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People of Brazil

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The people and culture of Brazil reflect the ethnic diversity of the country itself. The country of Brazil has been influenced by Amerindians, Portuguese, Africans, Italians, Germans, Spaniards, Japanese, Arabs, and many others, all of which combine to make up the rich tapestry of culture and beliefs.

The people of Brazil are mostly ancestors of the Portuguese. The early colonists of Brazil, back in the 16th century, were Portuguese, Later, in the 19th and 20th centuries, Portuguese immigrants also settled in Brazil. The colonization process actively started in 1532 with the founding of Sao Vincente. Until 1822, the Portuguese were the only nation that had settled in Brazil. For this reason, much of Brazilian culture is based on that of Portugal. During the Colonial period, a few other countries had a presence in Brazil, namely the Dutch and the French, but their occupation there was short lived.

The original Amerindian population of Brazil, which was somewhere between 3-5 million, has either been exterminated or assimilated into the Portuguese population. Today, the Brazilian population is less than 1% Native Americans. There is a large black population, who are descendants of African slaves. They were brought over from countries such as Angola, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, the Ivory Coast, and Sao Tome e Principe. They have mixed substantially with the Portuguese, creating a large mixed-race population.

In the 19th century, many immigrants began coming to Brazil. The first were the Germans, who settled in 1824. Then came the Polish, who settled in 1869. European immigration increased in 1875 when immigrants began coming from Italy, Portugal, and Spain. Between 1870 and 1952, almost 5.5 million immigrants came to Brazil: Italians (1,550,000), Portuguese (1,470,000), Spaniards (650,000), Germans (210,000), Japanese (190,000), Poles or Russians (120,000) and 650,000 of other nationalities. Today, Brazil has 25 million Italians and Italian-descended Brazilians, giving them the largest Italian population outside of Brazil. Asian immigration began to increase in the 20th century. Immigrants came from Korea, China, Taiwan, and Japan. Japanese-Brazilians are the largest Asian minority in Brazil.
Brazil today is composed of the following ethnicities:

White- 53.7%
Multiracial- 38.5%
Black- 6.2%
Asian- 0.5%
Amerindian- 0.4%
Unspecified- 0.7%

According to these statistics, Brazil is approximately half White and half multiracial or Black. However, Brazilian racial classification is based on skin color and physical appearance, not ancestry.

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