Punta

Punta

Punta is an Afro-indigenous dance and cultural music originated by the Garifuna people of Saint Vincent (Antilles) with African and Arawak elements. Punta is the best-known cultural dance belonging to the Garifuna community. Punta is also known as banguity or bunda in Honduras. The first arrival of the Garifuna people was in Punta Gorda, Roatan, Honduras on April 12, 1797. The most famous song of punta music is Sopa de Caracol by Banda Blanca; The song was originally written by Belizean singer Hernan "Chico" Ramos. The diaspora of Garinagu people, commonly called the "Garifuna Nation", dates back to the amalgamation of West African slaves and the Arawak and Carib Amerindians. Punta is used to reaffirm and express the struggle felt by the indigenous population's common heritage through cultural art forms, such as dance and music, and to highlight their strong sense of endurance. Besides Honduras, punta also has a following in Belize, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the United States. Lyrics may be in Garifuna, Kriol, English or Spanish. However, most songs are performed in the indigenous Arawak and Carib-based languages of the Garinagu and are often simply contemporary adaptations of traditional Garifuna songs. Being the most popular dance in Garifuna culture, punta can be performed at wakes, holidays, parties, ancestral celebrations, and other social events. Punta is iconic of Garifuna ethnicity and modernity and can be seen as poetic folk art that connects older cultures and rhythms with new sounds. Chumba and hunguhungu, circular dances in triple rhythm, are often combined with punta.

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