Indian Creek Colony
Indian Creek | |
|---|---|
Indian Creek | |
| Coordinates: 17°45′N 88°44′W / 17.750°N 88.733°W | |
| Country | Belize |
| District | Orange Walk District |
| Area | |
• Total | 91.2 km2 (35.2 sq mi) |
| Population (2022[1]) | |
• Total | 1,080 |
| • Density | 11.8/km2 (31/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central) |
| Climate | Am |
Indian Creek is a Mennonite settlement that is also an administrative village in Orange Walk District in Belize. Its inhabitants are German-speaking so called "Russian" Mennonites. It was founded in 1989.[2]
History
The origin of the Indian Creek Colony came about from Russian-speaking Old Order Mennonites that had set up the Shipyard, Belize colony in British Honduras in 1958. They later migrated and founded the Indian Creek Colony in 1989.[2] The colony shares characteristics with Mennonites in North America except the Indian Creek Colony states that the Church owns all the land and sells it only to church members as opposed to private ownership. Non-Mennonites can freely travel through but are unable to buy any land or run a business there.[2] They farm the land using traditional Mennonite practices though their crops failed in the 2010s due to droughts and church members failing to pay for seeds in time for planting. In 2017, they reached out to Mennonites in the United States for assistance. The American Mennonites arranged for new greenhouses and new irrigation systems to be sent to Indian Creek Colony.[2]
Demographics
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 747 | — |
| 2010 | 904 | +21.0% |
| 2022 | 1,080 | +19.5% |
| [3][4][1] | ||
At the time of the 2010 census, Indian Creek had a population of 903 people in 150 households.[4] Of these, 99.7% were Mennonite, 0.1% Ketchi Maya, 0.1% Mestizo and 0.1% Yucatec Maya.[5] The population have increased to 1,080 as of the national census of 2022.[1] As part of their education, the Mennonites of Indian Creek Colony study in German but are taught English as an additional language at schools.[2]
See also
References
- ^ a b c "2022 Census". Statistical Institute of Belize. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
- ^ a b c d e Reid, Judson (2021). "Agricultural Support for the Old Colony Mennonites of Belize: A Collaborative Effort between North American Old Order Mennonites and a Cornell Extension Educator". Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
- ^ Carel Roessingh and Kees Boersma: ‘We are growing Belize’: modernisation and organisational change in the Mennonite settlement of Spanish Lookout, Belize. 2011
- ^ a b "Belize Population and Housing Census - Country Report 2010" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 January 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
- ^ Population & Housing Census 2010 [1]