« Pierrekondre History of origin
The founder of Sjimiri Unde is Adankuna, he was a healer and in the Kalinya language he is piai. His ancestry was Kalinya, one of the original Indigenous population groups in Suriname. He was born in Iracoubo in French Guiana and his wife comes from Cottica, a village in the Marowijne district. They have founded their own place of residence together, with only their own children and their families.
All the families used to travel around the area together, because we had set up a hunting camp or a fishing camp in different places. Fruit trees and cassava plants were grown in every place. The cassava was harvested every 3 months, 6 months and every 9 months. Our family also grew bananas, root vegetables and pineapple. Our favorite places were in the tributaries of the Marowijne River or in the creeks near Koudouwaw, present-day French Guiana. We had no borders either, but had to choose a permanent place of residence due to the arrival of the settlers.
In the meantime, people have left the village and a new village has been founded on the French bank of the Marowijne river, this village is called Village Pierre. Other relatives were taken into existing villages during the internal war in 1985.
The commissioner came to visit my grandfather one day, he was the village chief at the time. My grandfather himself did not want to fall under the government, but every time a visitor came and asked who the village chief was, the other relatives referred them to my grandfather.
The commissioner asked my grandfather to have a name sign placed near the village and he also asked what name it could be on the sign. He also recommended a name in Sranang tongo or Dutch, because no one would understand what Shimiry undy would mean. That is the name of the village in our traditional language, kalinya awlang. Together with the elders they decided to give the village the name Pierre-Kondre. That is why the village is now officially called Pierre-Kondre.
Romeo Pierre is the current captain of the village and has been village chief since 2005. Together with his village council consisting of Louis Biswane, Edmund Yard and Richard Pierre, they run the village. The number of inhabitants is now 150 people spread over 45 households. They are the first official village council of Pierre-Kondre to fall under the Ministry of Regional Development.
In Pierre Kondre we gathered on January 8, 2022
With the village administration Pierre Kondre, Captain Romeo Pierre the assistant of the village chief, Basja Louis Biswane
Lydia Pierre, Hillouise Pierre, Patrich van Wijnen and Inge Pierre
Also in this village people want to participate in the idea of Indigenous currency. It emerged that Pierre Kondre is a village where a lot of trade is conducted with French Guiana. Trade in fruit bananas, coconut, avocado, mango, sometimes wild orchid and fish is the main business. But here too people want the founders of the village on a bill. In addition, they want to replant the awarra tree that has been cut down by deforestation. Awarra is the orange fruit seen here in the photo.
