Bigiston | |
|---|---|
Village | |
 School in Bigiston (1964) | |
  Bigiston Location in Suriname | |
| Coordinates: 5°24′54″N54°07′35″W / 5.415°N 54.126389°W | |
| Country |  Suriname |
| District | Marowijne District |
| Resort | Albina |
| Government | |
| • Captain | Sylvester Awatjale [1] |
| Population (2020) [1] | |
• Total | 361 |
Bigiston, also Bigi Ston, is a group of settlements of Ndyuka Maroons and indigenous Kalina [2] in the Albina resort of the Marowijne District of Suriname. The villages lie on Marowijne River across from Saint-Jean-du-Maroni in French Guiana. [3]
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Bigiston is the name of the most northern of six small settlements. The name means big stone after a nearby rock with petroglyphs. [4] The village is a minor tourist attraction, and promoted for ecotourism. [5] [6] The village has a school, [7] and a clinic operated by the Regional Health Service (RGD). [7]
The village chief as of 2017 [8] is Sylvester Awatjale, [1] who lives in the southern Amerindian settlement. The Ndyuka and Kalina people peacefully coexist, but do not intermingle or intermarry. [5] Electricity is being provided by Diesel generators operating about six hours a day. [9] The most southern settlement Gronkiki contains a Winti clinic offering traditional health care. [5]
On 5 October 1986, during the Surinamese Interior War, the village was attacked by the Jungle Commando [10] and most of the villagers fled to French Guiana, however the village has been rebuilt and resettled after the war. [11] [5]
