Why Are Spaniards Historically So Prone To Miscegenation and Are They To Blame For Race-Mixing?

[Anglojew]

The Spanish (and to a lesser extent Portuguese) colonial legacy is one of miscegenation in the manner the Dutch, British and others did not practice.

In Latin America, racial mixture was officially acknowledged from colonial times. There was official nomenclature for every conceivable mixture present in the various countries. Initially, this classification was used as a type of caste system, where rights and privileges were accorded depending on one's official racial classification. Official caste distinctions were abolished in many countries of the Spanish-speaking Americas as they became independent of Spain. Several terms have remained in common usage.

Race and racial mixture have played a significant role in the politics of many Latin American countries. In most countries, for example Mexico, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, and a majority of the population can be described as biracial or multiracial (depending on the country). In Mexico, over 80% of the population is mestizo in some degree or another.

The Mexican philosopher and educator José Vasconcelos authored an essay on the subject, La Raza Cósmica, celebrating racial mixture. Venezuelan ex-president Hugo Chávez, himself of Spanish, indigenous and African ancestry, made positive references to the mixed-race ancestry of most Latin Americans from time to time.

It's been said before that this was due to the Catholic viewpoint that a baptised native had a soul and was therefore okay to have relations with/marry (unlike the Protestant view point which didn't allow race mixing for cultural, religious and legal reasons). It is also undoubtedly true that the Spanish tended to not bring their wives and families to their colonies but tended to have native mistresses or second wives.

Please offer your reasons for why the Spanish caused virtually all of the miscegenation of the colonial era.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multira..._the_Caribbean


(Figures are slightly outdated)



Do you blame Spaniards for promoting race-mixing?

[King Claus]

I think they race mixed a lot because they wanted to have more workers at their disposal and also maybe just because they weren't as european to begin with so they must have felt a bit more connected to these older hominid species.

[zhaoyun]

Because DAT ASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

[Taiguaitiaoghyrmmumin]

Race mixing would have happened anyways between african and native slaves.

[Anglojew]

I think they race mixed a lot because they wanted to have more workers at their disposal and also maybe just because they weren't as european to begin with so they must have felt a bit more connected to these older hominid species.

Good points. They seem to have been obsessed with race though

[Armando Esteban Quito]

Troll thread #3435829 by Anglo Jew.

[Prisoner Of Ice]

I don't think they were more mixy, if anything irish are the most easily mixing. It was different for them because they were outnumbered many times over and had much larger territories than other europeans, and they didn't have many of their own females along.

[Lemonhead]

As have been mentioned several times, it was due to a lack of females, after a month on a ship full of men, they were probably very happy at the sight of Native American women.

[Anglojew]

I don't think they were more mixy, if anything irish are the most easily mixing. It was different for them because they were outnumbered many times over and had much larger territories than other europeans, and they didn't have many of their own females along.

In australia most half-caste aboriginals are part-Irish. Again this is explained because Protestants didn't hold the same views about baptised natives as Catholics.

[Anglojew]

As have been mentioned several times, it was due to a lack of females, after a month on a ship full of men, they were probably very happy at the sight of Native American women.

Doesn't explain it. North America didn't have the same degree of race-mixing although it did occur with the cape coloureds in South Africa (with the Dutch).