Belizean ethnography

The ethnography of Belize corresponds to a wide variety of groups of mixed, indigenous, African, European and Asian roots.

Despite having been a British colony, Belize is considered a hybrid country, since its geographical situation and its ethnic diversity mean that it possesses cultural elements from both the Anglo-Caribbean and Spanish-American worlds.

Ethnic composition

2010 Census

According to the 2010 Census, the inhabitants of Belize self-identified as follows:

Other sources

According to The CIA World Factbook, 52.9% of the Belizean population is mixed race, 25.9% Creole, 11.3% Mayan, 6.1% Garifuna, 3.9% Hindustani, 3.6% Mennonite, 1.2% White, and 1% Asian.

For the Mexican anthropologist Francisco Lizcano Fernández, 48.7% of Belizeans are mestizo, 31.2% Afro-descendants (24.9% Creoles, 6.1% Garífuna and 0.3% black), 10.6% Mayan, 4.3% White (3.6% Mennonite), and 3.7% Asian (3% Hindu and 0.7% Chinese).

Ethnic groups

Mongrels

Mestizo children in Cayo San Jorge.

Mestizos are people of mixed Spanish and Mayan ancestry and make up about half of the country's population. The first mestizos arrived in Belize in 1847, fleeing the Caste War, an ethnic conflict that cost the lives of a third of the inhabitants of the then Republic of Yucatan.

Since the 1980s, thousands of mixed-race refugees from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras have arrived in Belize. In 2010, immigrants made up 18% of the country's population, with Guatemalans being the largest foreign group (41% of the total), followed by Salvadorans and Hondurans (15% each).

Due to these migrations, today Spanish is the mother tongue of more than 40% of Belizeans.

Mestizos are present throughout the territory, especially in the northern districts of Corozal and Orange Walk. Many refugees from the Caste War arrived through the Guatemalan Petén, creating mestizo communities in Benque Viejo del Carmen, San Ignacio, and San José Succotz. For their part, the Central Americans who arrived at the end of the XX century settled in the outskirts of Belmopan, in the Stann Creek district, and in the Ambergris and Corker Cays.

In the 2010 Census, mestizos were counted under the category Mestizo/Spanish/Latino (Mestizo/Spanish/Latino), and their distribution by district was the next:

Creoles (Creoles)

The term Creole or kriol is used in Belize to refer to those with some degree of African ancestry, particularly those who descend from African slaves brought to the country in the 18th and 19th centuries., of the subsequent African migrations, and of the British colonizers.

Until a few years ago, Creoles made up 60% of the national population, but due to their migration to the United States and the arrival of refugees from other Central American countries, today they are around a quarter of the total.

The traditional language of the Creoles is Belizean Creole, a mixture of English with African words.

Creoles live primarily in Belize City and in towns along the Belize and Sibun rivers, and along the Northern and Western highways.

According to the 2010 Census, Creoles were distributed as follows:

Mayans

Mayan children kekchi.

The presence of the Maya in Belize dates back to at least 2500 BC. c.

During the height of their culture (250-1000), 400,000 Maya lived in Belize. Many of their descendants were still inhabiting the territory when Europeans began to colonize it in the 16th and 17th centuries. Due to the British occupation, the Mayans were displaced to the interior of the country, where they were defeated in 1867 and 1872, being definitively integrated into Belizean society.

The modern Maya come from Mexico and Guatemala, and represent a tenth of the national population. The Mayans are officially divided into three groups:

• Them yucatecosThey migrated from southern Mexico and live in the northern districts. Its language is the Yucatecan Maya, although they have been largely assimilated by the mestizo population.
• Them MopánThey arrived from the Guatemalan Petén, and today they live in the districts of Toledo and Stann Creek. His language is the Mopan language.
• Them kekchíthey also arrived from Guatemala and live in the district of Toledo. His language is the kekchi language.

The 2010 Census counted the Mayans according to the three previous categories, showing the following results:

Garifuna

Garifuna dance in Dangriga.

The Garífunas or Black Caribs appeared in 1675, when a ship with black slaves sank near the coast of San Vicente. The survivors joined the Carib Indians and exterminated the white population of the island, establishing a common government and intermarrying.

In 1797 the British defeated them and deported 5,000 survivors to the Bay Islands. From there, the Garifuna spread across the mainland, reaching a population of 150 in southern Belize in 1802.

The Garifuna currently live primarily in the Stann Creek district. Their language is Garifuna.

In the 2010 Census, the Garífuna population was distributed as follows:

Mennonites

Mennonite fishers in the New River.

The Mennonites are a group of Dutch origin, who began their migration to Belize in 1958.

3,500 Canadian Mennonites initially arrived, drawn by the government's promise to exempt them from conscription.

Today Mennonites live primarily on the upper reaches of the Belize River, between the districts of Orange Walk, Cayo and Corozal. Their traditional language is Plautdietsch or Low German, although many of them speak English, Creole and Spanish.

According to the 2010 Census, the Mennonite population by district was as follows:

Hindustanis

The first Hindustanis arrived in Belize in 1858. There were about a thousand rebels who were deported along with their wives and families after the suppression of the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

Beginning in 1838, and after the abolition of slavery, thousands of Indians were brought to the Caribbean as unpaid laborers. In 1880 some of these workers were transported to Belize from Jamaica, in order to serve on the plantations of American exiles from the Civil War.

The last migration of Hindustanis occurred in the 1970s, when several exiles due to the racist policies of the dictator Idi Amin arrived from Uganda.

Today, Hindustanis live mainly in the Toledo and Corozal districts, and in Belize City.

The 2010 Census included two categories for the Hindustani population (East Indian and Hindu), distributed as follows:

Whites

British settlement in Belize began in 1638. They were English and Scottish pirates known as Baymen, who gathered logwood and mahogany. Colonists introduced slavery to Belize, in addition to keeping Spanish influence in the region at bay.

After the American Civil War, some southern leaders migrated to the Toledo district, where they purchased 4,000 acres to grow cotton.

After independence, American and European businessmen settled in the country to dedicate themselves to the tourism sector.

The 2010 Census included whites in the Caucasian/White category, whose population by district was as follows:

Asians

Chinese business in Corozal.

Belize has populations of Chinese, Taiwanese and Korean origin.

Chinese migration began in 1865, when 480 unpaid laborers came to work in the logging fields. More Chinese arrived shortly before the outbreak of World War II, after being expelled from the United States and Mexico. Most of the Chinese came from the Guandong region.

Starting in the 1990s, some investors from mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong came to the country attracted by the economic stimuli granted by the Government.

The 2010 Census showed that the Asian population was distributed as follows:

Blacks

African slaves were introduced to Belize in the early 18th century century. Most of them mixed with the British colonists, giving rise to the Creole population.

After independence, some Nigerian immigrants have come to the country to work in the health system. At the last census, about 400 Jamaicans lived in Belize.

In the 2010 Census, the population that identified itself as African/Black (African/Black) was distributed as follows:

Arabs

Arabs have migrated to Belize in recent times, engaging mainly in commercial activities. Most are of Syrian or Lebanese origin, although the Palestinian community has become highly politically prominent.

In the 2010 Census, only the Lebanese (Lebanese) population was counted, and their distribution at the district level was as follows:

Genetic makeup

According to a 2014 study, the average racial mix in Belize is 38% indigenous, 37% European and 25% African.