Taino Architecture

Taino architecture is the building tradition of the Taino people of the Caribbean, organized around settlements called yucayeques that varied in size by region, with the largest in Puerto Rico and Hispaniola and the smallest in the Bahamas. Most villagers lived in circular bohio houses built of wooden poles, woven straw and palm leaves, arranged around a central plaza and each large enough to hold ten to fifteen families, while the cacique, or chief, and his family lived in a rectangular caney of similar construction with wooden porches. Central plazas took a variety of shapes, including oval, rectangular, narrow and elongated forms, and served as the site of games, festivals, religious rituals and public ceremonies. Households furnished their homes with cotton hammocks called hamaca, woven palm sleeping and sitting mats, carved wooden chairs known as dujo or duho, and cradles for children.