Lokono

The Lokono are an Indigenous people of the Guianas, residing in coastal and riverine areas of Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and northern Brazil. They are one of the Arawakan-speaking peoples and are commonly known in historical sources as the Arawak, though Lokono is the endonym used by the people themselves. The Lokono are traditionally associated with riverine and coastal communities and have long interacted with Indigenous and European groups since the early colonial era.

The Lokono language, also called Arawak, belongs to the Arawakan language family. It is spoken by a community that maintains bilingualism with the dominant national languages—English in Guyana, Dutch in Suriname, and French in French Guiana—and faces ongoing endangerment alongside revitalization efforts.

Culture and economy among the Lokono center on subsistence activities such as cassava-based farming, fishing, hunting, and gathering. They produce crafts like basketry and beadwork and sustain music, dance, and oral storytelling traditions. Social organization typically revolves around villages with elders and kin-based networks, and many communities incorporate a blend of indigenous beliefs with Christian influences from missionary activity.

History and modern status: Contact with Europeans began in the colonial era, bringing profound changes through disease, displacement, and missionization. Today, Lokono communities participate in regional organizations and land-right advocacy efforts. The Lokono language is considered vulnerable, and there are ongoing programs aimed at language preservation, education, and cultural revitalization within Lokono communities.