Samantha Dever

Emilio Vargas
Global Studies I
3 December 2014
Globalization of the Afro Caribbean Culture in Costa Rica
Societies are not static. They have life and are continually being reshaped and
evolved. However, where do we draw the line between progression in a global
world, but still maintaining true culture? Has the Afro-Caribbean culture in Costa
Rica been influenced by westernization? The culture of this population is traced
back to Western Africa, with a culture that has grown immensely. The journey
behind this Afro Caribbean culture in Costa Rica, specifically, is constantly
developing. Since their main influx in the 1800s as migrant workers from the
Caribbean islands to their effects on eco-cultural tourism today, the original African
identity has been affected by globalization. Is the reason for these changes
westernization? Globalization patterns are uneven and highly skewed.
The Caribbean, as a region, has evolved from colonial influences and
dependency. Small size and islands limit to spatial distribution of population
intersect with other socioeconomic changes (Urbanization and Development in the
Caribbean). Historically speaking, there is no distinguished population of direct preColumbian descendants apart from a small Carib community in Dominica, its
inhabitants are otherwise composed of a highly diverse ethnic and cultural mix of
descendants from the Americans, Africa, Europe, and Asia (Mantz 321). The culture
of Costa Ricas Caribbean coast, which originally dates back as an Afro-Caribbean
English speaking sect, has been shaped by cultural connections to the rest of the
Spanish speaking country. Essential aspects to this culture include food, language,

and music, exist not only in Costa Rica, but also the Caribbean as a region. The food
of the Caribbean coast has similar characteristics to the staple of Costa Ricas main
dish. When looking at the typical Costa Rican dish of gallo pinto, the people of Limon
province adapt the rice and bean, but add the prototypical idea of Caribbean dishes
of creolizating, or blending, of locally grown products and flavors (Mantz 323).
Fatmata Bah, a native to Sierra Leone and traditional West African foods states, The
typical foods in most of Costa Rica do not compare to the Caribbean dishes. The
spices and flavors used [coconut milk, thyme, hot peppers] transform the flavor and
makes the two seem like two different countries. The dishes in Limon reminded me
of traditional Sierra Leonean foods. These local cuisines have been rapidly
foreignized through substantial changes in the ways in which Caribbean fare is
globally recognized. Interests in foreign investment take local cuisine for marketable
purposes. Hotels idealize these dishes, which can often be overpriced, flashy
reinterpretations of the typical foods (Pritchard and Morgan 171). As a globalization
effect, the local dishes are likewise affected by these changes. Fried Chicken is now
ubiquitous, so much so that Kentucky Fried Chicken is the only franchise on many of
these areas, holding the longest lines for restaurants (Mantz 323). This shows an
indication that the culture behind the food in Limon has establish its distinctiveness
by creatively and strategically incorporating diverse elements from a localized
answer to the rigors imposed by foreign consumer demands.
Another crucial aspect that has always provided a racial ideology and social
communication for the Afro-Caribbean population in Costa Rica is their practice of
music. This is rooted back directly from Africa and has been performed from

colonial, enslaved, and post emancipation experiences. In addition, they incorporate

influences from European culture, specifically colonizers in the Caribbean area such
as the British, United States, Spanish, and French. Although as a region, the
Caribbean adapts these roots, the Afro Caribbean culture in Costa Rican has their
own representation of music specific to their area. Often coined Limonese calypso,
this traditional music created in 1872 holds differences to the original calypso
originating in Trinidad and Tobago (Whitten 262). However, the cultural
representation of the calypsos light has been taken away from reggae music. Also a
characteristic of Caribbean music, reggae arrived in Limon in the 1970s as the
market shifted from agriculture to tourism during the plague of Monilia. Manuel
Monestel, a Costa Rican sociologist and musician, describes the Caribbean vision of
Rastafarianism and its influence of reggae was more expected from western
tourists. The local areas adapted this new appearance, taking away from classic
Calypsonians such as Walter Ferguson, Mr. Shanti, and Mr. Lenki. It was these artists
that supplied the symbolic rhythms on the streets of Limon during the infamous
Limonese Carnival. This immense cultural event for the Afro Caribbean minority in
Limon has also been turned into a major tourist destination and commercial
attraction for the region, even for domestic visitors (Whitten 483). The event
attracts musicians from Panama, Puerto Rico, and the United States, changing the
dynamic of the traditional concerts and competitions with the local calypsonians.
Previously considered the most outstanding and profound activities of the Carnival,
these concerts have given way to globalization of music, making them less
prominent.

Music is clearly a form of communication for the Afro Caribbean culture in

Costa Rica, but their spoken language is another essential component. The influx of
immigrants in the mid 1800s mainly came from Jamaica and other islands to work
on the railroad from San Jose to Puerto Limon. When this project was completed,
they remained in Costa Rica as banana plantation workers. However, in the 1940s
the United Fruit Company moved to the Pacific coast, leaving their employees in a
new state of identity (Monestal). They embraced their unique creole dialect,
remaining culturally and linguistically distinct from the Spanish majority for over a
century. Most of the Afro Caribbean speakers of this creole live in the province of
Limon, but many have migrated to the Central Valley (Arends, Muysken & Smith
341). The fact that this was considered a type of broken English, and couldnt be
expressed in writing, Limonese creole was looked at as a second class language.
This formed the concept of a second class citizen, making the speakers ashamed to
speak it in public (Whitten 261). The creole language has definitely been affected by
the Spanish speaking domination in the country, jeopardizing the Afro Caribbean
peoples security of their own linguistic identity.
The Caribbean is an area specific to globalization, as has gone through these
processes as early as the trans-Atlantic slave trade and colonialism. In Costa Rica,
the Afro Caribbean population, unfortunately, has experienced globalization in a
negative way toward their culture because of the migration, exploitation, and
decimation of the area and culture. This is a major problem in this area because
they represent themselves through music, food, and language, all fundamental
aspects of their cultural identity. When they try to resist these overbearing global

influences, the more dominant powers flex their muscles because the Afro
Caribbean population serves as the minority.

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