Archaeological evidence from Levisa in eastern Cuba suggests Neolithic cultures date back to at least 3000 BC. Hunter-gatherers known as the Guanahatabey appear to have been pushed to the west of the island—Pinar del Río—by waves of Taíno and Ciboney (Arawak) settlers, whose origins were in South America’s Orinoco river valley. The Taíno, who cultivated yucca, maize and sweet potatoes, may have numbered 350,000 on the island when Christopher Columbus reached Cuba in Oct. 1492. Diego Velázquez attempted to establish the first Spanish settlement at Baracoa in Cuba’s far east in 1511 but met fierce Taíno resistance, led by Hatuay, who had fled from Spanish forces in Hispaniola. Hatuay’s eventual defeat paved the way to the Spanish conquest of Cuba, initially from Baracoa which was granted city status in 1518. Other settlements were established, including at Trinidad, Sancti Spíritus and Havana, which grew into a bustling, fortified port and base for further exploration of the region. Within 50 years of their first contact with Europeans, the Taíno and Ciboney populations were almost wiped out by diseases to which they had no resistance. Tobacco and sugar plantations were developed in the 17th century, cultivated by tens of thousands of slaves imported from West Africa.