The 'Lucayan' were
Arawakan People who inhabited the
Bahamas at the time of
Christopher Columbus' landing on
October 12,
1492. They are widely thought to be the first
Amerindians encountered by the
Spanish. Early accounts describe them as a peaceful people. Before Columbus' arrival, there were probably over 40,000 Lucayans, but because of
slavery, diseases and other hardships brought about by the arrival of the Europeans, by 1517, they were virtually non-existent.
Columbus wrote, "As soon as I arrived I took some of the natives by force."
See also
★
List of Taínos
★
Taínos
★
Lucayan archipelago