History UsefulNotes / Guyana

In the late 1990's, a Jewish-American, Janet Jagan (nee Rosenberg) became President for a short time after her husband, President Cheddi Jagan, died in office. Janet Rosenberg had met Cheddi Jagan when he had been studying dentistry in the United States, married him, and moved to Guyana with him. Today, the country's President is Bharrat Jagdeo, Jagan's former finance minister.

* [[{{Batman}} William Austin, a white Anglo-Guyanese and British actor whose appearance inspired the iconic design for Alfred Pennyworth, Batman's loyal butler.]] Prior to Austin's appearance in the 1943 Batman serial, Alfred had been drawn as pudgy and with no facial hair. After Austin's portrayal of the character, the now-familiar image of Alfred as a tall man with a thin mustache became the norm.

* Raymond Ablack, who plays Sav Bandhari in "DegrassiTheNextGeneration", is Indo-Guyanese.

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A culturally-Caribbean country in northern South America. One of only four non-Spanish speaking territories in South America (the others being Brazil, French Guiana, and Suriname). A British colony until 1966, this country's culture is more like that of the West Indies than of South America. It is 43% East Indian, 30% Afro-Guyanese, 16.7% mixed heritage, and 10% Amerindian. There is also a small Portuguese population in Guyana (which New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira is descended from) and a Chinese population that, though tiny, has had a massive influence on Guyanese cuisine (as a result, Guyana has its own distinctive version of chow mein).

[[AC: the guyanese flag]]
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/125px-Flag_of_Guyana_svg_5889.png

Guyana in many ways can be considered a sister nation to TrinidadAndTobago, as the two nations are located very close to each other, share cultures that are almost identical, have the same religious and ethnic demographics, listen the same music, and the fact that there is significant intermarriage between Guyanese and Trinidadians.

* [[ProfessionalWrestling Pro Wrestler]] [[TheNexus Ezekiel Jackson]].

* Leona Lewis, whose father is Guyanese and mother is British.

There is a large diaspora of Guyanese people living in [[{{BigApplesauce}} New York]] (particularly in the Richmond Hill section of Queens), [[{{Joisey}} New Jersey]], and Toronto, as well as Britain.

A culturally-Caribbean country in northern South America. One of only four non-Spanish speaking territories in South America (the others being Brazil, French Guiana, and Suriname). A British colony until 1966, this country's culture is more like that of the West Indies than of South America. It is 43% East Indian, 30% Afro-Guyanese, 16.7% mixed heritage, and 10% Amerindian. Most non-West Indians know Guyana for being the place where American pastor Jim Jones and the members of the People's Temple from California [[DrinkingTheKoolAid drank cyanide poisoned Kool-Aid]] in 1978. It should be noted, however, that average Guyanese civilians had no idea that the Jonestown settlement was even there. The People's Temple had moved to Guyana from California in order to evade investigation by the US government. The Guyanese dictator at the time, Forbes Burnham, allowed Jones and his followers to quietly form their settlement, but again, the average Guyanese civilian was unaware of this until after the mass suicide made headlines.

Many Guyanese-Americans and Guyanese-Canadians, despite being raised in the USA and Canada, have consciously chosen to continue speaking Guyanese English at home and among relatives (and among other Guyanese friends) in order to preserve their cultural heritage.

It should be noted that Guyana (along with Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil) is '''NOT''' considered part of Latin America, since it has a different culture (basically, that of the Anglophone Caribbean), and most Guyanese people tend to get rather annoyed when people mistakenly assume that it is.

It should be noted that Guyana (along with Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil) is '''NOT''' considered part of Latin America, since it has a different culture (basically, that of the Anglophone Caribbean), and most Guyanese people (including this Guyanese troper) tend to get rather annoyed when people mistakenly assume that it is.

* Raymond Ablack, who plays Sav Bandhari in "Degrassi: The Next Generation", is Indo-Guyanese.

As the culture is a Caribbean-based culture, soca, chutney (a popular musical form created when Caribbean nationals of Indian descent blended Indian and Caribbean styles), calypso, and reggae are popular in Guyana. Cricket is the national sport.

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/asdad.gif

* Raymond Ablack, who plays Sav Bandhari in [[{{Degrassi: The Next Generation}} Degrassi: The Next Generation]], is Indo-Guyanese.

* [[{{Batman}} William Austin, a white Anglo-Guyanese and British actor whose appearance inspired the iconic design for Alfred Pennyworth, Batman's loyal butler. Prior to Austin's appearance in the 1943 Batman serial, Alfred had been drawn as pudgy and with no facial hair. After Austin's portrayal of the character, the now-familiar image of Alfred as a tall man with a thin mustache became the norm.]]

* Raymond Ablack, who plays Sav Bandhari in "Degrassi: The Next Generation", is Indo-Guyanese.

Over the years, there has been much racial tension between the Indo-Guyanese (descendants of indentured servants brought by the British from India) and the Afro-Guyanese descendants of African slaves (although this tension has lessened somewhat in recent years), with most of the Indo-Guyanese voting for the People's Progressive Party and most of the Afro-Guyanese voting for the People's National Congress. In the 1960's and 70's, Guyana was ruled by the authoritarian grip of the economically socialistic PNC leader Forbes Burnham. Burnham, an Afro-Guyanese, was extremely racist towards Indo-Guyanese, and was greatly resented by them. After Burnham died, another PNC leader, Desmond Hoyte took the reins throughout the 1980's.

Over the years, there has been much racial tension between the Indo-Guyanese (descendants of indentured servants brought by the British from India) and the Afro-Guyanese descendants of African slaves (although this tension has lessened somewhat in recent years), with most of the Indo-Guyanese voting for the People's Progressive Party and most of the Afro-Guyanese voting for the People's National Congress.

A country in northern South America. One of only four non-Spanish speaking territories in South America (the others being Brazil, French Guiana, and Suriname). A British colony until 1966, this country's culture is more like that of the West Indies than of South America. It is 43% East Indian, 30% Afro-Guyanese, 16.7% mixed heritage, and 10% Amerindian. Most non-West Indians know Guyana for being the place where American pastor Jim Jones and the members of the People's Temple from California [[DrinkingTheKoolAid drank cyanide poisoned Kool-Aid]] in 1978. It should be noted, however, that average Guyanese civilians had no idea that the Jonestown settlement was even there. The People's Temple had moved to Guyana from California in order to evade investigation by the US government. The Guyanese dictator at the time, Forbes Burnham, allowed Jones and his followers to quietly form their settlement, but again, the average Guyanese civilian was unaware of this until after the mass suicide made headlines.

A country in northern South America. One of only four non-Spanish speaking territories in South America (the others being Brazil, French Guiana, and Suriname). A British colony until 1966, this country's culture is more like that of the West Indies than of South America. It is 43% East Indian, 30% Afro-Guyanese, 16.7% mixed heritage, and 10% Amerindian. Most non-West Indians know Guyana for being the place where Jim Jones and the members of the People's Temple [[DrinkingTheKoolAid drank cyanide poisoned Kool-Aid]] in 1978.

Over the years, there has been much racial tension between the Indo-Guyanese and the Afro-Guyanese (although this tension has lessened somewhat in recent years), with most of the Indo-Guyanese voting for the People's Progressive Party and most of the Afro-Guyanese voting for the People's National Congress.

One of the most fun and distinctive cultural trait of Guyanese people is their accent. They speak English, but with a VERY distinct dialect. The dialect is formally referred to as Guyanese English, or sometimes simply as Guyanese (occasionally it may be referred to as Creole, or Creolese). Basically it's a very deep Caribbean accent, although with a different cadence than the Jamaican accent. The speech is usually peppered with a few surviving Hindi/Bhojpuri words (particularly if the Guyanese person is descended from Indians) and/or African words (particularly if the Guyanese person in question is Black), although there is overlap. It should be noted that almost nobody in Guyana speaks fluent Hindi/Bhojpuri (except for the Hindu priests)or any African languages, but again, some words have survived from those languages to get passed on into modern Guyanese speech. Guyanese English also tends to be '''VERY''' fast-paced, and can be quite confusing for outsiders.

Many Guyanese-Americans and Guyanese-Canadians, despite being raised in the USA and Canada, have consciously chosen to continue speaking Guyanese English at home and among relatives (and among other Guyanese-American friends) in order to preserve their cultural heritage.

It should be noted that Guyana (along with Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil) is '''NOT''' considered part of Latin America, since it has a different culture (basically, that of the Anglophone Caribbean), and most Guyanese people (including this troper) tend to get rather annoyed when people mistakenly assume that it is.

* Cricketer Shivnarine Chanderpaul is Guyanese, and was former captain of the West Indies cricket team.

* Model Shakira Caine is Indo-Guyanese.

One of the most fun and distinctive cultural trait of Guyanese people is their accent. They speak English, but with a VERY distinct dialect. The dialect is formally referred to as Guyanese English, or sometimes simply as Guyanese (occasionally it may be referred to as Creole, or Creolese). Basically it's a very deep Caribbean accent, although with a different cadence than the Jamaican accent. The speech is usually peppered with a few surviving Hindi/Bhojpuri words (particularly if the Guyanese person is descended from Indians) and/or African words (particularly if the Guyanese person in question is Black), although there is overlap. It should be noted that almost nobody in Guyana speaks fluent Hindi/Bhojpuri (except for the Hindu priests)or any African languages, but again, some words have survived from those languages to get passed on into modern Guyanese speech. Guyanese English also tends to be very fast-paced, and can be quite confusing for outsiders.

Many Guyanese-Americans and Guyanese-Canadians, despite being raised in the USA and Canada, have consciously chosen to continue speaking Guyanese English at home in order to preserve their cultural heritage.

As the culture is a Caribbean-based culture, soca, chutney (a popular musical form created when Caribbean nationals of Indian descent blended Indian and Caribbean styles), calypso, and reggae are popular in Guyana. Cricket is the national sport.

It should be noted that Guyana (along with Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil) is '''NOT''' considered part of Latin America, since it has a different culture (basically, that of the Anglophone Caribbean), and most Guyanese people (including this troper) tend to get rather annoyed when people mistakenly claim that it is.

* Raymond Ablack, who plays Sav Bandhari in {{Degrassi: The Next Generation}}, is Indo-Guyanese.

* Raymond Ablack, who plays Sav Bandhari in "{{Degrassi: The Next Generation}}," is Indo-Guyanese.

It should be noted that Guyana (along with Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil) is not considered part of Latin America, since it has a different culture (basically, that of the Anglophone Caribbean).

* Guitarist Dave Baksh of the band Sum 41 is Indo-Guyanese
* E.R. Braithwaite, the real-life teacher portrayed by Sidney Poitier in "To Sir with Love" is Afro-Guyanese.
* Raymond Ablack, who plays Sav Bandhari in "Degrassi: The Next Generation," is Indo-Guyanese.