The Taíno are pre-Columbian indigenous inhabitants of Cuba and the Greater Antilles, the Bahamas, and some of the Lesser Antilles. It was believed that the seafaring Taíno were relatives of the Arawakan people of South America. Their language is a member of the Maipurean linguistic family, which ranges from South America across the Caribbean, and is thought to have been part of the larger, hypothetical group of Arawakan languages that would have spread over an even wider area. The Taíno of the Bahamas were known as the Lucayan (the Bahamas being known then as the Lucayas).
At the time of Columbus's arrival in 1492, there were five Taíno kingdoms or territories on Hispaniola, each led by a principal Cacique (chieftain), to whom tribute was paid. At the time of the Spanish conquest, the largest Taíno population centers may have contained around 3,000 people or more. The Taíno were historical neighbors and enemies of the Carib, another group with origins in South America who lived principally in the Lesser Antilles. The relationship between the two groups has been the subject of much study.