Surama is an

Amerindian In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...

village in the

North Rupununi The North Rupununi District in located in south-west Guyana consisting of a mixture of forest, savannah and wetlands ecosystems and is considered one of the most diverse areas in South America. Located on the eastern margin of the larger savannah s ...

area and the

Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo Upper Takutu-Upper Esequibo (Region 9) is a Regions of Guyana, region of Guyana. It borders the region of Potaro-Siparuni to the north, the region of East Berbice-Corentyne to the east and Brazil to the south and west. It contains the town of Let ...

Region of

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

, with a population of 274 people as of 2012. The village is primarily inhabited by Makushi people.

History

The area of land in which Surama is located has been inhabited sporadically for many years. An established cattle-trail ran through the area in the early twentieth century, and Surama was an important stopping-point on that trail. As the cattle-trail dwindled, however, so did the number of inhabitants in the area, and by the 1970s Surama was completely deserted. The modern village of Surama was founded in the 1974 by two brothers, Fred and Theo Allicock.

Eco-Tourism

Following the construction of the Linden-Lethem road in the mid to late 1970s, Surama and surrounding areas became more accessible to the general public. In 1996, Surama received its first tourists, and the money they gave the community to pay for their stay funded the construction of Surama's first guest-lodge. Since that time the village has become a leader in community-based, eco-tourism in

. In 2011, Surama Eco-Lodge was listed by the

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

as one of the "best hotels in Colombia, Guyana and Venezuela"; and in the same year it was the joint winner of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation Excellence in Sustainable Tourism Award, along with Harrison's Cave in

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

Description and location

Surama village extends across 12.95 squared kilometres (5 square miles) of land, and is located in a valley on the border of the Guyanese

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

and the

savannahs. It is bounded by

Iwokrama Forest The Iwokrama Forest is a nature reserve of central Guyana located in the heart of the Guiana Shield, one of the four last pristine tropical forests in the world (Congo Basin, Congo, New Guinea, and the Amazon rainforest are the others). It repres ...

protected area, the

Burro-Burro River The Burro-Burro River is a river of Guyana. It flows directly through the Iwokrama Forest, and is an important water source for the Macushi as well as used for ecotourism. It is protected for limited use of subsistence fishing, and the river is m ...

, and the

Pacaraima Mountains The Pacaraima or Pakaraima Mountains (, ) are a mountain range primarily in southwestern Guyana, and into northern Brazil and eastern Venezuela. Geography The range extends from west to east for over . Its highest peak is Mount Roraima at above ...

. Surama Mountain lies to the East of the village.

Economy

Up until the mid-1990s, Surama's economy relied primarily on

subsistence agriculture Subsistence agriculture occurs when farmers grow crops on smallholdings to meet the needs of themselves and their families. Subsistence agriculturalists target farm output for survival and for mostly local requirements. Planting decisions occu ...

, with a minority of male villagers taking paid jobs as loggers or gold-miners in the North-West region of Guyana or across the border in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. Following the increasing success with eco-tourism, however, Surama Eco-Tourism now provides approximately 60% of Surama's income, with 75% of households deriving income from the tourist trade.

References

{{Settlements in Guyana Populated places in Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo Indigenous villages in Guyana Macushi