Historic Haitian Names
Bonapat, Polin —Pauline Bonaparte (1780-1825), the
ravishing sister of Napoleon Bonaparte (and who was not opposed to posing nude!),
was the wife of Victor-Emmanuel Leclerc, commander
of the some 21,000 French troops sent in
early 1802 to subdue the slave rebellion and then to proceed to Louisiana. (This was the largest army ever sent from the Old World
to the New.)
At her palace on
the outskirts
of Cape
Haitian was Pauline’s luxurious
court of artists, musicians, and ladies’ maids. She returned to France almost
exactly nine months after her arrival,
following the death from yellow fever of her
29-year-old
husband.
Channmas—the Champ-de-Mars, the park
and parade
grounds adjoining the National Palace;
completed by the Square of the Heroes
of Independence. In this area are statues of
Toussaint Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Henry
Christophe, and Alexandre Pétion; as well as of the Unknown Escaped Slave. Recently another martyr of the colonial period
was added: the Unknown Indian.
Desalin, Jan-Jak—Jean-Jacques Dessalines
(1758-1806). Although often
accused of being excessively bloodthirsty even
within the context of a bloody revolution, he nevertheless had
the courage to do what no Black
man had ever before dared: to proclaim (January 1, 1804) the
independence of a Black nation, the final
victory of the world’s
only slave revolt ever permanently to succeed.
It has been said that
Toussaint Louverture gave Haiti
liberty, Henry Christophe
gave Haiti dignity, and Jean-Jacques Dessalines gave Haiti
independence.
Divalye, Franswa—Dr. François
Duvalier (1907-1971), often familiarly called “Papa
Dòk.” He was one of the physicians who led the
successful campaign to eradicate the
tropical disease called yaws (Creole: pyan),
as well
as being
an outstanding anthropologist. However his years as president of
Haiti (1957 until his death) were characterized by ruthlessness
and terror. The international jet airport which bore his name
was inaugurated in 1967 and has been considerably enlarged
since.
