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Mestizo ( Portuguese, Mestiço) is a term of Spanish origin describing peoples of mixed European and Amerindian racial descent. The feminine form is mestiza. In the Philippines, the term ( Filipino, Mestiso) denotes a mixed-race person of ethnic Malay and any other ancestry.1 Mestizo in Latin America
Under the Caste System of colonial Latin America and Spain, the term mestizo originally applied only to the children resulting from the union of one European and one Amerindian parent, or the children of two mestizo parents. The term didn't apply to those born to one mestizo and one European parent, nor did it apply to those born to one mestizo and one Amerindian parent. Those latter mixes were known as " castizo " and " cuaterón de indio " respectively. Today, however, mestizo applies to all people with significant amounts of both European and Amerindian ancestry in Latin America.
Mestizos officially make up the majority of the populations of Chile (90%), Colombia (58%), Ecuador (65%), El Salvador (94%), Honduras 1 (90%), Mexico 1 (60%), NicaraguaNicaragua is a republic in Central America. It is the largest Central American nation but the least densely populated. It is bordered on the north by Honduras and on south by Costa Rica. Its western coastline is on the Pacific Ocean, while the east side o (69%), PanamaPanama ( Spanish: Panam is the southernmost country of Central America. It constitutes the last part of a natural land bridge between the North American and South American continents. History Main article: History of Panama Panama was part of Spain's colo 1 (70%), ParaguayThe Republic of Paraguay is a landlocked republic in South America. Lying on both banks of the Paraguay River, it borders Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the northeast and Bolivia to the northwest. The name "Paraguay" is derived from the G (95%) and VenezuelaThe Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Spanish: Republica Bolivariana de Venezuela "Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela") is a country in northern South America. 1 It borders the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Guyana to the east, Brazil to (67%).
For other American countries where mestizos don't constitute a majority, they nonetheless represent a significant portion of their populations; ArgentinaArgentina is a Spanish-speaking country in southern South America, situated between the Andes in the west and the southern Atlantic Ocean in the east. It is bordered by Paraguay and Bolivia in the north, Brazil and Uruguay in the northeast and Chile in th (13%), BelizeBelize is a small nation in Central America, on the Caribbean Sea bordering Mexico to the northwest and Guatemala to the west and south. Honduras lies 75 km away at the two nations' closest point across the Gulf of Honduras to the east. In the Spanish lan (44%), BoliviaThe Republic of Bolivia is a landlocked country in western South America. It is bordered by Brazil in the north and east, Paraguay and Argentina in the south, and Chile and Peru in the west. History Main article: History of Bolivia Bolivia has long been i (30%), BrazilThis article is about Brazil, the country. For other article subjects named Brazil see Brazil (disambiguation). The Federative Republic of Brazil Republica Federativa do Brasil in Portuguese) is the largest and most populous country in South America. (aprox. 12%), Uruguay (8%) and Peru (37%). The possible exceptions for this would be Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Although some Mestizos and full-blooded American Indians, did once represent a portion of the population in the latter two countries, they were absorbed by the mulatto populations there.
Many Americans of Hispanic and/or Latino origin identify themselves as mestizos as well, particularly those who identify as Chicano.
