Introduction

The Caribbean was, and still is today, an incredibly multi-lingual and multi-ethnic region. Pre-European contact, a multitude of indigenous languages were spoken throughout the Caribbean region. Unfortunately, many of these languages have vanished with hardly a trace. These are what the linguist Douglas Taylor called "ghost languages". Other languages such as Taino and Karifuna have not survived but thankfully they were written down and language revival efforts are underway for both of them. But some languages have survived, like Arawak, Garifuna, Galibi, and Warao and continue to be spoken in the Caribbean today.