institutions, mixed with African ones, resulted in the development

of a Belizean Creole culture. Bolland cites the 1830 Honduras

Almanac which contains a description of the free blacks organizing
themsclves into "nations" in which they upheld their original
systems, prejudices, superstitions and amusements as far as the
limits of the colonial administration allowed them. Elsewhere, he
emphasizes that during slavery the majority of the population,
slaves and free people of colour, (African-Belizeans) had strong
cultural links with Africa, which they tried to maintain even in the
1830's when slavery came to an end. There is a need to understand
that the resident and missionary educational leaders had to contend
with the African links the black peoples retained. Bolland states
that in 1850 the black inhabitants of Beclize included Congoes,
Nangoes, Mongolas, Ashantees, Eboes, and other A frican tribes.

Language and folklore were aspects of the persistence of

African influences in the Afro-Belizean culturc in the nineteenth
century, and would have formed part of the informal education that
the young acquired in their everyday participation in their
community. Within this context, in the process of time, Creole
developed and became the lingua franca in the Settlement even
beforc the initial cfforts to establish European-oriented schooling
in Belize and must have presented significant cultural resistance to
the clementary school curriculum at the time.

Another aspect of the colonial society of the Settlement during

and after slavery was its cconomy which was bascd on the extraction
of timber, especially mahogany. This was a seasonal
The labourers spent cach season
occupation.
commencing at the beg1nning of
the year and terminating towards the close of the
year. This meant
that the labourers spent many months in isolated
camps, returning
to Bclize'Town for the Christmas, then
departing once at the
again
beginning of the following year. In this
economy young boys
started to work carly in their lives and eventually joined the
labourers ot the mahogany works. Younggirls started to work at an
carly age also, first as domestics, then gradually entering more
difficult employment such as washerwomen, housemaids and
servants or scamstresses. Ccrtainly tamily life where there was any,
was affected by the seasonal nature and other characteristics of

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