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Etnias de Colombia

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Fernando Botero

Fernando González Ochoa

Corporación Otraparte

Colombia is a nation with a great variety of peoples. There is not an only people in Colombia, but many ethnics, races and origins. It makes also that in Colombia there are many dialects spoken but minorities. The Colombian human groups are the following ones:

The Indigenous peoples are the decedents of the ancestral peoples that settled during the Pre-Hispanic time. Less than 1% of the Colombians are only Indigenous people, but most of the Colombians have Indigenous blood. Colombian Indigenous peoples are many groups and they can be different among them, with their own traditions and cultures. Scholars use to gather them in Linguistic Families. Most of them are met in what is called Resguardo (Shelters) and they have their own administration according with the national laws. The most famous Linguistic Families of Colombia are the Chibchas, Caribbeans and Arawacs. 

The Afro Colombian peoples are the descendants of those who were brought from Africa during the Colony of the Spaniards (Centuries 16th to 18th). Some official sources say that they are 10% of the national population, but more careful studies show that it can be near 30%. But most of Colombians have Afro Colombian blood as well. Afro Colombians can be found in all the territory with a less proportion in the Amazon areas. They have their own distinctions as well and even there are groups that keep their own African dialects like the ones of Palenque San Basilio, near Cartagena de Indias.

The White people of Colombia are mostly the descendants of the Spaniards who settled in the Colombian territory during the 16th and 17th Centuries. If it is said that most of the Spaniards returned to Spain, some families stayed. White Colombians can be a 20% of the Colombian population and they live in most of the regions, but the main groups are in the Andean Region. There are some groups that come from other European countries, but they are minorities integrated into the Hispanic culture.

The Mestizos are the Colombians who have blood of different races. Some sources say that most of the Colombians are mestizos, but the most important fact is that they are the majority of the Colombian population. They can be divided in many groups. If you visit the country, most of the Colombians you will meet will be mestizos. 

Other human groups can be found in Colombia. The most important Colombian minority is the Arabs. They came to the country at the end of the 19th Century from the Middle East. Most of them were Christians from the Orthodox Church. The Colombians of that time called them Turks because in that time the Middle East was under the Ottoman Empire and the migrants had Turk passports. Even today Colombians refer to the Arab Colombians as Turks. Colombian Arabs are today in most of the territory, but they settled first the Caribbean Region. Other minorities are the Jews - many scholars said that they have been in the country since the very time of the Spaniard Colony -, Chinese, Gypsies and descendants from all the American countries and Europe. However, migration into Colombia has been very little along the Colombian history due to official policies that have changed gradually.  

The Lower the Latitude, the Better my Attitude!  Friday, July 04, 2008   Site dedicated to the Colombian people!

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