These two Indio girls from the village of Alto Caballero in the northwest of Panama belong to the Guaymí people. - 1977

School is out. The little girl Yola from Puerto Cortés in Honduras is on her way home. His umbrella protects against both the rain and the sun. - 1977

This Indio girl from the village of Alto Caballero in the northwest of Panama belongs to the Guaymí people. - 1977

Two Cuna women preparing their food. Here bananas are being pounded to a pulp in a wooden mortar. - 1977

A young Cuna woman shows a colourful and richly decorated mola, the main product of Cuna women's handicrafts. The patterns usually depict people, mythological animals and geometric figures. All the images are symbolic and closely related to the extensive religion of the inhabitants of the San Blas archipelago. The mola is composed of several pieces of fabric carefully sewn together. - 1977

Young Cuna Indian girl from the San Blas archipelago wearing a small gold ring on her nose. These indigenous people form an ethnic group of about twenty-five thousand people. They are a very homogeneous group whose representatives are extremely proud of their culture, whether it be language, customs or beliefs. This does not prevent the Cuna, who are highly intelligent, from being attentive to everything that is happening in the world. Many of them work outside as teachers, doctors, lawyers or artists. Each Cuna community is headed by a chief, who reports to one of the three main caciques of the region. The responsibilities of the latter extend to all the representatives of the ethnic group. A daily meeting of the members of the community allows everyone to speak and express their opinions and judgements on the most diverse problems that the natives have to face. A more democratic system of government could not be imagined!

Young Cuna Indian woman from the San Blas archipelago. She wears a small gold ring on her nose. These indigenous people form a nation of about 25 000 people. They are a very unified group whose members are exceptionally proud of their culture, language, customs and beliefs. Each Cuna community has a leader, who in turn is under the command of one of the three main caciques of the region. The responsibility of the caciques encompasses the entire ethnic community. The daily meeting of the members of the community allows everyone to speak, present their views and express their opinions on the various issues facing the indigenous people. A more democratic system of government could not be imagined! - 1977

The Cuna woman is engaged in the manufacture of her clothing, namely the well-known cotton blouse (mola). She works under a tree or at the entrance of her home, sheltered from the sun. The Indian woman likes to cover herself with ornaments. She wears a small golden metal ring on her nose. On her arms and ankles she wears tightly fitted bracelets made of coral beads. While her husband fishes, hunts or works in one of the crop fields he owns on the mainland, the Cuna woman stays at home and performs a multitude of domestic tasks. She plays a considerable role in the society of her clan, which has a matriarchal structure. Thus, the puberty of girls is a very important event and is the pretext for a lively celebration in which all members of the community participate; in contrast, the puberty of boys goes unnoticed. It is also the case that the young husband will live in his wife's home, having to assist his parents-in-law in all circumstances. - 1977

School is out. These girls from Puerto Cortés in Honduras are on their way home. Their umbrellas protect against both the rain and the sun. - 1977

On the Caribbean coast of Honduras, after returning from an especially miraculous catch. A black girl from the town of La Ceiba offers beautiful fish to passers-by. The blacks form a sizeable population that has settled preferably in the low-lying, tropical areas of the Central American republics, more precisely along the Atlantic coastline. This ethnic group has preserved many traditions in which the African element is always present. Indeed, all these blacks are more or less direct descendants of the slaves who were brought to America during the 16th and 17th centuries by the Spanish conquerors. This odious trade in ‘ebony wood’ was motivated by the fact that the Westerners had exterminated most of the Indians who, prior to the Colony, populated the islands of the Caribbean Sea and the American continent. Lacking manpower, the whites decided to replace the natives with Africans, who were given the most arduous work. - 1977

Children fetch water at the well in the village of Izalco in El Salvador. The Nawat name Itzalku is composed of the word elements itz, "obsidian", (k)al, "house" and the locative ending -ku and can be roughly translated as "place of obsidian houses". - 1977

Street atmosphere from the village of Izalco in El Salvador. The Nawat name Itzalku is composed of the word elements itz, "obsidian", (k)al, "house" and the locative ending -ku and can be roughly translated as "place of obsidian houses". - 1977

A young mestizo boy harvests cotton in an area between La Unión and Usulután, El Salvador. Cotton was already known to the pre-Columbian populations, who used it to make the cloth worn by the important members of the group and the clergy. Is this plant species of American or Asian origin? The question remains, but we know with certainty that its daily use goes back to the most distant past. At present, cotton is cultivated on a large scale in Central America. It has become an industrial plant intended for export and is a very valuable source of income for most of the republics of the subcontinent. It owes this prestige to the excellent quality of its fibres. Its harvest, like that of coffee, requires the help of workers who work permanently in the field and, if necessary, of peones. - 1977

In the market of Santiago de Atitlán. - 1977

The clothing worn by Guatemalan Indian women includes essential elements such as shirts, blouses known as huipiles, skirts, belts and headbands, the colours and decorations of which vary considerably from region to region and even from village to village in the country. This phenomenon, common to all the Indian republics of the continent, is due to the fact that, for the indigenous people, clothing is a factor of social identification. It allows the wearer to distinguish himself from others and to be attached to his place of origin. - 1977

A little Mayan girl at the Friday market in San Francisco El Alto in the department of Totonicapán, Guatemala. - 1977

Little Mayan girl from Totonicapán. - 1977

Indian girl from San Cristobal de Totonicapán, a picturesque village in western Guatemala. The indigenous people of Guatemala, who make up almost half of the country's population, are found mainly in the mountainous regions. They are divided into six main ethnic groups, each with a number of subgroups. Most of the Indians are more or less direct descendants of the pre-Columbian Maya, from whom they have inherited many traditions in terms of daily activities, social life, beliefs and crafts. However, they have not been without the influence of Western culture, from which they have borrowed many elements. Nevertheless, the present-day Indians of Guatemala and neighbouring regions continue to courageously defend an invaluable heritage that gives the country its personality. - 1977

In San Pedro Yepocapa in the department of Chimaltenango, students parade on 15 September 1977, the bank holidays of Guatemala. On 14 October 1974, this place was partially destroyed during the eruption of the Fuego volcano. - 1977

Indian girls at the market of Chichicastenango. The indigenous people of this country, who make up almost half of the total population, live mainly in the mountainous regions. They are divided into six main ethnic groups, each of which includes a number of subgroups. Most of these Indians are descendants of the pre-Columbian Maya, from whom they have inherited numerous traditions, whether in daily work, social form, beliefs or crafts. - 1977

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