The American Nations, Vol. I.: Or, Outlines of a National History of the Ancient and Modern Nations of North and South AmericaRafinesque, C. S. (Constantine Samuel)
History
The American Nations, Vol. I.: Or, Outlines of a National History of the Ancient and Modern Nations of North and South America
Rafinesque, C. S. (Constantine Samuel)
Indians; Indians -- Origin; Taino Indians; Taino language
The Dimivan acknowledge him as grandfather of mankind. CON-EL is certainly
a personification, meaning the sons or Elohim of CON, who is the primitive
Lybian Hercules KON or KHON; and is found in Peruvian history as the first
legislator of Peru. The XONS or CONES were the oldest people of Spain and
Italy, same as _Xâones_ of Greece. Their god was XON or _Konah_.
_Basamanaco_ is inexplicable unless it alludes to the primitive
antidiluvian _Manaco_ or _Manco_ of Peru. _Ba_ is dwelling, _Samana_ an
island near Hayti.
_14th Event._ The four brothers _Dimivan_ meeting a mute _Conel_, making
bread, ask him for some; but he only gives them instead _Cogioba_ or
_Cohiba_ which is tobacco: this happened at the door of Basamanaco. This
fable indicates an intercourse of the Dimivans and the _Conels_ which are
probably a branch of the Atlantes or Lybians.
_15th Event._ This refusal of bread was the cause of a quarrel and war, in
which _Conel_ kills or destroys one of the brothers or tribes of _Dimivan
Caracol_, but a turtle _Hicotea_ came out of his body, or an island thus
called, as Hayti was. This _Conel_ conqueror was _Baia-mani-coel_, whose
name means _Father of food celestial_; but _Baya_ is also the ocean.
This indicates a great war, and probably alludes to that of the
Atlantes.(70)
_16th Event._ The _Dimivans_, probably in revenge, broke the gourd of
JAIAEL (_Khayahel_); but a flood of waters issue from it and drowns the
land.
This deluge is called _Niquen_: there is no indication in Roman of the men
who were destroyed, nor who were saved and how; but in Cuba was found a
more ample tradition of the flood as follows.
_17th Event._ Three Behiques or priests who come to Cuba later, taught
them that the flood had been general, had broken the land; and that a good
man had been saved in a big boat with his family. That many animals were
also in the boat, a vulture and dove are mentioned.
Herrera and others relate this, but in different words, and without native
names. Some have supposed this account made out by the Spanish priests;
but it appears to refer to a tradition brought by the Olmecas or Mayas in
Cuba, being very similar to the Mexican accounts.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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