Witagron Bitagron | |
|---|---|
  Witagron Location in Suriname | |
| Coordinates: 5°9′51″N56°4′33″W / 5.16417°N 56.07583°W | |
| Country |  Suriname |
| District | Sipaliwini District |
| Resort (municipality) | Boven Coppename |
Witagron (or Bitagron) is a Kwinti village in Suriname on the Coppename River at the crossing of the Southern East-West Link from Paramaribo to Apoera in West-Suriname. [1]
In the local language Bitagron means 'Land of my forefathers'. [2] Witagron is the residence of the Kwinti granman . [3]
In 1975-76 a Bailey bridge was built across the river to replace the pontoon ferry.
In 1987, during the Surinamese Interior War, Witagron was partially destroyed. [3] After the war, the village was rebuilt by the Stichting Wederopbouw Witagron with aid from the United Nations Development Program. The village is on an important location, because it is the gateway to Central Suriname Nature Reserve, and near the Raleigh Falls which are a major tourist attraction. [4]
Witagron is home to a Medische Zending healthcare centre. [5]
Sipaliwini is the largest district of Suriname, located in the south. Sipaliwini is the only district that does not have a regional capital, as it is directly administered by the national government in Paramaribo.
The Aluku are a Bushinengue ethnic group living mainly on the riverbank in Maripasoula in southwest French Guiana. The group are sometimes called Boni, referring to the 18th-century leader, Bokilifu Boni.
The Paramaccan or Paramaka are a Maroon tribe living in the forested interior of Suriname, mainly in the Paramacca resort, and the western border area of French Guiana. The Paramaccan signed a peace treaty in 1872 granting the tribe autonomy.
The Kwinti are a Maroon people, descendants of runaway African slaves, living in the forested interior of Suriname on the bank of the Coppename River, and the eponymous term for their language, which has fewer than 300 speakers. Their language is an English-based creole with Dutch, Portuguese and other influences. It is similar to the languages spoken by the Aluku and Paramaccan Maroons, and split from Sranan Tongo in the middle 18th century. The Kwinti had a population of about 300 in 2014 and adhere to the Moravian Church.
Corneliskondre is a village in Suriname, located in the Boven Coppename resort of Sipaliwini District. It has a population of 70 as of 2020, and is inhabited by indigenous people of the Kalina tribe.
Sipaliwini Savanna, also called Sipaliwini, is a Tiriyó village on the Sipaliwini River in the Sipaliwini District of Suriname. The village lies next to the Sipaliwini Airstrip. The nearest village in Suriname is Alalapadu which is located 60 kilometres north on a map, but due to the twists and turns of the river, the town of Kwamalasamutu which lies 83 kilometres west is easier to reach. The Brazilian village of Missão can be reached by an unpaved path.
Cottica Lawa is a village in the district of Sipaliwini, Suriname. It is located in the east, along the Marowijne River and the border with French Guiana. The village has a school, and a clinic.
Kwamalasamutu, also Kwamalasamoetoe, is a Tiriyó Amerindian village in the Sipaliwini District of Suriname, and home to the granman of the northern Trios. Kwamalasamutu is the biggest village of the Tiriyó tribe.
Kajana is a village in Sipaliwini District, Suriname. It lies on the Gaan-lio, which together with the Pikin Rio forms the Suriname River. The population call themselves Kadosi-nengre after Cardoso who was the owner of the plantation they ran away from. The village is home to Maroons of the Saramaka tribe.
Apoera, also Apura, is a town in western Suriname. The village has a population of 777 people as of 2020. It is the final destination of the Southern East-West Link. 24 kilometres (15 mi) north-west on the other side of the Courantyne River lies the Guyanese village of Orealla. The village is home to the Lokono tribe, but has been westernized. Due to the influx of people of Guyana, the languages used are English, and Sranan Tongo. Dutch is rarely spoken and the native language has all but disappeared. According to the oral tradition, Apoera was founded around 1920 by the Gordon family.
Pokigron is a town in Suriname located on the Upper Suriname River near the Brokopondo Reservoir. It is located in the Boven Suriname municipality (resort) in the Sipaliwini District. It has a population of approximately 400 people in 2018. Pokigron is located at the end of a paved road via Brownsweg to the Afobakaweg. Pokigron is often referred to as Atjoni which is the nearby quay, and literally the end of the road. Villages to the South of Pokigron have to be accessed by boat. The village is home to Maroons of the Saramaka tribe.
Pelelu Tepu is an Amerindian village in the hinterland of Suriname. Also known as "Pe'reru Tepu", the village is typically referred to simply as "Tepu," which mean "high" in the Indian Tiriyó language. The village is located on Tepu hill, on the Tapanahoni River. Though inhabited by Amerindian tribes indigenous to the area, the village was founded by Christian missionaries and (primarily) Tiriyó Indians, although it now also includes small numbers of Wayana and Akuriyo Indians. The village has a tribal organization, led by a Trio Captain.
Boven Coppename is a resort in Suriname, located in the Sipaliwini District. Its population at the 2012 census was 539. The resort is mainly inhabited by indigenous people of the Tiriyó, and Maroons of the Kwinti tribe. The main village is Bitagron. Other villages include Corneliskondre and Donderskamp.
Paloemeu or Palumeu is an Amerindian village in the interior of Suriname, situated at the site where the Paloemeu River joins the Tapanahoni River. Most inhabitants of the village are native Tiriyó Amerindians. The remainder belongs to the Wayana, and Aparai tribes. The Bosatlas in 1968 identified the village as Pepejoe which was incorrect according to the New West Indian Guide.
The Ndyuka people or Aukan people (Okanisi), are one of six Maroon peoples in the Republic of Suriname and one of the Maroon peoples in French Guiana. The Aukan or Ndyuka speak the Ndyuka language. They are subdivided into the Opu, who live upstream of the Tapanahony River in the Tapanahony resort of southeastern Suriname, and the Bilo, who live downstream of that river in Marowijne District
Diitabiki is a Ndyuka village in the Sipaliwini District of Suriname. Diitabiki is the residence of the gaanman of the Ndyuka people, since 1950, and the location of the oracle.
Granman is the title of the paramount chief of a Maroon nation in Suriname and French Guiana. The Ndyuka, Saramaka, Matawai, Aluku, Paramaka and Kwinti nations all have a granman. The paramount chiefs of Amerindian peoples in Suriname are nowadays also often called “granman”.
Medische Zending Primary Health Care Suriname, commonly known as Medische Zending or MZ is a Surinamese charitable organization offering primary healthcare to remote villages in the interior of Suriname.
Bokilifu Boni was a freedom fighter and guerrilla leader in Suriname, when it was under Dutch colonial rule. Born in Cottica to an enslaved African mother who escaped from her Dutch master, he grew up with her among the Maroons in the forest. He was such a powerful leader that his followers were known as Boni's people after him. They built a fort in the lowlands and conducted raids against Dutch plantations along the coast. Under pressure from Dutch regular army and hundreds of freedmen, they went east across the river into French Guiana. Boni continued to conduct raids from there, but was ultimately killed in warfare.
Paramacca is a resort in Suriname, located in the Sipaliwini District. The population is estimated between 1,500 and 2,000 people. In 1983, the Sipaliwini District was created, and the eastern part became the resort of Tapanahony. The Paramacca resort is the northern part of Tapanahony, and mainly inhabited by the Paramaccan people, the border of the resorts is the island of Bofoo Tabiki in the Marowijne River.
5°10′N56°06′W / 5.167°N 56.100°W
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