The history of Guyana begins about 35,000 years ago with the arrival of humans coming from Eurasia. These migrants became the Carib and Arawak tribes, who met Alonso de Ojeda's first expedition from Spain in 1499 at the Essequibo River. In the ensuing colonial era, Guyana's government was defined by the successive policies of the French, Dutch, and British settlers.
During the colonial period, Guyana's economy was focused on plantation agriculture, which initially depended on slave labor. Guyana saw major slave rebellions in 1763 and 1823. Following the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, 800,000 enslaved Africans in the Caribbean and South Africa were freed, resulting in plantations contracting indentured workers, mainly from India. Eventually, these Indians joined forces with Afro-Guyanese descendants of slaves to demand equal rights in government and society. After the Second World War, the British Empire pursued policy decolonization of its overseas territories, with independence granted to British Guiana on May 26, 1966. Following independence, Forbes Burnham rose to power, quickly becoming an authoritarian leader, pledging to bring socialism to Guyana. His power began to weaken following international attention brought to Guyana in wake of the Jonestown mass murder suicide in 1978.
After his unexpected death in 1985, power was peacefully transferred to Desmond Hoyte, who implemented some democratic reforms, before being voted out in 1992. The People's Progressive Party (PPP/C) served as the country's ruling party from 1992 to 2015. It was unseated following the victory of David Granger's Afro-Guyanese political coalition of A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) in 2015. In 2020, the PPP/C returned as the ruling party of Guyana in a contested election.
Guyana (/ɡaɪˈɑːnə/ or /ɡaɪˈænə/ ), officially the Co-operative Republic ofGuyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic...
The economy ofGuyana is one of the fastest growing in the world with a gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 19.9% in 2021. In 2023, Guyana had a per...
The historyof the Jews in Guyana goes as far back as the 1600s. Representation has always been low, and by the 1930s there was neither an organized Jewish...
was Queen ofGuyana from 1966 to 1970, when Guyana was independent sovereign state with a constitutional monarchy. She was also the sovereign of the other...
The people ofGuyana, or Guyanese, come from a wide array of backgrounds and cultures including aboriginal natives, African and Indian origins, as well...
The president ofGuyana is the head of state and the head of government ofGuyana, as well as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the Republic...
List of years in Guyana "Guyana Public Holidays 2024". Public Holidays Global. Retrieved 25 November 2023. Online calendar Portals: 2020s Guyana Current...
The music ofGuyana encompasses a range of musical styles and genres that draw from various influences including: Indian, Latino-Hispanic, European, African...
The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) is the military ofGuyana, established in 1965. It has military bases across the nation. The Commander-in-Chief of the...
related to British Guiana. Guyana portal Economy ofGuyana Geography ofGuyana Guyanese British HistoryofGuyana Politics ofGuyana Robert Hermann Schomburgk...
The Railways ofGuyana comprised two public railways, the Demerara-Berbice Railway and the Demerara-Essequibo Railway. There are also several industrial...
to 2012 census People of Portuguese descent were mainly introduced to Guyana as indentured labourers to make up for the exodus of former slaves who left...
The Guyana national football team, nicknamed the Golden Jaguars, represents Guyana in international football and is controlled by the Guyana Football Federation...
the third largest religion in Guyana, after Christianity and Hinduism, respectively. According to the 2012 census, 7% of the country’s population is Muslim...
government in GuyanaHistoryofGuyana Timeline of the historyofGuyana Current events ofGuyana Culture ofGuyana Cuisine ofGuyana Languages ofGuyana National...
reflects the influence of African, Indian, Amerindian, British, Portuguese, Chinese, Creole, and Dutch cultures. Guyana is part of the mainland Caribbean...
This is a list of the heads of state ofGuyana, from the independence ofGuyana in 1966 to the present day. From 1966 to 1970 the head of state under the...
dollar (currency sign: $, G$ and GY$; ISO: GYD) has been the unit of account in Guyana (formerly British Guiana) since 29 January 1839. Originally it was...
Religion in Guyana is dominated by various branches of Christianity, with significant minorities of the adherents of Hinduism and Islam. Guyana is a secular...
Hinduism in Guyana is the religion of about 31% of the population in 2020. This makes Guyana the country with the highest percentage of Hindu residents...
The coat of arms ofGuyana (Co-operative Republic ofGuyana) was granted by the College of Arms on 25 February 1966. It includes a crest of an Amerindian...
operated by the Guyana Defence Force crashed in western Guyana, killing five out of the seven on board. The crash happened about 30 miles east of Arau near...
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