The Name Tekesta/Tequesta
We here use the Indian spelling of Tekesta rather than the Spanish
Tequésta or the more familiar English Tequesta.
Cacike Pedro Guanikeyu Torres, Principal Chief, Taino Tribe of
Jatibonicù, analyzes the Tekesta name is as follows:
- Te (short form of Tei): "To be," or "to be constituted as a people". For example,
- Teitoca: To be still, estate quieto
- Tekína: To be an envoy or messenger
- Ké: "Earth" or "land." For example,
- Borikén, the proper name for Puerto Rico
- Ké refers to the Earth, as would be used to refer to a woman of great value.
- (Qué Radical indo-antillana, significando tierra. Mejor seria para fijar la fonética escribir ké;
Qué Indo-Antillean radical which signifies land. It is best written phonetically as ké).
- Sta (Ta, short for Tai): "Good" (as in the term Taino). For example,
- Késhta: Good Earth?
- (The root word for sta and its concept may be a misspelling or corruption of Taino sounds like Késh
or Kishkéya. The only other Taino sound that is related is the "sh" sound found in proper names
like Guarionesh(X), Caguash(X). Orocobish(X). The X sound in these Chiefs' names is a Spanish corruption of
the shé sound found in words like warishé [woman]).
In short, the term Tekeshta or Tekesta means "We the People of the Good Earth." But this intepretation is based
on a dialect and should be checked against Dr. Julian Cranberry, The Timucua Dictionary.