Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The first indigenous group encountered by Columbus were the 250,000 Tainos of Hispaniola who represented the dominant culture in the Greater Antilles and the Bahamas. Within thirty years about 70% of the Tainos had died. They had no immunity to European diseases, so outbreaks of measles and smallpox ravaged their population. Increasing punishment of the Tainos for revolting against forced labour, despite measures put in place by the encomienda, which included religious education and protection from warring tribes, eventually led to the last great Taino rebellion.
Who was the first group of indigenous people Columbus encountered?
the 250,000 Tainos of Hispaniola
The first indigenous group encountered by Columbus were the 250,000 Tainos of Hispaniola who represented the dominant culture in the Greater Antilles and the Bahamas.
Columbus