 The Ndyuka and related people are of African descent, having been shipped as slaves to Suriname in the 17-18th century to work on Dutch-owned colonial plantations.Those who escaped fled deep into the rainforests where they established Maroon communities along rivers in mostly southeastern Suriname and parts of neighboring French Guiana and where their culture adopted elements of Native American cultures.It is rare for Ndyuka people to marry outside the group, "so they remain genetically close to their African ancestors."