| Portuguese People |
Article Index for Portuguese |
Website Links For Portuguese |
Information AboutPortuguese People |
|
The Portuguese people (; literally ''the Portuguese'') are the Ethnic Group or Nation native to the country of Portugal , in the west of the Iberian Peninsula of South - West Europe . Portuguese is their native language and Roman Catholicism is their predominant religion. ETHNIC COMPOSITION OF THE PORTUGUESE ANCESTRY Modern day Portuguese are an Iberian ethnic group and their ancestry is largely similar to other Iberian peoples. It is largely consistent with the geographic position of the Iberian peninsula, located on the extreme southwest of Europe. There are clear connections with the Mediterranean peoples as well as with those of Atlantic and Western Europe . Dark brown hair and eyes predominate in the most of Portuguese people - a Mediterranean Caucasoid characteristic. However, blond hair and blue or green eyes are also found, particularly in the North, where Germanic and Celt presences are larger. A Paleolithic and Neolithic basis of Iberian ancestry Recent development of methodologies for defining population structure using genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism markers has led a 2006 study to conclude that there is clear and consistent division between ''“northern” and “southern” European population groups'', strongly suggesting a close genetic relationship between Greeks, Italians, Portuguese and Spaniards, whereas all European populations north of the Alps and the Pyrenees (except for Ashkenazi jews) seem to fall squarely into a separate "Northern" population group. 1 However, a similar 2007 study found that the most prominent genetic stratifications in Europe run from the north to the south-east Europe-Balkans , while there are other weaker stratifications such as east-west and north-south. This latter study concludes that Iberians cluster with other southern European populations while pointing to a strong Paleolithic element in the Iberian gene-pool, suggesting that the region holds the most ancient European ancestry. Measuring European Population Stratification using Microarray Genotype Data [http://vetinari.sitesled.com/euroaims.pdf] Indeed, the Paleolithic component in Iberian ancestry had already been ascertained by means of Y-chromosome and mtDNA analysis, a methodology which does not provide strong inferences on genetic population structure but is useful in tracing parts of the routes of migration in the populating of Europe. Both Y-chromosome haplogroups R1b and Mtdna haplogroup H, reach frequencies above 50% in most of Iberia , R1b peaking at 90% in the Basque region. This shows the strong ancestral bond between Iberia and the rest of western Europe. It is thought that Northern Iberia was an Ice Age refuge at the end of the last glaciation 45,000 years ago from which human beings later colonized the rest of western Europe. 2 Mtdna analysis also points to some pre-historic population movements into Iberia from North Africa, probably during the Capsian diffusion However a recent and thorough study revealed that the North-African Berber immigrants ''constituted a long-lasting and continuous community'' not limited to Capsian or Moorish expansion[http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/action/showFullText?submitFullText=Full+Text+HTML&doi=10.1111%2Fj.1529-8817.2005.00161.x Y-chromosome Lineages from Portugal, Madeira and Açores Record Elements of Sephardim and Berber Ancestry . Autosomal studies using a small number of classical genetic markers, supported by more recent analysis of Microsatellite data, have not only lent support for a large Neolithic element in the European genome, but have also been the basis for the Demic Diffusion model from the near east. Broad gradients across Europe, largely on a South East/North West cline using a small number of classical genetic markers would thus link the populations of Western Europe (including Iberia) by a common "paleolithic" ancestry and those of eastern (and particularly south eastern) Europe by a common "neolithic" ancestry {Link without Title} Nevertheless the demic diffusion model remains controversial, to the degree that studies of ancient Mtdna point to the total absence of Neolithic contribution to modern European populations. The Atlantic Experts such as Barry Cunliffe , Bryan Sykes and Stephen Oppenheimer have put forward theories, supported by genetic and archaeological studies, pointing to Iberia as the main origin of the people that re-populated Atlantic Europe in the post-glacial period, during the Paleolithic and the Neolithic times. They argue that the evidence shows that this prehistoric genetic source remains the predominant one in the region. The genetic legacy of Muslim rule There exists a number of studies which focus on the genetic impact of the eight centuries of Muslim Rule In The Iberian Peninsula ( Al-Andalus ) on the genetic make up of the Iberian population. Recent studies agree that there is a genetic relationship between (particularly southern) Iberia and North Africa as a result of this period of history, Iberia is the only region in Europe with a significant presence of the typically North West Africa n Y-chromosome haplotypes E-M81 If we take the White population of Brazil in 1872 (3.7 million), almost all of them will be of Portuguese ancestry, since other European s (mostly Italians ) only migrate to Brazil in large numbers after the 1870's. The Mulatto population (those of mixed Portuguese and Africa n heritage) were 4 million, with a total of 7.7 million Brazilians of some Portuguese heritage in 1872 Evolution of Brazilian population according to colour - 1872/1991; in Portuguese . From 1870 until 1990, close to 1.5 million Portuguese migrated to Brazil Portuguese immigrants in Brazil - in Portuguese , and nowadays their descendants are about 30 million people, as big as the Italo-Brazilian population which is about 25 million people Number of Italo-Brazilians - in Portuguese . However, only 15% of Brazilians consider themselves to be of Portuguese heritage, so we can note that most Brazilians either do not take distant ancestral links into consideration when discussing their heritage, simply consider Portuguese ancestry as self-evident to their Brazilian identity or prefer to emphasise non-Portuguese ancestors. Brazilians with unmixed Portuguese ancestry are therefore a minority, yet comparable to Italian-Brazilians in number. REFERENCES SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS |
|
|