Nicaraguans – or Nicas (used for both male and female) – are known as a generous, warm-hearted and hard-working people. Nicaraguans, especially in the countryside and in smaller villages, are usually very welcoming of respectful foreigners, and willing to help out when they can.
Most are also patient with foreigners who trip over their Spanish. About 70% of Nicaraguans are mestizos, or mixed blood between Native Americans and decedents of European stock. 17% are white, 9% black and 5% indigenous. Most Nicaraguans are Catholic, with conserve and traditional family values. It is not uncommon for adult children to still live at home, sometimes even after they are married.
Nicaragua is a class based society – often along lines of race – with 30% living below the poverty line. Social mobility does exist, but is rare. Wealthy people have the money to send their kids to school, or start businesses to perpetuate the cycle of wealth. It’s the same way rich people stay rich everywhere in the world.
The country’s population is 5.3 million, with another million or so Nicaraguans living outside of the country, mostly in the United States and Costa Rica.
Nicaragua’s history of suffering and struggles for justice has produced a country of poets. The Sandinista revolutionary government was oft romanticized as a revolution of poets and campesinos.
The country’s most well-known literary figure is Rubén Darío (1867-1916), known as the “Prince of Spanish American Literature.” His works inspired poetry movements and literary trends through Latin America.
More recent famous poets included Ernesto Cardinal, the Sandinista’s former Minister of Culture, and a candidate for the Nobel Prize for Literature. Nicaragua has also produced accomplish authors – such as Gioconda Belli and Sergio Ramirez – and folk musicians, such as Carlos Mejía Godoy.
More recently, Nicaraguans have embraced more pop music, salsa, meringue, rock and the lobotomizing beats of reggaeton. If you trust your feet to keep up, check out a disco and learn some new dance moves.
Ceramic arts are part of Nicaragua’s artistic traditions and can be found for sale in many markets in the so called “White Towns” around Masaya.
Despite all the admirable qualities, there is a negative side to the Nicaraguan culture. While generalizations are odious (both in describing the good, the bad and the ugly) it can be said that corruption and bribery is an ingrained part of the culture here. It is the way things get done, from cutting through bureaucratic red tape, to getting the police officer to give you your license back.
Nicaragua is also a very machista culture, and many of the men are aggressive (both towards women and towards other men). Machismo has something to do with sexism (ie, women belong to their man, as if they were livestock or property), but it is often more complicated than that. Machismo often leads to domestic violence (which often goes unreported because the women are also inculcated in machismo), but it can also have to do with an understanding of one’s roles and responsibilities in society.
But beware: in a machismo culture it is easy to offend someone’s honor without meaning to. Machismo makes people touchy, insecure and impulsive. Just ask President Bush. It is also not uncommon for men to cheat on their wives or girlfriends, or for the woman being cheated on to know about it.
Foreign women walking along the street will be alarmed by the aggressively flirtatious behavior and outrageous comments of some Nicaraguan men, and boys. Many of these flirtations or piropos, as they are called in Spanish, may border on the obscene but are, usually, harmless forms of flattery to get a female’s attention. It is usually best to ignore such advances, and behave in a way so as not to encourage it or invite more.
While most people are honest (maybe), others will try to take advantage of the gringo stepping off the plane who doesn’t speak Spanish and has a billfold full of dollars. Find out the prices of taxis and other basic services before dolling out what seems like a lot of money for something. If you think you are paying too much, you probably are. Some unscrupulous people will charge foreigners double the local cost. Find out if you are getting the “gringo quote” or the Nicaraguan quote before purchasing services or items.
Nicaragua’s warm-hearted people are a treasure
Along those lines, be leery of people asking to borrow money. Don’t get into a situation in which you are not comfortable.
Overall, people here are the same as they are everywhere. Don’t think the laws of human nature don’t apply here, just because you don’t know the language and the weather is nice. If you are a good judge of character at home, you probably will be here, too. If your not, we can’t help you. |
