There is a close interrelationship between historical/ anthropological documents about Amerindian culture and traditions and Guyanese Amerindian literature. To a large extent, national literature draws on the Amerindian presence and the literature, both written and oral, that it generates. National fiction, poetry and drama are all enriched by this presence which has produced a considerable literary corpus.

Nineteenth century and early twentieth century documents are well complemented by contemporary publications treating indigenous culture, sociology, social anthropology, traditions and politics, which support the literature. The several publications by Professor Emeritus Mary Noel Menezes, Denis Williams, Janette Bulkan and Audrey Butt-Colson provide additional, more up-to-date material as well as new insights into the history. And to this may be added the research output, much of it unpublished, of historians, anthropologists/archaeologists and linguists such as Anna Benjamin, Jenny Wishart and Walter Edwards, who all worked in the Amerindian Research Unit of the University of Guyana. Wishart has returned to the Walter Roth Museum where much of the research and archival findings reside.

The creative literature confronts the same material dealt with by those writers, whose work supports it. Different treatments of the…..