White Bolivians: Difference between revisions

Caucasian Bolivians
*Bolivianos caucásicos*
Total population
	c. 600,000; 5% of the Bolivian population
Regions with significant populations
	Mainly in Santa Cruz, La Paz and to a lesser extent the rest of the Media Luna Region[citation needed]
Languages
	Bolivian Spanish; German (Plautdietsch, Standard German); Bolivian Sign Language
Religion
	Roman Catholicism, Anabaptism, Evangelicalism, Judaism, Irreligion[citation needed]
Related ethnic groups
	Spaniards • Germans[dubious – discuss]

Browse history interactively

← Previous edit

Content deleted Content added

VisualWikitext

Inline

Latest revision as of 18:02, 18 December 2024

White Bolivians, also known as Caucasian Bolivians, are Bolivians who have total or predominantly European or West Asian ancestry (formerly called criollos or castizos in the viceregal era), most notably from Spain and Germany, and to a lesser extent, Italy and Croatia.^{[citation needed]}

Bolivian people of European ancestry mostly descend from people who arrived over the centuries from Spain, beginning five hundred years ago.^[2]

European Bolivians are a minority ethnic group in Bolivia, accounting for 5% of the country's population. The majority of white Bolivians are the descendants of Criollos of Spanish descent as well as the Europeans or Arabs from Spain, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Lebanon, and Croatia. White Bolivians mainly live in the largest cities and major towns in Bolivia like Santa Cruz and La Paz.^[3] An additional 68% of the population is mestizo, having mixed European and indigenous ancestry.^[1]

Samuel Doria Medina is the president of the National Unity Front.

History

Compared to the Indigenous population, considerably fewer white and mestizo Bolivians live in poverty.^[4] Conceptions of racial boundaries in Bolivia may be fluid and perceptions of race may be tied to socioeconomic status, with the possibility of a person achieving "whitening" via economic advancement. Differences in language, educational status, and employment status may also reinforce perceptions of what constitutes a person as "white", "mestizo", or "Indigenous".^[4]

Spaniards arrived in the country looking for gold and riches in the 1500s.^[5]

Numbers

Census data

In the official census in 1900, people who self-identified as "Blanco" (white) composed 12.72% or 231,088 of the total population. This was the last time data on race was collected. There were 529 Italians, 420 Spaniards, 295 Germans, 279 French, 177 Austrians, 141 English and 23 Belgians living in Bolivia.^[6]

Surveys

According to a 2014 survey by Ipsos, 3 percent of people questioned said they were white.^[7]

Geographic distribution

Geographically, the white and mixed-race populations of Bolivia tend to be centered in the country's eastern lowlands. The white and mixed-race Bolivians in this region are relatively affluent compared to poorer, predominantly Indigenous regions of Bolivia.^[4]

1900

According to the 1900 official Bolivian census, a person who self-identified as “Blanca” white was a descendant of a foreigner, principally a Spaniard. This was the last census to ask a more detailed question about ethnic background.^[8] Overall there are Italians, Spanish, Germans and French. In total, they represented 12.7 percent of the total population with large populations in Cochabamba (60,605) and Santa Cruz de la Sierra (59,470) representing 36.8 percent combined.^[9]

Departments	Men	Women	Total^[10]	%
Beni	2,981	2,132	5,113	15.88
Chuquisaca	15,413	16,354	31,767	15.53
Cochabamba	28,938	31,667	60,605	18.46
La Paz	18,340	17,915	36,255	8.13
Oruro	3,996	3,778	7,774	9.03
National territory	202	5	207	0.64
Potosí	11,229	10,484	21,713	6.66
Santa Cruz	29,672	29,798	59,470	18.37^[11]
Tarija	4,368	3,816	8,184	7.95
Republic of Bolivia	115,139	115,949	231,088	12.72

Mennonites

In 1995, there were a total of 25 Mennonite colonies in Bolivia with a total population of 28,567. The most populous ones were Riva Palacios (5,488), Swift Current (2,602), Nueva Esperanza (2,455), Valle Esperanza (2,214) and Santa Rita (1,748).^[12] In 2002 there were 40 Mennonite colonies with a population of about 38,000 people. An outreach of Conservative Mennonites can be found at La Estrella, with others in progress.

The total population was estimated at 60,000 by Lisa Wiltse in 2010.^[13]^[14] In 2012 there were 23,818 church members in congregations of Russian Mennonites, indicating a total population of about 70,000. Another 1,170 Mennonites were in Spanish-speaking congregations.^[15] The number of colonies was 57 in 2011. In the Santa Cruz Department there is an important colony (70.000 inhabitants) of German-speaking Mennonites.^[16]

Culture

Caporales

Caporales is a dance popular in the Andean region of Bolivia. It gained popularity in 1969 by the Estrada Pacheco brothers, inspired by the character of the 'Caporal' or "overseer" of which, historically black slaves, usually mixed race, wore boots and held a whip, the dance originates from the region of the Yungas in Bolivia. The dance has European elements especially with the costumes.^[17]

Notable White Bolivians

Claudia Arce - model of Spanish and Italian descent
Romina Rocamonje - Bolivian model
Ronald Rivero - Bolivian football central defender
Fernando Saucedo - Bolivian footballer
Carlos Lampe - Bolivian footballer
Alvaro Garcia Linera - Bolivian politician
Samuel Doria Medina - Bolivian politician
Jimena Antelo - Bolivian journalist
Chris Syler - Bolivian singer-songwriter
Lidia Gueiler Tejada - Bolivian politician
Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada - Politician
Sara Ugarte de Salamanca - poet

References and footnotes

^ ^a ^b "The World Factbook: Bolivia". CIA. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
^ "Bolivia is Burning". The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 2019-06-01.
^ Ethnic Groups Of Bolivia
^ ^a ^b ^c "Bolivia's Regional Elections 2010" (PDF). Political Studies Association. Retrieved 2019-06-01.
^ Morales, Waltraud Q. (14 May 2014). A Brief History of Bolivia. Infobase. p. 21. ISBN 978-1-4381-0820-9.
^ "Censo National De La Poblacion de la Republica 1900 "Segunda parte"" (PDF). 1900. pp. 25–32. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
^ "El 52% de la población se identifica como mestiza". El Día [es] (in Spanish). 27 January 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
^ "CEPAL RECOMIENDA NO USAR CATEGORÍAS COMO MESTIZO EN IDENTIFICACIÓN DE PUEBLOS". Instituto Nacional de Estadística (in Spanish). 18 April 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
^ "Censo general de la población de la Republica de Bolivia 1900" (PDF) (in Spanish). p. 25. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
^ "Censo general de la población de la Republica de Bolivia 1900" (PDF) (in Spanish). p. 32. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
^ Census has incorrect percentage of 28.37%.
^ Schroeder, William; Huebert, Helmut (1996). Mennonite historical atlas. Kindred Productions. pp. 144–145. ISBN 978-0-920643-05-1. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
^ Wiltse, Lisa (2010). "The Mennonites of Manitoba, Bolivia". Burn. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
^ "Plautdietsch". Ethnologue. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
^ "Bolivia". Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
^ "Bolivian Reforms Raise Anxiety on Mennonite Frontier". The New York Times. 21 December 2006. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
^ "Danzas autóctonas de Bolivia". 2012-02-22. Archived from the original on 2012-02-22. Retrieved 2021-07-28.

[cia-1] "The World Factbook: Bolivia". CIA. Retrieved 14 February 2017.

[Bolivia_is_Burning-2] "Bolivia is Burning". The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 2019-06-01.

[3] Ethnic Groups Of Bolivia

[BRE_2010-4] "Bolivia's Regional Elections 2010" (PDF). Political Studies Association. Retrieved 2019-06-01.

[5] Morales, Waltraud Q. (14 May 2014). A Brief History of Bolivia. Infobase. p. 21. ISBN 978-1-4381-0820-9.

[6] "Censo National De La Poblacion de la Republica 1900 "Segunda parte"" (PDF). 1900. pp. 25–32. Retrieved September 5, 2020.

[7] "El 52% de la población se identifica como mestiza". El Día [es] (in Spanish). 27 January 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2020.

[8] "CEPAL RECOMIENDA NO USAR CATEGORÍAS COMO MESTIZO EN IDENTIFICACIÓN DE PUEBLOS". Instituto Nacional de Estadística (in Spanish). 18 April 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2023.

[9] "Censo general de la población de la Republica de Bolivia 1900" (PDF) (in Spanish). p. 25. Retrieved September 5, 2020.

[10] "Censo general de la población de la Republica de Bolivia 1900" (PDF) (in Spanish). p. 32. Retrieved September 5, 2020.

[11] Census has incorrect percentage of 28.37%.

[b1-12] Schroeder, William; Huebert, Helmut (1996). Mennonite historical atlas. Kindred Productions. pp. 144–145. ISBN 978-0-920643-05-1. Retrieved February 22, 2020.

[13] Wiltse, Lisa (2010). "The Mennonites of Manitoba, Bolivia". Burn. Retrieved 16 May 2019.

[14] "Plautdietsch". Ethnologue. Retrieved 2019-05-19.

[GAMEO-15] "Bolivia". Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 22 February 2020.

[16] "Bolivian Reforms Raise Anxiety on Mennonite Frontier". The New York Times. 21 December 2006. Retrieved 30 December 2019.

[17] "Danzas autóctonas de Bolivia". 2012-02-22. Archived from the original on 2012-02-22. Retrieved 2021-07-28.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Infobox ethnic group|
+| group            = Caucasian Bolivians<br />''{{small|Bolivianos caucásicos}}''
-|group= Bolivians of European descent
-|image=
+| image            =
-|caption=
+| caption          =
-|pop= {{circa|548,000}}<ref name="cia"/>,<br/>4.8% of total population
+| pop              = {{circa|'''600,000'''}}<ref name="cia"/><br/>5% of the Bolivian population
-|popplace= Mainly in [[Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)|Santa Cruz]] and to a lesser extent the rest of the [[Media Luna|Media Luna Region]]
+| popplace         = Mainly in [[Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)|Santa Cruz]], [[La Paz]] and to a lesser extent the rest of the [[Media Luna|Media Luna Region]]{{cn|date=October 2024}}
-|langs= [[Bolivian Spanish]]<br/>[[German language|German]] ([[Plautdietsch language|Plautdietsch]], [[Standard German]])<br/>[[Bolivian Sign Language]]
+| langs            = [[Bolivian Spanish]]<br/>[[German language|German]] ([[Plautdietsch language|Plautdietsch]], [[Standard German]])<br/>[[Bolivian Sign Language]]
-|rels= [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]], [[Anabaptists|Anabaptism]], [[Evangelicalism]], [[Judaism]], [[Irreligion]]
+| rels             = [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]], [[Anabaptists|Anabaptism]], [[Evangelicalism]], [[Judaism]], [[Irreligion]]{{cn|date=August 2024}}
+| related          = [[Spaniards]]{{*}}[[Germans]]{{dubious|date=August 2024}}
-|related= [[Mestizos in Bolivia]], [[Spaniards]]
 }}
-'''White Bolivians''' or '''European Bolivians''' are [[Bolivian people]] whose ancestry lies within the continent of [[Europe]], most notably [[Spain]] and [[Germany]], and to a lesser extent, [[Italy]] and [[Croatia]].
+'''White Bolivians''', also known as '''Caucasian Bolivians''', are [[Bolivians]] who have total or predominantly [[Europe]]an or [[West Asia]]n ancestry (formerly called [[Criollo people|criollos]] or [[Castizo|castizos]] in the viceregal era), most notably from [[Spain]] and [[Germany]], and to a lesser extent, [[Italy]] and [[Croatia]].{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}
 Bolivian people of European ancestry mostly descend from people who arrived over the centuries from [[Spain]], beginning five hundred years ago.<ref name="Bolivia is Burning">{{cite web|url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2003/10/22/bolivia-is-burning-bolivia-is-burning/ |title=Bolivia is Burning |publisher=The Harvard Crimson |access-date=2019-06-01}}</ref>
-European Bolivians are a minority ethnic group in Bolivia, accounting for 5% of the country's population. An additional 68% of the population is mestizo, having mixed European and indigenous ancestry.<ref name="cia">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bolivia/|title=The World Factbook: Bolivia|publisher=CIA|access-date=14 February 2017}}</ref>
+European Bolivians are a minority ethnic group in Bolivia, accounting for 5% of the country's population. The majority of white Bolivians are the descendants of [[Criollos]] of Spanish descent as well as the Europeans or [[Arabs]] from Spain, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Lebanon, and Croatia. White Bolivians mainly live in the largest cities and major towns in Bolivia like Santa Cruz and La Paz.<ref>[https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/ethnic-groups-of-bolivia.html Ethnic Groups Of Bolivia]</ref> An additional 68% of the population is mestizo, having mixed European and indigenous ancestry.<ref name="cia">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bolivia/|title=The World Factbook: Bolivia|publisher=CIA|access-date=14 February 2017}}</ref>
+[[File:SamuelDM.png|thumb|[[Samuel Doria Medina]] is the president of the [[National Unity Front]].]]
 ==History==
+{{Expand section|date=May 2024}}
 Compared to the [[Indigenous peoples in Bolivia|Indigenous]] population, considerably fewer white and [[mestizo]] Bolivians live in poverty.<ref name="BRE 2010">{{cite web|url=https://www.psa.ac.uk/sites/default/files/page-files/EPP002_0.pdf |title=Bolivia's Regional Elections 2010 |publisher=Political Studies Association |access-date=2019-06-01}}</ref>
 Conceptions of racial boundaries in Bolivia may be fluid and perceptions of race may be tied to socioeconomic status, with the possibility of a person achieving "whitening" via economic advancement. Differences in language, educational status, and employment status may also reinforce perceptions of what constitutes a person as "white", "mestizo", or "Indigenous".<ref name="BRE 2010"/>
+Spaniards arrived in the country looking for gold and riches in the 1500s.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qiRe9XquFAkC&dq=bolivia+history+spaniards&pg=PA21|title=A Brief History of Bolivia|page=21|isbn=978-1-4381-0820-9 |last1=Morales |first1=Waltraud Q. |date=14 May 2014 |publisher=Infobase }}</ref>
 ==Numbers==
 ===Census data===
-In the official census in 1900, people who self-identified as "Blanco" (white) composed 12.72% or 231,088 of the total population. This was the last time data on race was collected. There were 529 Italians, 420 Spaniards, 295 Germans, 279 French, 177 Austrians, 141 English and 23 Belgians living in Bolivia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bolivia.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/Censo_Poblacion_1900_T2.pdf|title=Censo National De La Poblacion de la Republica 1900 "Segunda parte"|page=25-32|date=1900|access-date=September 5, 2020}}</ref>
+In the official census in 1900, people who self-identified as "Blanco" (white) composed 12.72% or 231,088 of the total population. This was the last time data on race was collected. There were 529 Italians, 420 Spaniards, 295 Germans, 279 French, 177 Austrians, 141 English and 23 Belgians living in Bolivia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bolivia.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/Censo_Poblacion_1900_T2.pdf|title=Censo National De La Poblacion de la Republica 1900 "Segunda parte"|pages=25–32|date=1900|access-date=September 5, 2020}}</ref>
 ===Surveys===
@@ Line 28: / Line 33: @@
 ==Geographic distribution==
 Geographically, the white and mixed-race populations of Bolivia tend to be centered in the country's eastern lowlands. The white and mixed-race Bolivians in this region are relatively affluent compared to poorer, predominantly Indigenous regions of Bolivia.<ref name="BRE 2010"/>
-===1900 census===
+===1900===
-According to the 1900 official Bolivian census, a person who self-identified as “Blanca” white was a descendant of a foreigner, principally a Spaniard. Overall there are [[Italians]], Spanish, [[Germans]] and French. In total, they represented 12.7 percent of the total population with large populations in Cochabamba and Santa Cruz representing 36.8 percent combined.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://bolivia.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/Censo_Poblacion_1900_T2.pdf|title=Censo general de la población de la Republica de Bolivia 1900|page=25|language=es|access-date=September 5, 2020}}</ref>
+According to the 1900 official Bolivian census, a person who self-identified as “Blanca” white was a descendant of a foreigner, principally a Spaniard. This was the last census to ask a more detailed question about ethnic background.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ine.gob.bo/index.php/cepal-recomienda-no-usar-categorias-como-mestizo-en-identificacion-de-pueblos/|title=CEPAL RECOMIENDA NO USAR CATEGORÍAS COMO MESTIZO EN IDENTIFICACIÓN DE PUEBLOS|date=18 April 2022|language=Spanish|website=Instituto Nacional de Estadística|accessdate=11 April 2023}}</ref>
+Overall there are [[Italians]], Spanish, [[Germans]] and French. In total, they represented 12.7 percent of the total population with large populations in Cochabamba (60,605) and Santa Cruz de la Sierra (59,470) representing 36.8 percent combined.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://bolivia.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/Censo_Poblacion_1900_T2.pdf|title=Censo general de la población de la Republica de Bolivia 1900|page=25|language=es|access-date=September 5, 2020}}</ref>
 {| class="wikitable sortable
 ! [[Departments of Bolivia|Departments]]
@@ Line 45: / Line 51: @@
 | 15.88
 |-
-| [[File:Flag of Chuquisaca.svg|25px|border]] [[Chuquisaca Department|Chuquisaca]]
+| [[File:Flag of Chuquisaca & Sucre.svg|25px|border]] [[Chuquisaca Department|Chuquisaca]]
 | 15,413
 | 16,354
@@ Line 108: / Line 114: @@
 In the [[Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia|Santa Cruz Department]] there is an important colony (70.000 inhabitants) of German-speaking [[Mennonite]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/21/world/americas/21bolivia.html?_r=1&oref=slogin|title=Bolivian Reforms Raise Anxiety on Mennonite Frontier|website=[[The New York Times]]|date= 21 December 2006|access-date=30 December 2019}}</ref>
-==Politics==
+==Culture==
+===Caporales===
-White Bolivians and mestizos have tended to favor the political opposition against the [[Evo Morales]] administration.
+{{main|Caporales}}
+[[File:Caporales de Puno.jpg|thumb|Caporales dancers in modernity from Bolivia. (2016)]]
+[[Caporales]] is a dance popular in the Andean region of Bolivia. It gained popularity in 1969 by the Estrada Pacheco brothers, inspired by the character of the 'Caporal' or "overseer" of which, historically black slaves, usually mixed race, wore boots and held a whip, the dance originates from the region of the Yungas in Bolivia. The dance has European elements especially with the costumes.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2012-02-22|title=Danzas autóctonas de Bolivia|url=http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/~a9750175/spanisch/caporales.htm|access-date=2021-07-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120222053509/http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/~a9750175/spanisch/caporales.htm|archive-date=2012-02-22}}</ref>
+== Notable White Bolivians ==
+{{Unreferenced section|date=December 2023}}
+*[[Claudia Arce]] - model of Spanish and Italian descent
+*[[Romina Rocamonje]] - Bolivian model
+*[[Ronald Rivero]] - Bolivian football central defender
+*[[Fernando Saucedo]] - Bolivian footballer
+*[[Carlos Lampe]] - Bolivian footballer
+*[[Alvaro Garcia Linera]] - Bolivian politician
+*[[Samuel Doria Medina]] - Bolivian politician
+*[[Jimena Antelo]] - Bolivian journalist
+*[[Chris Syler]] - Bolivian singer-songwriter
+*[[Lidia Gueiler Tejada]] - Bolivian politician
+*[[Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada]] - Politician
+*[[Sara Ugarte de Salamanca]] - poet
 ==See also==
+{{Portal|Europe|Bolivia}}
+*[[Caporales]]
 *[[Croatian Bolivians]]
 *[[German Bolivians]]
 *[[Indigenous peoples in Bolivia]]
+*[[Italian Bolivians]]
 *[[Mennonites in Bolivia]]
 *[[Mestizos in Bolivia|Mestizos in Bolívia]]
+*[[History of the Jews in Bolivia]]
-== Notable White Bolivians ==
-* [[Ana María Ortiz]] - Bolivian Model
-*[[Romina Rocamonje]] - Bolivian model
 == References and footnotes ==
@@ Line 130: / Line 153: @@
 {{White people}}
-[[Category:Bolivian people of European descent| ]]
 [[Category:Ethnic groups in Bolivia]]
-[[Category:European Bolivian| ]]
+[[Category:White South Americans]]
-[[Category:White Latin American]]
+[[Category:European diaspora in Bolivia]]
+[[Category:European diaspora in Latin America]]

v t e Bolivians
Indigenous	Aymara Ayoreo Baure Bororo Canichana Cayubaba Chácobo Chané Chiquitano Ese Ejja Guaraní (Eastern Bolivian Guaraní) Guarayos Guató Lupaca Machinere Maropa Mojeño Movima Nivaclé Pacahuara Pauserna Quechua Qulla Sirionó Tacana Toba Toromona Tsimané Uru Wichí Yaminawá Yuqui Yuracaré
European	Croatian German, Ethnic Mennonite Italian Spanish
Asian	Japanese Jewish
Americas	Argentine Brazilian Uruguayan
Others	African
Category:Ethnic groups in Bolivia