The Taino flourished in the Caribbean between c.1200-1500, until the Spanish conquest wrecked havoc on their way of life. At the time of Columbus's arrival in 1492, there were five Taíno kingdoms or territories on Hispaniola, each led by a principal cacique (chieftain) to whom tribute was paid. At this date, the largest Taíno population centres may have contained around 3,000 people or more. It was an incredibly sophisticated agricultural society with a developed cosmology and ritual system. A great deal of social interaction, trade and religious ceremony seems to have been conducted at the ball games and the ball courts were similar in layout to others discovered in Mesoamerica and lowland South America.