Bigiston
Village in Marowijne District, Suriname
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bigiston, also Bigi Ston, is a group of settlements of Ndyuka Maroons and indigenous Kalina[2] in the Albina resort of the Marowijne District of Suriname. The villages lie on Marowijne River across from Saint-Jean-du-Maroni in French Guiana.[3]
Bigiston | |
|---|---|
Village | |
School in Bigiston (1964) | |
  Bigiston Location in Suriname | |
| Coordinates: 5.415°N 54.126389°W | |
| Country |  Suriname |
| District | Marowijne District |
| Resort | Albina |
| Government | |
| • Captain | Sylvester Awatjale[1] |
| Population (2020)[1] | |
• Total | 361 |
Bigiston is the name of the most northern of six small settlements. The name means big stone after a nearby rock with petroglyphs.[4] The village is a minor tourist attraction, and promoted for ecotourism.[5][6] The village has a school,[7] and a clinic operated by the Regional Health Service (RGD).[7]
The village chief as of 2017[8] is Sylvester Awatjale,[1] who lives in the southern Amerindian settlement. The Ndyuka and Kalina people peacefully coexist, but do not intermingle or intermarry.[5] Electricity is being provided by Diesel generators operating about six hours a day.[9] The most southern settlement Gronkiki contains a Winti clinic offering traditional health care.[5]
On 5 October 1986, during the Surinamese Interior War, the village was attacked by the Jungle Commando[10] and most of the villagers fled to French Guiana, however the village has been rebuilt and resettled after the war.[11][5]
