Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean
The Classic Taíno lived in eastern Cuba, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico. They spoke a dialect called Classic Taíno. Compared to their neighbors, the Classic Taíno had substantially developed agricultural societies. Puerto Rico was divided into twenty chiefdoms which were organized into one united kingdom or confederation, Borinquen. Hispaniola was divided into roughly 45 chiefdoms, which were organized into five kingdoms under the leadership of the chief of each area's premier chiefdom. Beginning around 1450, Classic Taíno from Hispaniola began migrating to eastern Cuba; they are conventionally known as the Cuban Taíno. The Cuban Taíno gained power over some of Cuba's earlier Western Taíno inhabitants, the Ciboney, but no regional or island-wide political structure had developed on the island at the time of Spanish colonization of the Americas.
Los Pingüinos Natural Monument
Prior to the 16th century, Magdalena and Marta Islands were inhabited by three pre-Hispanic cultures: the Selknam, the Yaghan, and the Kawesqar. These people had very little effect on the islands as they had a small population and also spent much time fishing at sea, rather than being on the island. The Selknam were forced to leave after Spanish colonialists brought sheep to the region, which eliminated the habitat of the guanaco, an animal similar to an alpaca, that they hunted. The Yaghan and Kawesqar also eventually abandoned the area due to colonial pressure. Though people no longer live on the islands, the human impacts are likely much greater than where there were inhabitants because thousands of people visit the islands each year.