Who lived in Barbados before European contact?

Before European contact, Barbados was inhabited by various Indigenous groups. Archaeological evidence suggests the island may have been settled as early as 1600 BCE by people from northern South America, though they later disappeared from the archaeological record. From approximately 500 to 1500 CE, Arawak and Carib people lived on the island, which they referred to as Ichirouganaim.1

During the 16th century, the island’s Indigenous population was decimated by repeated slave raids conducted by the Spanish. It is believed that those who managed to avoid enslavement migrated to other parts of the region. By the mid-16th century, the island was effectively depopulated and remained so until the arrival of English settlers in the 17th century.1