Make discover Guiana

Amerindians

Arriving long before the colonists, the Amerindian population is made up of the Galibi, Arawak, Wayana, Emerillon, Wayampi, and Palikur groups. Drawing on customs, folklore, and traditions, Amerindian culture is especially known for pottery, basket weaving, and beadwork.

Maroons

The Maroon community descends from the marrronage, the period in French Guiana’s history when slaves escaped from the plantations and took refuge in the forest. It mainly consists of the Djuka, Paramaka, and Aluku tribes. These peoples live mainly on the banks of the Maroni River, where they built their tribal dwellings upstream of Amerindian villages.

Creoles

The Creoles are the descendents of the interrelationships between different ethnic groups. There was a large migration of creoles from Martinique after the eruption of Mount Pelée in 1902. This increased the Guianese Creole population, which now makes up the largest cultural group, distinguished by its gastronomy, Carnival, and craftwork.

Asian Communities

The Chinese community arrived in two waves of immigration from South China, around Hong Kong and Canton (now Guangzhou), during the 19th century and 20th centuries.
The Hmongs, who fled the war in Indochina, came to French Guiana in 1976 and settled in the new villages of Cacao and Javouhey.

Other Communities

The population of French Guiana is made up of a large number of other communities. While becoming integrated into the existing population, they have retained their traditions and culture. That’s why, in addition to the Brazilian, Haitian, Lebanese, West Indian, and European communities, other South American countries have added their colors to the incredible kaleidoscope that is Guianese society.

Arts and Crafts

In French Guiana, each cultural group has contributed their artistic skills through diverse craftwork. Embroidery,
woodcarving, basket weaving, pottery, jewelry, and gastronomy—all play an important role in making the French Guiana Plateau Region so unique.

Carved and Painted Wood

Among the Maroon people, woodworking is extremely important as a medium for transmitting messages in wedding gifts.

Every object, comb, paddle, piece of furniture, dugout, house door, or small object has symbolic designs, carved or painted with finesse.

Among the Amerindian peoples, woodworking is particularly important in the creation of bows and arrows from wood and reeds. In carbets, open wooden houses, you find ciels de case (canopies), which, placed under the roof, are intended to keep insects and spirits at bay.

Basket Weaving and Pottery

Created from fresh plant materials, basket weaving is used by Amerindian peoples to decorate everyday objects, such as baskets for carrying manioc and wood, sieves, fans, baskets, rugs and the famous couleuvres, tubes used to extract the manioc’s toxic juice.

Gold: From a Flake to Traditional Jewelry

Home of gold, French Guiana is a treasure house for jewelry lovers. From the raw flake to cleverly worked jewelry with pleasant names such as collier boule (ball necklace), grain d'or (gold nugget), chaîne forçat (convict’s chain), and catoury brooch, there is a whole world of beauty to treat yourself to.

Fine Wood and Marquetry

French Guiana’s 1200 different tree species are an unequalled source for craftwork requiring fine woods. Angélique, amarante, amourette, and a long list of other woods are worked with artistry to create magnificent furniture and flooring as well as decorative and everyday objects.

Embroidery

A number of communities are famous for the embroidery their women create.
Among the Amerindians, it is seen in beadwork, necklaces, belts, and bracelets worn at feasts and ceremonies.

Among the Maroon people, embroidery is used to send messages to loved ones on cloths or hammocks. The traditional costumes of Hmong women are decorated with silver coins, which indicate their family’s wealth.