MOSQUITO COAST or MOSQUITO RESERVE (Mos quitia or Reserva Mosquita), a section of the eastern coast of the Republic of Nicaragua, once held as a protectorate by the British Crown, and now comprised largely in the Province or Department of Zelaya, Nicaragua. It includes the important town of Bluefields, the town of Prinzapolca on the river of the same name, and much of the territory involved in various Nicaraguan revolutions on the Caribbean coast. The name Mosquito coast is sometimes applied erroneously to the whole eastern seaboard of Nicaragua and often to the adjoining region of Mosquitia in Honduras, i.e., the coast region as far west as the Rio Negro or Rio Tinto. The Mosquito coast is more accurately defined, how ever, as a narrow strip, about 4o m. wide, skirting the Caribbean sea from ° 45' to 10' N., a length of about 225 miles. The northern boundary would be along the Wawa river, the western on the edge of the Nicaraguan highlands, and the southern along the river Rama. Bluefields, with a population of about 8,000, is the capital and the most important town.
The Mosquito coast is named from its ancient Indian inhabit ants, the Mosquito or Misskito Indians, see below (the corruption of the name is attributed to the first European settlers). The In dians still have a loose tribal organization, but are completely mixed with negroes escaped from the plantations in colonial times or wrecked on the shores here. The first white settlement was made in 1630, on two small cays or islands by representatives of an English chartered company of which the earl of Warwick was chairman and John Pym treasurer. The English established a protectorate over the Mosquito Indians in 1655 and claimed this suzerainty until 1850. The United States, Spain and the Central American republics disputed this claim, and it was finally settled by the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty between the United States and Great Britain, under whose terms Great Britain withdrew her claims to the Mosquito coast in return for the mutual pledge, with the United States, that neither power would fortify, colonize or exercise dominion over any canal that should be built through Central America ; this was later revised under the Hay-Paunce fote Treaty of 1900. (See PANAMA CANAL.) Prior to the Clayton Bulwer Treaty, however, there had been various efforts to estab lish British colonies in the Mosquito Reserve, but with little success, and in 1848 the seizure of Greytown (San Juan del Norte), farther down the Nicaraguan coast, by Mosquito In dians, with British support, aroused excitement and protest in the United States, and war was talked of.
Greytown was the eastern terminus of the proposed Nicaraguan canal, and the move upon it was taken as indicative of Great Britain's determination to build a British canal through Nicaragua.
The matter was closed by the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty two years later. The British Government delegated its protectorate of the Mosquito coast to Honduras, in 1859, but this was unsatisfactory both to Nicaragua and to the Mosquito Indians, and by the Treaty of Managua, in 186o, Great Britain ceded to Nicaragua all claims to the eastern coast of Nicaragua, from Cape Gracias a Dios, the present border point between Honduras and Nicaragua, to Greytown. Autonomy was granted the Mosquito Indians within the Mosquito coast deliminated above. It was also pro vided that the chieftain of the tribe should receive a subvention of ii,000 a year until 1870. On his death in 1864 the Nicaraguan Government declined to continue the payment to his successor, or to recognize his authority, but local Indian government con tinued despite this lack of Nicaraguan support. In 1880, the question, which had been referred for arbitration to the emperor of Austria, was decided in favour of the Indians, and the sover eignty of Nicaragua was limited by non-interference in local affairs. This almost complete autonomy continued for 14 years, when the Indians voluntarily surrendered it and on Nov. 20, 1894, were incorporated into the Department of Zelaya of the Republic of Nicaragua. (W. Tiro.) Ethnology.—The Mosquito Indians of the Atlantic littoral of Nicaragua are a mixed race basically South American in culture. Although discovered by Columbus in 1502 they did not come into contact with Europeans until the rise of the buccaneers in the 17th century. As a result of this association they have a strong infusion of both white and negro blood. Linguistically the Mos quito are allied to their neighbours, the Sumo, and both tribes may be related to the Chibcha of Colombia. Culturally the Mos quito are canoe-using people, manufacturers of wooden bowls and spoons, bows, flutes, bark cloth, etc. They have several elaborate ceremonies marked by the excessive use of intoxicants and by conical masks suggesting those found among Amazon valley tribes. They have a tradition that long ago they lived on the Pacific coast between the Lake of Nicaragua and the ocean. Driven out by northern invaders, they moved to the present Department of Chontales. Being attacked again, they recalled an ancient prophecy that they never could be driven from the Atlantic coast and they moved there under the leadership of the national hero, Wakna. Under his son, Lakia Tara, they con quered the coast from Honduras to Costa Rica. About A.D. some strange people of higher culture settled in their territory for a time, but finally moved away again.
See E. G. Squier, Notes on Central America (1855) ; Walther Leh mann, Zentral Amerika, I ten, i. band (1920).