Figure 1.--Here a Mennonite boy sits down near beans bags. He belongs to a Belizean Mennonite community. Some of the Belizian communities are very traditionalist others more opened to modernity.

The Mennoites emerged from Germany during the Protestant Revolution. Seeking a tolerant location where they could practice their religion and separtist life-style, the Mennoites migrated to Canada (Manitoba) and the United States (Pennsylvamia). It was a small group of these North American Mennonites that reached Belize in 1959. There they became a poorly understood and rather conspicuous part of the Belizian population. The Mennonites in Brelize continue to remain apart, perpetuating their culture and reigion. About 3,000 Mennonites came to Belize and settled along the River Hondo. Here they found a location offering religious toleration persecution and away from the hustle and bustle of modern society. The British colonial government agreed to a special arrangement which exempted the Mennoite Community from military service as well as certain forms of taxation. They were the key components that eventually drove the Mennoites from Europe. The Government also guranteed complete freedom religious feedom and the right to farm within a closed community. The Mennonites today have their own local government and maintain their own separate schools, banks, and businesses. The first Belizian Mennonites purchased large uninhabited tracts of land and created settlements at Corozal, Orange Walk, and Cayo districts. Although often not well understood by their neighbors, they soon became well respected for their dedicated work ethic. The Mennonites soon transformed wildreness into productive farms and dairies. The new settlers built a road from the Blue Creek settlement to Orange Walkand subsequently founded communities at Spanish Lookout and Shipyard. While the Mennonites live in a cloed comminity, they are not compleletly separate from the wider Bekizian society. The Mennonites are involved in commerce, carpentry, engineering, and agriculture and provide a range of useful services and products, in many instances products that once had to be imported. The Belizian Mennonites are especially important in Bekize's poultry and dairy indusries. There is also an important furniture industry. The Mennoites when they go into towns are quite conspicous and stand out. This is beause of their horse and bugy transport, their plain dress (the men and boys wear dark trousers, suspenders, and straw hats and the women wear old-fashioned long plaid dresses and bonnets), and they still have the blond hair and fair skin of their Germam ancestors. Belizian Mennoites vary as to their attitude toward modern machinery. Some believe modern technology like engines and electricity contaminates their faith. Others are more willing to accept it.

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Crerated: 12:47 AM 10/4/2006
Last updated: 12:47 AM 10/4/2006