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Saint Kitts and Nevis Foodways

National

⚠ TWO ISLANDS, ONE FEDERATION, AND NEVIS DOES NOT CONSIDER ITSELF A SUBURB OF SAINT KITTS. Saint Kitts — Saint Christopher — was the first English and the first French colony in the Caribbean, shared uneasily between them for decades, and was called the "Mother Colony of the West Indies" because settlers went out from it to Antigua, Montserrat, Barbuda and beyond. The food: GOAT WATER, the national stew; saltfish with dumplings, spicy plantain and breadfruit; conch; pelau and seasoned rice; black pudding and souse; johnny cakes; and a sugar history that ended only in 2005. NEVIS, across a two-mile channel, has its own government, its own festival in CULTURAMA, and its own food identity. ⚠ FOURTEEN PARISHES, nine on Saint Kitts and five on Nevis.

Atlas — where and when

Where in the world

Communities and languages

  • Kittitians community documented
  • Nevisians community documented

Languages: English, Antigua and Barbuda Creole English

What is recorded

  • Saint Kitts was the first English and the first French colony in the Caribbean and was known as the Mother Colony of the West Indies because settlers proceeded from it to Antigua, Montserrat, Barbuda and elsewhere — which is documented as a reason for the recurrence of shared dishes across the Leewards. The sugar industry closed in 2005. Nevis maintains a separate administration and has twice held secession referendums. documented
  • Saint Kitts, the first English and first French Caribbean colony, sends settlers on to Antigua, Montserrat, Barbuda and beyond — the reason shared dishes recur across the Leewards. documented

Related foodways

This foodway relates to

Recorded as relating to this foodway

  • related to Antigua and Barbuda Foodways documented

    The Leewards were settled from one another — Saint Kitts was the "Mother Colony" — which is why goat water, fungi and the pepper pot recur.

Regional cuisines

Recipes

No recipes are filed under this cuisine yet.