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An Afro-Latin American (also '''Afro-Latino''') is a , Music , Language , the Arts , and Social Class . The term ''Afro-Latin American'', as used in this article refers specifically to black African ancestry, not, for example, to , Museu AfroBrasil however, usage varies considerably from nation to nation. The accuracy of Statistics reporting on Afro-Latin Americans has been questioned, especially where they are derived from Census reports in which the subjects choose their own designation, due to the fact that in all countries the concept of Black Ancestry is viewed with differing attitudes. In the , Amerindians / Native Americans (including Mestizo and Asian . Of a total population of 549,549,000, an estimated 100 million are Afro Latin-American https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2075.html CIA - The World Factbook - Field Listing - Ethnic groups Latin America#Racial Origins .Approximately 5% of the Latin American population identify themselves or are classified by census takers as being primarily of Black ancestry. A further 16% of the population is Mulatto , while Zambo s are a small minority. By combining all three, another definition of Afro-Latin American is arrived at, one that in Latin America would be widely considered overly broad. (In fact, it would more resemble the One Drop Rule commonly accepted in the United States ). By such a definition, about one-fourth of Latin America's population would be Afro-Latin American. Another fairly large minority probably has at least ''some'' black African ancestry. HISTORY People of ). Traditional terms for Afro-Latin Americans with their own developed culture include '' Garifuna '' (in Nicaragua , Guatemala and Belize ), '' Cafuzo '' or '' Mameluco '' (in Brazil), and '' Zambo '' in the Andes and Central America . The mix of these African cultures with the Spanish, Portuguese, French and indigenous cultures of Latin America has produced many unique forms of Language (e.g., Palenquero , Garífuna and Creole ), Religions (e.g., Candomblé , Abakuá , Santería , Lucumi and Vodun ), Music (e.g., Salsa , Bachata , Cumbia , Plena ), Samba , martial arts ( Capoeira ) and Dance ( Rumba , merengue). Many of these cultural expressions have become pervasive in Latin America. CONTENTIOUS ISSUES Several issues arise from the theme of Afro Latin American. One is based on the selection of countries which is normally included in the definition of Latin America which, being based on the language spoken, excludes all countries in the same geographical area, such as Belize, Surinam, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica, where the people do not speak a Latin-based language. As a result several countries which have significant Black heritage are excluded from study. From a strictly statistical point of view, it is perfectly valid to collect data concerning a group defined by one criterion (Blackness) within another group defined by other factors (Language), however, if you change the definition of either group, then the results obtained will also be subject to change. Another issue is the validity of the numbers of people who are classified as Black. In many countries, the people who are counted as "black" or some mixture is based on choices made by individuals in responding to census questionnaires who may, or may not, define themselves as black based on their own ideas or specific cultural biases concerning blackness. In the late 1990s it has become possible to determine racial origin by studying certain DNA factors in individuals, however, this practice is not widely used, To Date . A further issue is that of the validity of racial identity. In some countries, it is believed that there has been an almost universal homogenization of the races and there have been attempts in other countries, such as Colombia, to eliminate racial differences by encouraging inter-racial marriages. Depending on one's viewpoint this may be seen as a positive, or a negative objective.
--> RACIAL AND ETHNIC DISTINCTIONS Terms used within Latin America which pertain to black heritage include ''mulato'' (black - white mixture), and ''zambo'' (indigenous - black mixture) and moreno. ''Mestizo'' refers to an indigenous - white mixture. The term ''mestizaje'' refers to the intermixing or fusing of races, whether by mere custom or deliberate policy. In Latin America this happened extensively between all the racial groups and cultures, but usually involved European men and Indigenous and African women. Unions of white females and non-white males were almost taboo. These distinctive terms were used in part to distinguish between different social strata in which the Europeans and '' Criollo s'' (people of pure European heritage born in the Americas ) who generally were the ruling and administrative parties were at the top and the African and Indian races who were the laboring class were at the bottom. The offspring of mixed marriages generally occupied a stratus closer to that of the father's, thereby putting children with a black or Indian father at a disadvantage. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2007 SOUTH AMERICA Argentina See Also: Afro-Argentines Lost and officially unaccounted for are a few thousand blacks, descendants of slaves who by some accounts made up nearly 50 percent of the rural population in the late 1700s. Due to high mortality rates, migration (many to Uruguay, where the black population was larger and the climate more attractive), the decline of the slave trade after 1806, and a successful campaign aimed at whitening the country with European immigrants while eradicating nonwhites in the process, the black Argentine population receded to its present state of near invisibility. However, reminance of African influence can still be seen today with African influence of the national Tango dance. Bolivia Blacks in Bolivia account for about 3% of the population. They were brought in during the Spanish colonial times and the majority live in the Yungas Brazil See Also: Afro-Brazilian Around 46% of Brazil's 188 million people are Afro-Brazilians (39% either African and European ancestry and African, European and Amerindian ancestry, 7% African ancestry). Around 80% of the northeast state of Bahia is of African descent. Brazil experienced a long internal struggle over abolition of slavery and was the last Latin American country to adopt it. In 1850 it finally banned the importation of new slaves from overseas, after two decades since the first official attempts to outlaw the human traffic (in spite of illegal parties of African slaves that kept arriving till 1855). In 1864 Brazil emancipated the slaves and in September 28th 1871 the Brazilian Congress approved the Rio Branco Law of Free Birth, which conditionally freed the children of slaves born from that day to then. In 1887 army officers refused to order their troops to hunt runaway slaves, and in 1888 the Senate passed a law establishing immediate, unqualified emancipation. This law, known as "Lei Aurea" ("Golden Law") was sanctioned by the regent Isabel, Princess Imperial Of Brazil , daughter of the emperor Pedro II in May, 13th, 1888[http://www.saxakali.com/caribbean/shamil.htm Cruz,Shamil].''African Americans in the Caribbean and Latin America'' One of the most famous Afro-Latin Americans is the Brazilian footballer Pelé . Chile Chile imported about 6,000 blacks, about one-third of whom arrived before 1615; most were utilized in agriculture around Santiago. Cruz,Shamil .''African Americans in the Caribbean and Latin America'' Today there are very few Afro-Chileans, at the most, fewer than 1% can be estimated from the 2006 population.Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2007 Mario Rojas, a Chilean musician dedicated to reviving the traditional '' Cueca '' in Chile believes that this traditional dance has its roots in Africa in part for the 6/8 rhythm which passed from Arabia through to Nigeria, and also its Syncopated lyrics. 'La cueca es un arte de elite' 9/18/2001 Interview in Spanish with Mario Rojas Colombia See Also: Afro-Colombian Available estimates range from 4.4 to 10.5 million Afro-Colombians. BBC Mundo: ¿Colombia hacia la integración racial? Afro-Colombians make up approximately 4% (9,154,537) of the population according to a projection of the National Administration Department of Statistics (DANE)Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2007, most of whom are concentrated on the northwest Caribbean coast and the Pacific coast in such departments as Chocó , although considerable numbers are also in Cali , Cartagena , and Barranquilla . Colombia is considered to have the third largest Black/African-descent population in the western hemisphere, following Brazil and the USA. It has been estimated that some 4.4 million Afro-Colombians actively recognize their own black ancestry, while many other Afro-Colombians do not, as a result of inter-racial relations with white and indigenous Colombians. BBC Mundo: ¿Colombia hacia la integración racial? Afro-Colombians may often encounter a noticeable degree of racial discrimination and prejudice, as a socio-cultural leftover from colonial times. They have been historically absent from high level government positions. Many of their long-established settlements around the Pacific coast have remained underdeveloped. BBC Mundo: ¿Colombia hacia la integración racial? In Colombia's ongoing internal conflict, Afro-Colombians are both victims of violence or displacement and members of armed factions, such as the FARC and the AUC . Afro-Colombians have played a role in contributing to the development of certain aspects of Colombian culture. For example, several of Colombia's musical genres, such as '' Cumbia '', have African origins or influences. Some Afro-Colombians have also been successful in sports. Ecuador See Also: Afro-Ecuadorian people In 2006 Ecuador had a population of 13,547,510 with 8%, or 1,083,801 descendant from Spanish and African people. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2007. The Afro-Ecuadorian culture is found in the northwest coastal region of Ecuador and make up the majority (70%) in the province of Esmeraldas and the Valle De Chota in the Imbabura Province . They can be also found in Guayaquil . The best known cultural influence known outside of Ecuador is a distinctive kind of Marimba music. Bao is a fusion of native rhythms and Caribbean rhythms including candombe, salsa, merengue, reggae and calypso. Paraguay Peru See Also: Afro-Peruvian Afro-Peruvians make up about 3-4% of the population (1.1 million people). Afro-Peruvian music was little known even in Peru until the 1950s, when it was popularized by the performer Nicomedes Santa Cruz . Nicomedes Santa Cruz Uruguay African slaves and their descendants figured prominently in the founding of Uruguay. In the late 1700s, Montevideo became a major arrival port for slaves, most brought from Portuguese colonies of Africa and bound for Spanish colonies of the New World: the mines of Peru and Bolivia and the fields and Uruguay. In the 19th century, when Uruguay joined other colonies in fighting for independence from Spain, Uruguayan national hero Jose Artigas led an elite division of black troops against the colonists. One of his top advisors was Joaquin Lezina, known as Ansina, a freed slave who composed musical odes about his commander's exploits and is regarded by Afro Uruguayans as an unheralded father of the nation. Venezuela Black Venezuela ns, descendants from African slaves, make up approximately 10% of the population. The majority of these Venezuelans live in small coastal towns in the region called Barlovento . They have kept their traditions and culture alive especially through music. Hugo Chavez , the current president has some African heritage. CENTRAL AMERICA The Afro-Latin Americans of Central America mostly live in or near Caribbean coast. The blacks of Guatemala, Belize, Honduras and Nicaragua , are both of Garífuna, Afro-Caribbean, Mestizo , and/or Miskito heritage whereas those of Costa Rica and Panama are mostly of African-Caribbean heritage. Many Afro-Caribbean islanders came to Panamá to help build the Panama Canal and to Honduras to get work in the Banana plantations. Costa Rica 3% of the population is of black Africa n descent who are called Afro-Costa Ricans and are English-speaking descendants of nineteenth century black Jamaica n immigrant workers. As of today, the indigenous population numbers around 1%, 41,338 individuals. In Guanacaste Province , a significant portion of the population descends from a mix of local Amerindians, Africans and Spaniards. Mainly found on the largely undeveloped northern Caribbean coast. El Salvador El Salvador is the only Central American country that has no visible African population. However, Salvadorans with African Heritage are present, most notably in San Salvador, the capital. In addition, General Maximiliano Hernandez Martinez instituted race laws in 1930 that prohibited Blacks from entering the country, this changed during the 1980s and the law was removed.1 Guatemala Guatemalan culture is a mix of European, Mayan Indian, and African, but only 2% of the population is considered black or mulatto. The main community of African descent are the Garifuna , concentrated in Livingston and Puerto Barrios . The rest of the community is of Afro-Caribbean stock and mulattos. Izabal , on the Caribbean coast is the center of African culture in Guatemala, with its population being of mixed African, Mayan Indian, and European. Honduras About 2% of Honduras's population is black, or Afro-Honduran, and mainly reside on the country's Caribbean or Atlantic coast. The black population is mostly of West Indian (Antillean) origin, the descendants of indentured laborers brought mostly from Jamaica , Haiti , and other Caribbean Islands. The Garifuna (people of mixed Amerindian and African ancestry) live along the north coast and islands, where there are also many Afro-Hondurans. This ethnic group, estimated at 150,000 people, has it origin in the expulsion of black people who refused to be slaves, by the British authorities, from the island of St. Vincent during the eighteenth century after the Carib Wars. Garífunas are part of Honduran identity through theatrical presentations such as Louvavagu. There is a strong presence of Afro-Hondurans on the north coast and to a lesser extent in San Pedro Sula . There are several Garífuna s in the National Congress Of Honduras . Nicaragua About 9% of Nicaragua's population is black, or Afro-Nicaragüense, and mainly reside on the country's sparsely populated Caribbean or Atlantic coast. The black population is mostly of West Indian (Antillean) origin, the Descendant s of indentured laborers brought mostly from Jamaica , Haiti , and other Caribbean Islands when the region was a British Protectorate . There is also a smaller number of Garifuna , a people of mixed Carib , Angolan , Congolese and Arawak descent. The Garifuna live along the Caribbean coast and islands. This ethnic group has it origin in the expulsion of black people who refused to be slaves, by the British authorities, from the island of St. Vincent during the eighteenth century after the Carib Wars. Nicaragua has the second largest percentage of blacks in Central America after Panama but the largest population. Afro-Nicaraguans are mainly found on the autonomous regions of RAAN and RAAS on the Caribbean Coast of the country. Panama Black laborers from the British West Indies, mainly Jamaica, came to Panama by the tens of thousands in the first half of the twentieth century. While most were involved in the effort to build the canal, many also came to work on Panama's banana plantations. By 1910, the Panama Canal Company had employed more than 50,000 workers, three-quarters of whom were Antillean blacks. They formed the nucleus of a community separated from the larger society by race, language, religion, and culture. CARIBBEAN Cuba See Also: Afro-Cuban According to a 2001 national census which surveyed 11.2 million Cubans, 1.1 million Cubans described themselves as , Igbo and Congo , but also Arará, Carabalí, Mandingo, Fula and others. In contrast, between 85-95 percent of Cuban-Americans, classify themselves as white. There is also a significant presence of black Haiti an immigrants in the country. There are up to a hundreds of thousands Cubans with Haitian descent from colonial times to the present time that now live in Cuba . Cuba's second official language is Haitian Creole ( Criolla Haitiano in Spanish ). Creole language and culture first entered Cuba with the arrival of Haitian immigrants at the start of the nineteenth century. Haiti was a French colony, and the final years of the 1791-1804 Haitian Revolution brought a wave of French settlers fleeing with their Haitian slaves to Cuba. They came mainly to the east, and especially Guantanamo, where the French later introduced sugar cultivation, constructed sugar refineries and developed coffee plantations. By 1804, some 30,000 French were living in Baracoa and Maisi, the furthest eastern municipalities of the province. Later, Haitians continued to come to Cuba to work as brazeros (hand workers, from the Spanish word brazo, meaning "arm") in the fields cutting cane. Their living and working conditions were not much better than slavery. Although they planned to return to Haiti, most stayed on in Cuba. For years, many Haitians and their descendants in Cuba did not identify themselves as such or speak Creole. In the eastern part of the island, many Haitians suffered discrimination. But since1959, this discrimination has stopped.After Spanish, Creole is the second most-spoken language in Cuba. Over 400,000 Cubans either speak it fluently, understand it but speak with difficulty, or have at least some familiarity with the language. It is mainly in those communities where Haitians and their descendant live that Creole is most spoken. In addition to the eastern provinces, there are also communities in Ciego de Avila and Camaguey provinces where the population still maintains Creole, their mother tongue. Classes in Creole are offered in Guantanamo, Matanzas and the City of Havana. There is a Creole-language radio program. The government of Cuba has declared Cubans an Afro-Latin American people and has formed close ties with Angola, Ethiopia, and other African states. Cruz, Shamil .''African Americans in the Caribbean and Latin America'' Costa Rican An ''Afro Costa Rican'' is a Costa Rican that is of African desendent. The Afro Costa Ricans were immigrant workers from Jamaica . They worked on the Cacao plantations. Many of the Afro Ticos (a term that Costa Ricans use to identify themselves) live in the province of Limon, the only province with a Caribbean coast Dominican Republic 73% are Mixed, 11% are Black, and 16% are White, with no fewer than nine ethnic mixes including: mestizos, mulattoes, sambos, grifos, quadroon Indians, quadroon mulattoes, puchelas, saltaras, and cabras. There is also a significant presence of black Haitian immigrants in the country up to a million Haitians live in the Dominican Republic. There are also immigrants from other Latin American countries including Cuba, Venezuela, and Colombia. Dominican culture is a mixture of Taino Amerindian, African, and European origins. While Taino influences are present in many Dominican traditions, the European and African influences are the most noticeable. Haiti See Also: Demographics of Haiti 95% of Haitians are predominantly of African descent. A moderate number of Haitians are believed to possess African as well as Taino/Arawak heritage due to the history of the island, however the number of native-descended Haitians is not known. The small but influential remainder of the population vary in ethnic groups from mulattoes to mestizos, as well as Arabs and whites. White-descended Haitians are mainly of French , Polish , Spanish , Italian , and German heritage. Hispanic residents in Haiti are usually Cuban and Dominican . There is a very small percentage within the minority who are of Asian origin. Haiti is a Afro-Latin nation with strong African contributions to the culture as well as its language, music and religion. To a lesser degree French, Spaniard, and in rare occasions (food, art, and folk religion) Taino and Arab customs are present in society. Puerto Rico According to the 2000 U.S. Census taken in evidence showed Puerto Ricans' patrilineage to be approximately 75% European, 20% African, and less than 5% indigenous. The combined results reveal a mostly Mestizo ( Taino and European) population with important European and African elements ( Demographics Of Puerto Rico ) Certain critics consider census figures to be skewed since they are based on self-definition and acute physical observation of census-takers. These critics maintain that a majority of Puerto Ricans are racially mixed, but that they do not feel the need to identify as such. They argue, furthermore, that Puerto Ricans tend to assume that they are of African, American Indian, and European ancestry, and only identify themselves as mixed if having parents "appearing" to be of separate "races". It should also be noted that Puerto Rico underwent a "whitening" process while under U.S. rule. The census-takers at the turn of the 20th Century recorded a huge disparity in the number of "black" and "white" Puerto Ricans between the 1910 and 1920 censuses. "Black" suddenly began to disappear from one census to another (within 10 years' time), possibly due to redefinition of the term. It also appears that the "black" element within the culture was simply disappearing possibly due to the popular idea that in the U.S. one could only advance economically and socially if one were to pass for "white". http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/cde/demsem/loveman-muniz.pdf#search='race%20classification%20Puerto%20Rico' Another reason for Puerto Rico having a high white population is due to the fact that many of the Puerto Ricans of African descent left the island in waves of migration to become the Nuyoricans , while the Puerto Ricans of European and Mestizo descent were better off economically so they stayed in Puerto Rico. Misinformation of ethnic populations within Puerto Rico also existed under Spanish rule when the Native Amerindian (Taino) populations were recorded as being "extinct". Biological science has now rewritten their history books. In all, about 31 African tribes have been recorded in Puerto Rico . These tribes were not voluntary travellers, but have since blended into the mainstream Puerto Rican population (as all the others have been) with Taino ancestry being the common thread that binds. Many so-called "pure" blacks in Puerto Rico are found in the coastal areas, areas traditionally associated with sugar cane plantations (especially in the towns Loiza , Guayama , Ponce , and Carolina ). Although, due to the DNA evidence that is being presented by UPR at Mayaguez, many African bloodlines have been recorded in the central mountains of the island, though not written in the Spanish history books of the time. Consequently, Taino bloodlines have begun appearing in the coastal towns. All this suggesting that escaped Africans ran off to the mountains to escape the slaveowners, while some Tainos remained close to their main staple food, fish. The Puerto Rican musical genres of Bomba and Plena are of African and Caribbean origin respectively and danced to during parties and African-derived festivals. Many Boricua s who claim West/Central African ancestry are descendants of enslaved Congo , Igbo and Yoruba tribes from Africa. After the abolition of slavery in 1873 and the invasion of the United States, a number of African American s have also migrated and settled in Puerto Rico. It has been noted that the Puerto Ricans that typically identify as black, make up the majority of Puerto Ricans immigrating to the U.S.(( MEXICO See Also: Afro-Mexican The vast majority of Afro-Mexicans inhabit the southern region of Mexico and very few have migrated to the north making their existence in the country less evident than other groups. Some Afro-Mexican facts:
NOTABLE AFRO-LATIN AMERICANS
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