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Nature, culture and climate

 Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana all lie on the Guiana Shield. The Guiana Shield is covered by the largest expanse of untouched tropical rain forest in the world and is one of the most important nature reserves in the world for life on earth.

 

Climate

The Guianas are tropical countries. The average temperature is around 28 degrees Celcius and the humidity lies between 80-95%. Temperatures are fairly consistent throughout the year. In the mountains and in the interior the temperatures lie, on average, a little lower.

All three countries know four seasons, two rainy seasons (December-January short rains and May-August heavy rains) and two dry seasons (February-April and September-November, the hottest months of the year).

Nature

The Guianas lie on the Guiana Shield and are covered for the most part with tropical rain forest. Suriname is even called the greenest country on earth and is covered with rain forest for more than 90% percent. A great diversity in flora and fauna can be found in all three countries.

There is not only rain forest to be found in Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. The countries border with the Atlantic ocean in the north. Off the coast of French Guiana even a few small islands can be found. Other than rainforest there are also swamps, wetlands, savannah, big rivers and huge (granite) mountains in the more southern parts of the Guianas. There is enough to explore in these green and diverse countries.

Culture

All three Guianas have a long and interesting history. They have all been colonies at one point in history and have had to deal with slavery. Guyana and Suriname also experienced the coming of indentured servants from India. Over time many different ethnic groups came into the three countries, resulting in culturally very rich countries.

Guyana is a former British colony, of which the influences are still noticeable. The country has a diverse population. Among them are people of Indian, African, Amerindian, European and mixed descent. The largest group is the Indo-Guyanese, followed by the Afro-Guyanese.

Suriname is a melting pot of cultures and ethnicities. It is visible on the streets and in every aspect of life. The largest groups in the society are the Afro-Surinamese (Creoles and Maroons), Hindus, Javanese, Chinese and the Indigenous. All of these groups still keep their traditions alive when it comes to holidays, eating habits, clothing, music and dancing. The diversity also shows in the many languages that can be heard in Suriname.

French Guiana (or ‘la Guyane) is an overseas department of France. Like Suriname, it is divers in ethnic groups, because of which it is culturally rich. Originally the country was inhabited by the Amerindians. Slaves from Africa where brought there in the 17th century, which has led to groups of Maroons living in the interiorand in the late 1970s and 1980s many Hmong refugees migrated to French Guiana. The largest ethnic group in la Guyane consists of people of mixed African and French ancestry.