Curacao Culture

According to the 2001 census, the majority of the inhabitants of Curacao are Roman Catholic. Alongside these Christian denominations, some inhabitants practice Montamentu, and other diasporic African religions. There are practicing Muslims as well as Hindus. Though small in size, Curacao’s Jewish community has a significant impact on history. Curacao boasts the oldest active Jewish congregation in the Americas, dating to 1651, and the oldest synagogue of the Americas in continuous use, since its completion in 1732 on the site of a previous synagogue.

Local food is called Krioyo and boasts a blend of flavors and techniques best compared to Caribbean cuisine and Latin American cuisine. Popular dishes include: stob? (a stew made with various ingredients such as papaya, beef or goat), Guiambo (soup made from okra and seafood), kadushi (cactus soup), sopi mondongo (intestine soup), funchi (cornmeal paste similar to fufu, ugali and polenta) and lots of fish. Curacao liqueur was developed here when a local experimented with the rinds of the local citrus fruit, laraha.

One of Curacao’s strongest links to its African past is “tambu”, an form of music and dance. Drumming is the foundation of tambu. Accompanying the rhythm is a form of dancing called “baila ban” where partners never touch but move their hips and bodies while leaving the feet in place. Today, you’ll see tambu drumming and dancing at cultural festivals and at Carnival time

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