I love Nicaragua. It's so rich in history and culture. Last night I was just researching the country and started from the very beginning and I learned some things I didn't know but I'm glad I know now. And I just want to talk about them.

Nicaragua's name comes from the indigenous people of Nicarao which migrated out of central Mexico and spoke the language Nahuatl, which was also the language of the indigenous ppl in El Salvador

unfortunately, the Nicarao people and the language of Nahuatl are considered extinct. However, there are still many indigenous communities throughout the country. This is a lot of info just fyi.

In the central/north/pacific part of Nicaragua, there are four indigenous pueblos. Thanks to the colonization from Spain and Britain (which Nicaragua is one of the only, if not the only, country in Central America to be colonized by both) these indigenous languages are extinct

1) Chorotegas: These people are originally from southern Mexico. It is said they arrived in Central America 2k yrs before the colonizers. They settled in the pacific of Honduras, Costa Rica, & Nicaragua. The language is Chorotega.

2)Cacaopera: These people originated from South America and reside in Matagalpa (which is another name for their tribe). The oldest pueblos in all of the Americas arrived 2500 yrs in Central America before any colonizer. They are also indigenous to El Salvador.

3) Xiu-Sutiabas: Coming from SoCal lol, they traveled from the pacific of Mexico and down to the rest of Central America (CA). Their language is Hokano or Tlalpanecos which stands for 'honorable men'. Today, their descendants are in León.

4) Nahuas: Apart of the great Toltecs in Mexico, they are said to arrive in Nicaragua 300 or 500 yrs before colonizers. The language was, like the Nicarao, Nahuatl. They resided in most of Rivas, and the Island of Ometepe.

Moving on to the East part of Nicaragua, the Caribbean part. The indigenous people in this part have kept their native languages as well as their traditions. There are three indigenous pueblos.

1) Miskitos: There are 2 ideas on their origins. 1, that they come from South America & arrived in CA 6000 yrs ago. 2, they are a mix of the African slaves that arrived w the Spanish & the tribe that was already there. Their language is Miskito, still spoken today

2) Ramas: Thought to be from South America. Their language is of the same name is almost extinct. The majority of them now speak Inglés Criollu. They face greater problems with the building of canals and ranchers.

3) Mayagnas or ''Sumos": They were a group exiled from the pacific and migrated to the Caribbean part of Nicaragua. Their language is Sumo. They live around Nicaragua's biggest rivers but most reside in Bosawás.

Indigenous people, or people with indigenous descent, make up 63.1% of the population in Nicaragua. A lot of the current culture is derived from the Indigenous tribes & African slaves that were brought here by the Spanish and English. You can see that in the festivals & dances

Palo de Mayo is a celebration welcoming rain and new life. It has influences from the W African religion, Shango, and it has been apart of Nicaragua's Afro-Caribbean culture for a long time. It originated in Bluefields in the 17th century. We all know the songs & dances

La Purisima is a v important holiday celebrating the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary. 9 days of prayer at an altar in their home. Dec. 7 comes La Griteria. "¿Que causa tanta alegría?" "¡La Concepción de María!" Fireworks, singing, dancing, toys & food for all.

Our art is famous and beautiful. A lot of the painting involving plus size women.

We make a lot of pottery. A lot of Latin America does.

OUR FOOD. HOLY SHIT. YOU WANT TO EAT AND GET FAT. EAT NICARAGUAN FOOD! Our traditional dish is Gallo pinto which is black beans mixed with rice.

Nacatamal (maize dough stuffed with pork, potato&rice wrapped in a banana leaf) Indio Viejo (minced meat, maza, mint, served with tostones) Vigorón (chicharrones, boiled yuca, chopped cabbage salad) my mom's fav gallo pinto, fried green plantains, fried cheese, chancho (pork)

I'm gonna end it here, even though I have yet to talk about the civil war and the overexploitation by the US. Or how the gov't is evil today and stifling the speech of the people. There are a lot of problems I could've focused on but, I chose the beauty of the culture instead.