Shipyard (Shipyard)
Shipyard, also called Shipyard Colony, is a Mennonite settlement that is also an administrative village in the Orange Walk District of Belize.
Shipyard was founded in 1958 by Old Colony Mennonites from Chihuahua and Durango states in Mexico. It consists of more than 20 camps (German: "dörfer"), which have German names like "Blumenort" or "Hochfeld", but outside the Mennonite community they are referred to only by numbers, e. g. "Camp 5" instead of "Reinfeld".
Most of the population of Shipyard are Plautdietsch-speaking ethnic Mennonites, living in a very integrated community where most of them work as carpenters, farmers and mechanics. Most Mennonites of Shipyard are quite traditional in lifestyle, still using horse and buggy for transportation and tractors with steel wheels for fieldwork. Compared with other Mennonites in Belize, Shipyard is more conservative than Spanish Lookout and Blue Creek, but more modern concerning the use of technology than Upper Barton Creek, Springfield and daughter colonies.
Around 1960 the total population of Shipyard was 728. In 1987 it had grown to 1,966. In the 2014 census it had a total population of 3,497 people. In 2017 it has grown to 3,805 people. It is thus the largest Mennonite settlement in Belize.
Shipyard was founded in 1958 by Old Colony Mennonites from Chihuahua and Durango states in Mexico. It consists of more than 20 camps (German: "dörfer"), which have German names like "Blumenort" or "Hochfeld", but outside the Mennonite community they are referred to only by numbers, e. g. "Camp 5" instead of "Reinfeld".
Most of the population of Shipyard are Plautdietsch-speaking ethnic Mennonites, living in a very integrated community where most of them work as carpenters, farmers and mechanics. Most Mennonites of Shipyard are quite traditional in lifestyle, still using horse and buggy for transportation and tractors with steel wheels for fieldwork. Compared with other Mennonites in Belize, Shipyard is more conservative than Spanish Lookout and Blue Creek, but more modern concerning the use of technology than Upper Barton Creek, Springfield and daughter colonies.
Around 1960 the total population of Shipyard was 728. In 1987 it had grown to 1,966. In the 2014 census it had a total population of 3,497 people. In 2017 it has grown to 3,805 people. It is thus the largest Mennonite settlement in Belize.
Map - Shipyard (Shipyard)
Map
Country - Belize
Flag of Belize |
The Maya civilization spread into the area of Belize between 1500 BC and AD 300 and flourished until about 1200. European contact began in 1492 when Christopher Columbus sailed along the Gulf of Honduras. European exploration was begun by English settlers in 1638. Spain and Britain both laid claim to the land until Britain defeated the Spanish in the Battle of St. George's Caye (1798). In 1840 it became a British colony known as British Honduras, and a Crown colony in 1862. Belize achieved its independence from the United Kingdom on 21 September 1981. It is the only mainland Central American country which is a Commonwealth realm, with King Charles III as its monarch and head of state, represented by a governor-general.
Currency / Language
ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
---|---|---|---|
BZD | Belize dollar | $ | 2 |
ISO | Language |
---|---|
EN | English language |
ES | Spanish language |