Umana Yana
Encyclopedia
The Umana Yana is a conical palm thatched hut (benab) erected for the Non-Aligned Foreign Ministers Conference
in Guyana
in August 1972 as a V.I.P. Lounge and recreation centre.
Situated on Main Street next to the Le Meridien Pegasus Hotel, it is now a permanent and much admired part of Georgetown
's scenery, and is in constant use as an exhibition and conference centre.
The structure is 55 feet (16.78 meters) high and is made from thatched allibanna and manicole palm leaves, and wallaba posts lashed together with mukru, turu and nibbi vines. No nails were used. It was erected by a team of about sixty Wai-Wai Amerindians, one of the nine indigenous tribes of Guyana. Fashioned like the Wai-Wai benabs or shelters which are found deep in Guyana's interior, it occupies an area of 460 square metres, making it the largest structure of its kind in Guyana.
On 26 August 1974, President Forbes Burnham
unveiled the African Liberation Monument outside the benab "in memory of all of those who have struggled and continue to struggle for freedom from Human Bondage". The monument consists of five polished Greenheart
logs encased in a jasper stand on a granite boulder.
"Umana Yana" is a Wai-Wai word meaning "Meeting place of the people".
Non-Aligned Foreign Ministers Conference
The Non-Aligned Foreign Ministers Conference was held in Georgetown, Guyana from 8 August to 11 August 1972.During the conference, a monument to the four founders of the Non-Aligned Movement - President Nasser of Egypt, President Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, Jawaharlal Nehru of India and President Josip...
in Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
in August 1972 as a V.I.P. Lounge and recreation centre.
Situated on Main Street next to the Le Meridien Pegasus Hotel, it is now a permanent and much admired part of Georgetown
Georgetown, Guyana
Georgetown, estimated population 239,227 , is the capital and largest city of Guyana, located in the Demerara-Mahaica region. It is situated on the Atlantic Ocean coast at the mouth of the Demerara River and it was nicknamed 'Garden City of the Caribbean.' Georgetown is located at . The city serves...
's scenery, and is in constant use as an exhibition and conference centre.
The structure is 55 feet (16.78 meters) high and is made from thatched allibanna and manicole palm leaves, and wallaba posts lashed together with mukru, turu and nibbi vines. No nails were used. It was erected by a team of about sixty Wai-Wai Amerindians, one of the nine indigenous tribes of Guyana. Fashioned like the Wai-Wai benabs or shelters which are found deep in Guyana's interior, it occupies an area of 460 square metres, making it the largest structure of its kind in Guyana.
On 26 August 1974, President Forbes Burnham
Forbes Burnham
Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham was the leader of Guyana from 1964 until his death, first as Premier from 1964 to 1966, then as the Prime Minister from 1966 to 1980 and finally as President from 1980 to 1985....
unveiled the African Liberation Monument outside the benab "in memory of all of those who have struggled and continue to struggle for freedom from Human Bondage". The monument consists of five polished Greenheart
Chlorocardium
Chlorocardium rodiei is a member of the family Lauraceae. It is one of two species in the genus Chlorocardium, and was formerly classified in either of the genera Nectandra or Ocotea, as Nectandra rodiei or Ocotea rodiei. Other local names include sipiri, bebeeru and bibiru...
logs encased in a jasper stand on a granite boulder.
"Umana Yana" is a Wai-Wai word meaning "Meeting place of the people".