Aruba may be a small island in the Caribbean, but it is part of a much larger story that began when Christopher Columbus stumbled upon these parts of the world. Today, approximately 87% of Aruba’s economy depends on tourism. A key component of modern tourism marketing is storytelling. An opportunity for digging more into the Aruba history. Driven by a growing demand for authentic experiences from tourists, visitors, and travelers. But it’s not just visitors seeking authenticity—locals are also searching for a deeper connection to their identity based on the Aruba history, which is often rooted in Aruba’s relatively unknown yet rich history and cultural heritage.
As a result, many stories about the history of Aruba, its culture and what makes the island unique compared to the rest of the world, are currently still being written and created. While most of these narratives are based on truth, they often lack depth and cover vast periods in a simplified manner. In my view, this leads to a somewhat distorted understanding of our history and roots. That’s why I started this blog, to dive deeper into the true origins of modern-day Aruba. The devil is in the detail, and the more complete the story, the more exciting it can be.
Now, after six chapters, we’re getting into the real heart of Aruba’s story.
As covered in previous chapters, one of the main points is that Aruba played a relatively minor role in the grand history of the Caribbean—but that depends on perspective. For the indigenous Arawak and Caiquetios, who came from present-day Venezuela and Colombia, Aruba was incredibly significant. It offered them refuge, allowing them to live free from religious persecution. For the Dutch, who arrived later, the nearby island of Curaçao held more importance due to its strategic position in the Caribbean and the Americas. However, Aruba was essential for them to maintain control over both Curaçao and Bonaire, as well as the trade routes the Spanish used to ship wealth back to Spain.
From 1499 to the late 1600s, Aruba’s social and cultural development was fairly straightforward. Neither the Spanish nor the Dutch allowed European colonization on the island, so the population mainly consisted of the Arawak people, who had converted to Roman Catholicism. Despite this religious shift, they didn’t fully assimilate into European culture.
Aruba’s first major shift came under the control of the Dutch West India Company (WIC) around 1639. When the first iteration of the WIC went bankrupt, a second was founded in September 1674, continuing Aruba’s journey under Dutch influence. It’s important to note, however, that Aruba was not yet officially part of the country we now know as the Netherlands.
WIC headquarters in Amsterdam. Aruba fell under its rule.
So, what shaped Aruba into the diverse melting pot of nationalities, cultures, religions, and traditions that it is today? Why is the standard of living on the island relatively high compared to the rest of the region? Has it always been this way? My research reveals that Aruba has endured its fair share of challenges, including famine, poverty, and economic stagnation. Yet, I believe that the people who lived and worked on Aruba from the late 1600s onward laid the foundation for what we now recognize as the true roots of modern Aruba.
In the upcoming chapters, I’ll dive deep into the period between 1639 and 1791, when Aruba was under the control of the Dutch West India Company (WIC). This era played a crucial role in shaping the island, and it wasn’t until December 31, 1791, that Aruba officially became a colony of “The Netherlands.” There’s much more to uncover about this significant period in Aruba’s history.
In the era that Aruba was property of the WIC, from a history timeline perspective, it was quite unremarkable. That does not mean that nothing noteworthy happened. There is not much documentation to be found on these “forgotten” years. Nevertheless, here are some chapters in Aruba’s history worth telling. Even though one tends to forget, it is interesting to realise that during this Period The Dutch were at war with the Spanish, till 1648, the Portuguese and with the English. The latter was called the Anglo-Dutch wars of 1652-1654 and 1665-1667. In the end it resulted in the Dutch losing New Amsterdam (New York) to the English (but getting Surinam in return).
The first economic activity on Aruba – Export to New Amsterdam
Of the 3 islands, Curacao was the most important one. And Aruba was always under the shadow of its larger sister Island. Nevertheless, the Dutch WIC started breeding horses on Aruba, that they would export. Remarkably the first export of Aruban horses was to New Amsterdam, current New York. I say this, because for the past decades from the late 1980’s up to now, New York is still the number 1 source market for Aruba’s tourism industry.
The export endeavour was not successful though. There is not much of this history to be found. There is a report however, of a ship called “De Eyckenboom” that transported 20 slaves from Curacao and 50 horses from Aruba to New Amsterdam. Unfortunately half of the horses perished during the journey and the rest arrived to weak to even stand on their own feet. The original documentation, a letter from the Governor Peter Stuyvesant dated June 25 1660, mentioning this can be found HERE. Four years after the journey of “De Eyckenboom” the British captured New Amsterdam from the Dutch, and changed the name to New York.
Pirates of The Caribbean…..on Aruba
The Dutch were engaged in various wars, such as the Franco Dutch war and the 4 Anglo Dutch wars. During these periods there were many privateers or buccaneers, also known as pirates, roaming the sees between the Caribbean islands. These were seamen and sailors who would attack military and merchant vessels of a specific country with the blessing of another one (privateering). Jan Erasmus Reining, a Dutch buccaneer was one of them. He even served under the more famous Henry Morgan & Rock Brasiliano. Reyning’s visit to Aruba is documented. See it HERE on page 237. He landed on Aruba in 1677, fleeing from St. Maarten after being defeated by French Admiral Duc d’Estrées. His fame stems from the book: The Devils Anarchy; The very remarkable travels of Jan Erasmus Reyning, Buccaneer. Or as the book is called in Dutch: “Zeer aanmerkelijke reysen gedaan door Jan Erasmus Reyning”.
These visits from pirates have also found their way into Aruba’s folklore. I remember my grandmother telling me stories about fishermen seeing ghosts at night. These fishermen would tie up and hide their boats between mangroves or other vegetation on and near the beaches. Legend has it that there have been pirates who buried treasure on Aruba, and cut off the head of one of their crew and buried the body and head with the treasure to guard it. I don’t know if it is true, but I hope that someday someone does find treasure dating back to these years.
Aruba is still Spanish property…..or is it Dutch?
During the 80 years war with Spain, the Dutch captured Curacao, Aruba and Bonaire for their salt pans and strategic positions off the coast of the mainland. This happened without fierce battles or dramatic events. It happened so swiftly and quiet that the Spaniards did not realise they lost the Islands. Proof of this is the fact that it was not until almost 100 years later, that the then Spanish ambassador to the Dutch Republic, Vizconde de Herreria, asked an official status of specifically Aruba. The Dutch replied that they did not understand the fuss. Aruba has been theirs for a long time already. The original letter still exists in the archives of Simancas, Spain.
So the take-away on our Aruba roots here are:
Aruba was property of the WIC and not really part of the Dutch “7 province republic”
The population consisted of Arawak Indians that emigrated from the mainland & a few Europeans employed by the WIC
Aruba was an “experimental” ranch for breeding goats and horses
Aruba was spared much of the violence and battles of the many wars waging in that period
The Aruba history goes a bit dark after the WIC conquered it from the Spanish. There is not a lot of documentation. Curacao was the main Island housing the senior leadership, Not much happened on Aruba, and I think that it is for this reason, plus the fact that there were no note worthy leaders/commanders on the Island, that not much has been documented. It isn’t till around the 1700’s that we get to find out more again on what actually happened on Aruba. The following is what I have managed to find out. I will update in case I find out more.
Populated by the Caquetios of the mainland Arawak tribe, deported by the Spaniards and then safe-haven for freed Arawak from both Hispaniola and the mainland. The evolution of the Aruban population has been turbulent to say the least. At least we know that our first roots are based on the coastal region of what are now Estado Falcon in Venezuela and La Guajira in Colombia. The initial Spanish contacts do not seem to have had a significant impact on the DNA of the early Arubans. They did, however, have a profound cultural influence by introducing Catholicism to them. This will reveal itself to be of some importance later on in the history of Aruba.
In the previous chapter we learned that the arrival of the Dutch was more out of necessity than desire to conquer the Islands from the Spain. And Aruba in this case was less important than the sister Islands of Curacao and Bonaire. Aruba lacked a safe harbour like in Curacao. And it lacked saltpans like in Bonaire. Nevertheless, Aruba was pat of the package, and therefore fought over between the 2 countries.
As part of the 80 year war between Spain and The Netherlands, the WIC was founded. Its main purposes being:
Breaking the monopoly that Spain and Portugal had in the colonisation of the Americas
Colonising part of the Americas for the 7 provinces of The Netherlands
“Piracy” against Spanish merchant vessels to disrupt the supply of wealth to Spain
Disrupt the colonial income to Spain in order to sabotage their war efforts (80 year war)
It was founded in 1621 but started operations in 1623 (remember the 80 year war would go on till 1648). It was not until 1634 that the WIC decided to make a serious attempt to conquer Curacao from the Spaniards. Aruba soon followed in 1636. This was al led by Johannes van Walbeeck. Contrary to popular belief, the Islands became property of the WIC and not colonies of the Netherlands. The WIC even prohibited colonisation by individuals. The Islands became sort of “farms” for the WIC. The local Arawaks were “persuaded” to work while small garrisons of WIC officers and soldiers defended the islands. It was not even allowed for their wives to join them on the Islands. This debunks an important assumption in Aruban history that the Dutch colonised us and that our Dutch Caribbean development or heritage, if you will, started here. Initially the presence of the WIC did not influence the population and cultural much on Aruba. Other that according to some researchers, many Arawaks fled the islands to the mainland due to a preference for Spanish rule.
Octrooi WIC 1621 – The Patent for the WIC in 1621
During all of this the WIC and the 7 provinces of The Netherlands were active elsewhere in the Americas (amongst others):
Recife in Pernambuco, Brazil
Tobago
New Amsterdam (what is now New York)
St Croix
St. Maarten
St. Eustatius
Saba
Aruba in that time fell under Curacao supervision which in turn fell under Supervision of Recife. The highest ranking officer on Aruba was called the Commander. Together with some cavaliers, he had to manage small scale goat farming, which was used to supply Curacao with additional food. It seems that right after being conquered, it took some years before an official Commander has been appointed to Aruba. Apparently the first Commander, Hendrik Martens, was appointed in 1660. Without disrespecting Aruba, it was clear that it had a marginal role at the time.
After the fall of Recife (pernambuco) in 1654 Aruba and its sister islands fell under “New Netherlands” and New Amsterdam (currently NY city). After the British conquest of New Amsterdam, the 3 islands formed a unit of themselves. With Curacao being the lead Island with a Director and Aruba & Bonaire with a commander each.
Dutch WIC siege outside of Olinda, Recife in Pernambuco state.
The take-away on these facts for our history are:
Aruban Arawaks were a mix of original and mainland immigrants
The Spanish had a bigger cultural impact compared to the Dutch on Aruba
Aruba was more an Arawak reservation than a Colony
Aruba was property of the WIC and not of the country of The Netherlands
Without a doubt, the first inhabitants of Aruba were the Caquetio Indians, part of the Arawak tribe who migrated from the mainland and settled on the island. Archaeological excavations into the Aruba history have shown that the Caiquetios have lived on Aruba for around 16,000 years, with major settlements in what we now know as Tanki Flip &Malmok (Noord), Santa Cruz, Canashito and Savaneta.
However, as I mentioned in the introduction, my main focus is on Aruba’s history starting in 1499, when everything changed with the arrival of Europeans. The world was transformed after Columbus’ discovery of the Americas, and Aruba was no exception.
Aruba’s first European visitor was a Spaniard named Alonso de Ojeda (1466 Cuenca, Spain – 1515 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic). Ojeda, a participant in Columbus’ second voyage, later embarked on a separate mission sponsored by Bishop Juan Rodríguez de Fonseca. During this expedition, he explored the coastlines of modern-day Venezuela and Colombia, and in September 1499, he landed on Aruba. Despite this discovery, Ojeda found no gold and labeled Aruba, along with Curaçao and Bonaire, as “Isla Inútil”—Spanish for “worthless island.”
Alonso de Ojeda
Alonso de Ojeda was an interesting character. He embodied, the good, the bad and the ugly of early European exploration in the Americas. But for the continuing history discussed on this site, after the discovery, his relevance diminished. The question I have is: “what happened to Aruba after 1499?”
Aruba automatically became part of the Spanish Empire and was included in the region known as Nueva Andalucía, governed by Ojeda. However, by 1513, the indigenous Caiquetios were enslaved and deported to Hispaniola (modern-day Dominican Republic) to work in copper mines, under the orders of Diego de Salazar. Around 2,000 Caiquetios from Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao were taken, leaving Aruba devoid of human inhabitants for nearly six years. Imagine how that must have been.
In 1519, the surviving Caiquetios were allowed to return to Aruba, thanks to Juan Martínez de Ampiés, a Spanish official who recognized the intelligence of the Caiquetios, referring to them as “Guatiaos”. He successfully advocated for their protection from slavery in exchange for their conversion to Christianity. Juan Ampiés, or possibly his son (there’s some historical debate), played a key role in the re-population of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao, and later founded the city of Santa Ana de Coro in Venezuela in 1527 with the help of Cacique Manaure. This city played a key role in the re-population of the Islands, especially Aruba.
Unfortunately, Juan Ampiés eventually lost control of the region due to financial difficulties and disputes. King Charles I of Spain (Charles V of Germany) granted control of Venezuela’s coastal area to the Welser family—German bankers who had financed the Spanish Crown. Juan Ampiés died a poor man in 1533, and although the islands remained under Spanish control, they were largely forgotten, allowing the local Caiquetio population to live with a degree of autonomy.
Juan Ampiés’ influence was significant in shaping the post-1499 history of Aruba. He ensured that the island was re-populated with both the original Caiquetios and new arrivals from the mainland, while also introducing European agricultural practices such as the breeding of goats, pigs, and horses, as well as the cultivation of fruit trees.
Key Takeaways About Aruba’s Roots:
Caiquetio heritage: Aruba’s indigenous roots trace back more than 16,000 years to the Caiquetios.
Spanish colonization: Aruba was colonized by Spain and annexed into Nueva Andalucía.
Enslavement and deportation: In 1513, the Caiquetio population was deported to the Dominican Republic, but later freed and allowed to return.
Cultural exchange: After their return, the Caiquetios were encouraged to convert to Christianity and integrate European agricultural practices, forming the foundation of Aruba’s Catholic heritage.
Mix of populations: By 1499, Aruba’s population had become a mix of original Caiquetio inhabitants, mainland indigenous people (from Santa Ana de Coro), and Spaniards.
Manaure
Juan de Ampies
One of my primary conclusions from this chapter, based on extensive research, is that from 1499 onward, Aruba’s population became a blend of Caiquetio natives, indigenous people from the mainland, and Spanish settlers. This also explains the strong Catholic presence in Aruba today. Given the relatively short distance between Aruba and Venezuela (126 km), this cultural exchange makes perfect sense.
In the next chapter, I’ll explore the period from 1533 to around 1600, investigating the events and contributions that further shaped Aruba’s roots.
Note: The Kingdom of the Netherlands did not yet exist during this period. The Dutch provinces of Holland, Friesland, Zeeland, and Utrecht were involved in the Eighty Years’ War against Spain.
