Gazon Matodya

{{Infobox royalty |name = Gazon Matodya |succession = Gaanman of the Ndyuka nation |image = Four Surinamese granman with Prime Minister De Jong.jpg |caption = Gazon Matodya (far right) with Dutch Prime Minister Piet de Jong and the other Surinamese granman |reign = 1965 – 2011 |coronation = |cor-type = Inauguration |predecessor = Akontu Velanti |successor = Bono Velanti |spouse = |issue = |house = Baaka ''bee'' of Otoo ''lo'' |birth_name = |birth_date = ca. 1920<ref name="paramount"/> |birth_place = Moitaki, Sipaliwini District, Suriname |death_date = 1 December 2011 |death_place = Paramaribo, Suriname |burial_date = 10 April 2012 |burial_place = Diitabiki, Sipaliwini District, Suriname  |alma_mater = |occupation = |boards = |religion = |website = |children = |parents = }} '''Gazon Matodya''' (c. 1920 – 1 December 2011)<ref name="paramount">[http://abengcentral.wordpress.com/2011/12/02/paramount-chief-of-ndyuka-nation-passes-at-91/ "Paramount chief of Ndyuka nation passes at 91"], ''Abeng Central'', Accessed 22 November 2012.</ref> was gaanman of the Okanisi or Ndyuka people of Suriname, South America, one of six Maroon peoples in the area. He lived in Diitabiki (Drietabbetje), a village located on the Tapanahony River. Gaanman Gazon belonged to the ''Otoo Lo'' clan, from which most of the Aukan chiefs have come. He was one of the longest-living chiefs to date.

In a statement made in 1992 while in the United States, Gazon said he was not happy with the changes that have occurred in his tribal area during the modern era of the late 20th century. This includes how disputes are settled.<ref>[http://www.folklife.si.edu/resources/maroon/educational_guide/54.htm "Statement by Gaaman Gazon Matodja Paramount Chief of the Ndjuka (Aukaner) People"], Folklife, Smithsonian Institution</ref> In 2007 the six Maroon tribes won a major land rights case initiated in the early 1990s, by which they gained collective control of territories (including mineral resources), which they have occupied since the late 18th century.

==Legacy and honors== *In 2000, Gazon was awarded the Grand Cordon in the Honorary Order of the Yellow Star, a Surinamese presidential award.<ref name="werk"/> *He was given a Chubb Fellowship by Yale University.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://chubbfellowship.org/about/sort/by_name |title=The Chubb Fellowship |access-date=2014-12-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141202011029/http://chubbfellowship.org/about/sort/by_name |archive-date=2014-12-02 |url-status=dead }}</ref> *In 1996, the Netherlands-based Maroon Institute ''Sabanapeti'' established an award named in honor of Gazon. It is intended to acknowledge exceptional people and organizations.<ref name="werk">{{cite web|url=https://werkgroepcaraibischeletteren.nl/dood-gaanman-gazon-matodja-het-einde-van-een-tijdperk/|title=Dood Gaanman Gazon Matodja, het einde van een tijdperk|website=Werkgroup Caraïbische Letteren|access-date=13 June 2020|language=nl}}</ref>

== Notes == {{reflist}}

== References == {{commons category|Gazon Matodya}} *{{cite book |last=Pakosie |first=André R.M. |year=1999 |title=Gazon Matodja, Surinaams stamhoofd aan het einde van een tijdperk |location=Utrecht |publisher=Stichting Sabanapeti }} *{{cite book |last1=Polimé |first1=Thomas |last2=Van Stipriaan |first2=Alex |year=2013 |title=Zeg het met doeken: Marrontextiel en de Tropenmuseumcollectie |location=Amsterdam |publisher=KIT Publishers }}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matodya, Gazon}} Category:1920 births Category:2011 deaths Category:Granman Category:Grand Cordons of the Honorary Order of the Yellow Star Category:Ndyuka people Category:Surinamese Maroons Category:Tribal chiefs Category:People from Sipaliwini District