine life damaged or killed
Corals damaged

13. Coastal structures damaged
Ships and boats at risk
S
torm surge
Near eye of major hurricane sea levels are several metres abovenormal
Strengthened as approaches shore
Floo
d
i
n
g
Flooding by slowly rising waters (Caroni, Barrackpore)
L
a
nd
sli
d
e

14. Triggered where steep hills are sodden with rain
Page 7
H
u
rricane
I
van in
G
renada
(
September
2004
)
80-90% houses damaged or destroyed
5000-6000 slept in shelters
Power lines brought down
Water supply contaminated

15. Recently built national stadium destroyed
M
ost schools damaged
90% nutmeg trees destroyed
90% trees fell
Roads blocked and airport closed
Landline phone and radio transmitters down
1700 hotel rooms, 300 available
Prison roof blown off
Soils
Soil is the uppermost layer of loose material on top of the orck which makes up the surface of the earth.
It consists of tiny oarticlesderived from the broken down fragment of rock together withhumus.
S
oilerosio
n

16. Soil may be eroded by:
1. Soil compaction by grazing animals and machinery
2. Deforestation
3. Over grazing
4. Over use of artificial fertilizer
5.
M
onoculture
6. Slash and burn cultivation
7. Forest fires
8. Bad agricultural practices
S
oil co
n
servatio

17. n
Soil may be conserved by:
1. Terracing
2.
M
ulching
3. Wind breaks
4. Contour ploughing/drainage
5. Crop rotation
6. Canopy cover
7. Cover cropping
8. Intercropping
9. Reforestation
Coral Reefs

18. H
ow are coral reefs forme
d?
1. The main frame of the reef is built up by coral polyps whish aresmall soft bodied creatures which use
calcium carbonate dissolvedin water to build up a hard casing of limestone to protectthemselves.
2. These tiny polyps live in colonies or large groups.
Page 21
There are three main types of entrenchment in the constitutions of the Commonwealth Caribbean:
Special majorities in t
h
e Parliament-
all of the constitutions of the Commonwealth Caribbean have this procedure which specifiesthat certain sections of
the constitution require special majorities inthe Parliament.
A
pproval o
f
bills
f
or amendment by re
f
erenda-
some of theconstitutions of the Commonwealth Caribbean require that certain bills that seek to amend the constitution
be subjected to theapproval of a referendum after they have been passed inParliament.
Time delay proced
u
res between readings o
f
a
B
ill o
f

19. A
mendment-
some of the constitutions of the commonwealthCaribbean specify that there should be a period of 90 days
betweenthe first and second readings of a bill that seeks to amend theconstitution before the head of state gives
his/her assent to the bill.The effect of such a delay is that the Parliament cannot consider any bill to amend the
constitution hurriedly and more time is givenfor a deeper consideration of the
proposed amendment by
thewider society.
The Caribbean Court of
Appeal
T
he Caribbean Court of
Appeal is intended to be a
replacement for the Privy
Council as the final court of
appeal for the countries

20. of the Commonwealth
Caribbean
The Caribbean Court of
Appeal faces critical issues
such as budget, the method
of selecting judges, the
location of theheadquarters,
the status of a circuit court
or maintaining a
fixedlocation and the
confidence of the Caribbean
public.

21. DEFINTION OF KEY
TERMS
1.
A
tlantic Slave Trade-
the commercial buying
of Africans from West
Africa crossing the Atlantic
Ocean,to be sold to
plantation owners in the
westernhemisphere.
2.

22. Ch
attel slavery-
form of slavery where
people areowned as property
and can be bought or sold
3.
C
omm
u
nism-
a theory of a society where
all propertyshould be owned
by the community or state

23. and labor organized for the
common good.
4.
Cu
lt
u
ral accommodation-
acceptance of aspects of
or traits or traits of foreign
cultures
5.
Cu

24. lt
u
ral assimilation-
integration of aspects of
or traits of foreign cultures
into local culture
6.
Cu
lt
u
ral belie
f
s-

25. ways of thinking common to
a group people from a
specified geographical area
7.
Cu
lt
u
ral diversity-
the existence of sub-cultures
withina main or different
culture
8.

26. Cu
lt
u
ral domination-
where a culture of one
countryis pervasively
influencing a local culture
9.
Cu
lt
u
ral eras
u
re-

27. where traits of a culture are
nolonger practiced over time
10.
Cu
lt
u
ral expressions-
ways in which one¶s culture
isdemonstrated
11.
Cu
lt
u

28. ral
h
ybridization-
the admixture cultural
traitsand exchange of values
from other cultures
12.
Cu
lt
u
ral norms-

29. the standards of behavior
that areaccepted and shared
by members of a society
13.
Cu
lt
u
ralpl
u
ralism-
where minority cultures
existalongside a main
culture

30. 14.
Cu
lt
u
ral renewal-
where cultural practices that
wereonce done are being
revived or the fashioning of
new practices based on
those of the past
15.
Cu

31. lt
u
ral retention-
where past cultural practices
are practiced presently
16.
Cu
lt
u
ral relativism-
the comparison between
cultures based on the notion
that no culture is superior

32. 17.
D
iaspora-
the dispersion and
distribution of membersof a
race or society
18.
Repartimiento-
a Spanish labor system
where a percentage of the
male population of any
village between the ages of

33. 18-60 could be recruited to
work for a Spanish settler
for a week or fortnight
19.
Social strati
f
ication-
the social arrangement of
society based on criteria
such as race, wealth and
education

38. Page 22
20.
S
u
garrevol
u
tion-
the period where
sugarcane production and
processing was the main

39. economicactivity in the
western hemisphere.
21.
C
ommon market-
a form of economic
integrationwhere restrictions
on the free movement
of commodities, capital and
labor among member
statesare abolished and a
common external tariff
isestablished

40. 22.
Cu
lt
u
ral imperialism-
onecountry¶s imposition
onanother directly or
indirectly, of it¶s value
system
23.
D
evelopment-

41. the sustained high level of
economicand social well
being or standard of
living.Development was
traditionally defined as the
ability of a country to
advance economically, as
measured byincrements in
its GNP per capita. Today
the concept has been
broadened to recognize the
Human DevelopmentIndex
that includes assessments

42. such as life
expectancy,literacy and
educational attainment-
quality of lifeindicators.
24.
Economic growt
h
-
the increase in the
production of goods and
services in a country over
one year
25.

43. F
ree Trade
A
rea-
an agreement between
countries toabolish tariff and
minimize restriction of trade
between but set restrictions
against outside countries
26.
G
lobalization-

44. the growth of a single,
unified worldfinancial
market where geography
plays a diminishingrole
27.
I
nd
u
strialization-
a country or area where
there are alarge number of
factories and the use of
technology

45. 28.
I
nter
M
onetary
F
u
nd-
a specialized agency of
theUnited Nations that seeks
to maintain
monetarystability and to
assist member states in

46. funding balanceof payment
deficits.
29.
N
ort
h
A
merican
F
ree Trade
A
greement-

47. agreementmade in 1983 that
brought together
M
exico, Canadaand the United
States together as a free
trade zone
30.
Pop
u
lar c
u
lt
u
re-

48. the range of expressions of
creativity,artifacts accessible
to, produced by, and
enjoyed by themajority of
people in a society
31.
Single market-
the joining of economies in
a free tradearea
32.
Social j
u

49. stice-
the fair and equitable
treatment of allclass of
people
33.
Tari
ff
s-
taxes levied on imported
goods
34.
Treaty-

50. a contract between states,
relating to peace,truce,
alliance, commerce, or other
internationalrelations
35.
W
h
ite collar crime-
deviant or corrupt behavior
by people of very high
social standing in society

53. Page 23
A
SS
I
GNM
E
N
T
1. Name of country
2. Population size

54. 3. Size of island
4. Language spoken
5. History of the island
6. Type of government and
details of government
7. Relief of the land-
vegetation, soil, rock
8. Crops grown
9. Types of industry

55. 10. Weather patterns
11. Foods
12. Festivals and
celebrations
MODULE THREE
Definition of research
Research is an activity that
entails formal, systematic

56. processes for carrying out a
scientific method for
analysis.
Characteristics of Research
1.
Is directed towards the
solution of a problem.
2.
Emphasizes the
development of

57. generalizations, principles
or themes that will be
helpful in predictingfuture
occurrences.
3.
Is based upon observable or
empirical evidence,
selectsvalid data gathering
procedures, and uses
mechanical.Electronic or
psychometric devices to
refineobservation,

58. description and analysis of
data.
4.
Involves gathering new data
from primary or
firsthandsources, or using
existing data for a new
purpose.
M
erely recognizing or
restating what is already
knownand has already been
written is not considered

59. researchsince it adds
nothing to what is known.
5.
Is rigorous and systematic.
6.
Tries to be logical and to
apply every possible test
tovalidate procedures
employed, data collected
andconclusions reached.
7.

60. Is carefully recorded and
reported. Each important
termis defined, limiting
factors are
acknowledged, procedures
are described in detail and
references arecarefully
documented.
Purposes of research
B
asic
R

61. esearch-
The findings of this type of
research
informsthedevelopment of
broad generalizations or
principles.
A
pplie
d
R
esearch-

62. The goal of this type of
research is to
improve products and
processes. Theory is tested
in actual situations.
A
ctio
n
R
esearch-
this is focused on immediate
application. It places

63. emphasis on current
problems in a local setting.
Its findingsare evaluated in
terms of local applicability
and not necessarilyuniversal
validity.

71. Page 24
Types of research
H
istorical
R
esearch
Describes what was. Entails
investigating, recording,
analyzingand interpreting
the events of the past for the

72. purpose of discovering
generalizations that help us
to understand both the
pastand present and possible
implications for the future.
D
escriptive
R
esearch
This type of research
describes, records, analyses
and interpretsconditions that

73. presently exist. It entails
some type of comparisonor
contrast and attempts to
discover relationships
between existingvariables.
E
xperime
n
tal research
This type of research
focuses on variable
relationships

74. anddescribeswhat happens
when the variables are
carefully controlledor
manipulated. Deliberate
manipulation is always a
part of theexperimental
method.
Q
ualitative Studies
These are studies that use a
numerical method of

75. describingobservations of
materials or characteristics.
Q
uantitative Studies
These are studies in which
the description of
observations is notordinarily
expressed in quantitative
terms. Numerical measure
may be used but other
means of description are
emphasized.

76. Sampling Procedures
T
ypes of sampli
n
gproce
d
ures
1.
Simple Random Sample-

77. where subjects are
selected by lottery or by use
of random numbers.
2.
Strati
f
ied Sample-
where the population is
stratifiedaccording to lists of
units divided into groups or
strataaccording to an
appropriate variable.
3.

78. Q
u
ota Sampling-
this approach entails
stratifiedsampling in which
the selection within the
strata is nonrandom, once
the general breakdown of
the sample isdetermined.
4.
P
u

79. rposive Sampling-
used in qualitative
researchwhere subjects are
selected especially for
their particular
understandings of and
involvement in thecontext
where the study is being
carried out.
Ethics in Research
I
n

80. forme
d
C
o
n
se
n
t
The people you speak to,
observe, send questionnaires
to, shouldknow what you
are doing and that you are
involved in a

81. research project. You should
not put undue pressure on
people or whomight be
afraid to say that they do not
wish to participate in
theresearch.
I
n
vasio
n
of privacy

82. You should seek permission
of the person being
interviewed toallow you to
use a tape recorder for
example.
C
o
n
fi
d
e
n
tiality

83. You cannot tell other people
what you learned or
observed about a person,
venue or situation if the
persons are in a position
torecognize the venue,
person or situation. You
must attempt todisguise
your subjects¶ identity.
K
n
owle
d

84. ge of the outcome
Participants in the research
project have a right to know
what youwill be doing with
the information you collect
as well as the reasonfor the
research.

93. Caribbean Studies (MODULE ONE)
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