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German Venezuelans (german: Deutsch-Venezolaner; es, Germano-venezolanos) are Venezuelan citizens who descend from
Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
or German people with Venezuelan citizenship. Most of them live in Caracas, Maracaibo,
Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
,
Colonia agrícola de Turén Colonia may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Colonia (music group), a Croatian dance music group * ''Colonia'' (Autopsia album), 2002 * ''Colonia'' (A Camp album), 2009 * ''Colonia'' (film), a 2015 historical romantic thriller Places *Colonia ...
,
El Jarillo EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...
, and
Colonia Tovar Colonia Tovar ( en, Tovar Colony) is a town of Venezuela, capital of the municipality Tovar in Aragua state. It is located about west of Caracas. It was founded on April 8, 1843, by a group of 390 immigrants from the then independent state of t ...
where a small-reduced and decreasing minority of people speak the
Colonia Tovar dialect The Colonia Tovar dialect, or Alemán Coloniero, is a dialect that is spoken in Colonia Tovar, Venezuela, and belongs to the Low Alemannic branch of German. Characteristics The dialect, like other Alemannic dialects, is not mutually intelligi ...
, a German-derived dialect from their ancestry, and the Spanish language.


History


First colonization attempts

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain granted rights to the
Augsburg Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the ...
banking families of Anton and Bartholomeus
Welser Welser was a German banking and merchant family, originally a patrician family based in Augsburg and Nuremberg, that rose to great prominence in international high finance in the 16th century as bankers to the Habsburgs and financiers of C ...
in 1528 to colonize Venezuela. By 1531, the Welsers controlled the privilege. They set up a colonization scheme and sent
Ambrosius Ehinger Ambrosius Ehinger, also (Ambrosio Alfínger in Spanish) Dalfinger, Thalfinger, (ca. 1500 in Thalfingen near Ulm – 31 May 1533 near Chinácota in modern-day Colombia) was a German conquistador and the first governor of the Welser concess ...
as governor to
Santa Ana de Coro Coro, historically known as Neu-Augsburg, is the capital of Falcón State and the second oldest city of Venezuela (after Cumaná). It was founded on July 26, 1527, by Juan de Ampíes as Santa Ana de Coro. It is established at the south of the Par ...
(german: Neu-Augsburg), the capital of Klein-Venedig or Welserland (as it was known in Germany) in 1529. On October 7, 1528, Ehinger left
Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
with the Spaniard García de Lerma and 281 settlers and they headed towards the Venezuelan coast, where they arrived on February 24, 1529, at the region of
Santa Ana de Coro Coro, historically known as Neu-Augsburg, is the capital of Falcón State and the second oldest city of Venezuela (after Cumaná). It was founded on July 26, 1527, by Juan de Ampíes as Santa Ana de Coro. It is established at the south of the Par ...
. From there, he explored the interior looking the city '' El Dorado'', one legendary golden city, whose myth had been developed by the Spanish. On September 8, 1529 Ehinger founded the colony of New Nuremberg (german: Neu-Nürnberg), today known as Maracaibo. The aforementioned rights were revoked in 1546 by Emperor
Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infa ...
due to non-compliance with the stipulations. Many of the German settlers died from tropical diseases, to which they had no
immunity Immunity may refer to: Medicine * Immunity (medical), resistance of an organism to infection or disease * ''Immunity'' (journal), a scientific journal published by Cell Press Biology * Immune system Engineering * Radiofrequence immunity desc ...
, or hostile Indian attacks during frequent journeys deep into
Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...
territory in search of gold. When
Juan de Carvajal Juan de Carvajal was a Spanish conquistador and one of the first governors of Venezuela Province. Carvajal was born in Spain in 1509. He was in Venezuela in the 1540s, a time when territory there had been assigned to the Welser family by the E ...
was founding
El Tocuyo El Tocuyo is a fertile valley and city in west-central Venezuela at elevation. It is located in south-central Lara State about 60 km southwest of Barquisimeto. The town of El Tocuyo was founded by Juan de Carvajal in 1545 on the banks of the T ...
in 1545, Spaniards and some German-speakers (German, Flemish and Swiss that did not agree with the Welser government) headed to that new town. Conversely, those Germans, some of them marrying Spanish and aboriginal ladies, decided to use a Spanish surname instead of using a Germanic one. After some intentions of
Nicolaus Federmann Nikolaus Federmann ( es, link=no, Nicolás Féderman, ) (c. 1505, Ulm – February 1542, Valladolid) was a German adventurer and conquistador in what is modern-day Venezuela and Colombia. He is a significant figure in the history of Klein-Venedi ...
, George Hohermuth von Speier to consolidate a German State in this land, and after the death of Bartholomeus Welser and
Philipp von Hutten Philipp von Hutten (18 December 1505 – 17 May 1546) was a German adventurer and an early European explorer and conquistador of Venezuela. He is a significant figure in the history of Klein-Venedig (1528 - 1546), the concession of Venezuela Prov ...
, that ended up with the death of Juan de Carvajal, the
Council of the Indies The Council of the Indies ( es, Consejo de las Indias), officially the Royal and Supreme Council of the Indies ( es, Real y Supremo Consejo de las Indias, link=no, ), was the most important administrative organ of the Spanish Empire for the Amer ...
determined to cease the German administration upon Venezuela in 1546, because the Welser did not fulfill the treat of establishing cities and fortress and bringing settlers. In addition, there are two town known as Cuara. One to the south of "Valles de Quibor" where its inhabitants state out that they descend from those Welser settlers . The other "Cuara" today "Campo Elias" near to Urachiche in the State of Yaracuy, where inhabitants, though having aboriginal features, also have blue and green eyes, hazel or blond hairs, claiming that they also descends from those Welsers that came to Venezuela approximately 500 years ago. There is a saying in Cuara Quibor about the first Venezuela President Jose Antonio Paez Herrera. It is said that his mother Maria Violante Herrera was born in that Larense town. She had as a nickname "La Catira de los ojos azules" (The blue-eyed creole blonde he term "catira" is a feminine form of "catire", a Venezuelan slang of "blond." Governors, Mayors and Lieutenant-Governors between 1528 and 1556 German Toponomy of in the regional geography * Posesión Federmann or Sabana de Federmann to the north of
Barquisimeto Barquisimeto (; guc, Watkisimeeta) is a city in Venezuela. It is the capital of the state of Lara and head of Iribarren Municipality. It is an important urban, industrial, commercial and transportation center of the country, recognized as the f ...
,
Lara Lara may refer to: Places * Lara (state), a state in Venezuela *Electoral district of Lara, an electoral district in Victoria, Australia * Lara, Antalya, an urban district in Turkey * Lara, Victoria, a township in Australia * Lara de los In ...
. * Quebrada de von Hutten, near to Vela de Coro and Puerto Cumarébo, Falcón. * Alemán, 94 km to the west of
Barquisimeto Barquisimeto (; guc, Watkisimeeta) is a city in Venezuela. It is the capital of the state of Lara and head of Iribarren Municipality. It is an important urban, industrial, commercial and transportation center of the country, recognized as the f ...
,
Lara Lara may refer to: Places * Lara (state), a state in Venezuela *Electoral district of Lara, an electoral district in Victoria, Australia * Lara, Antalya, an urban district in Turkey * Lara, Victoria, a township in Australia * Lara de los In ...
. * Welsares a suburb in Cuara, to the southwest of
Barquisimeto Barquisimeto (; guc, Watkisimeeta) is a city in Venezuela. It is the capital of the state of Lara and head of Iribarren Municipality. It is an important urban, industrial, commercial and transportation center of the country, recognized as the f ...
. * Wohnsiedler, a square in
Barquisimeto Barquisimeto (; guc, Watkisimeeta) is a city in Venezuela. It is the capital of the state of Lara and head of Iribarren Municipality. It is an important urban, industrial, commercial and transportation center of the country, recognized as the f ...
* Frawenthal, a valley right to the south of
Barquisimeto Barquisimeto (; guc, Watkisimeeta) is a city in Venezuela. It is the capital of the state of Lara and head of Iribarren Municipality. It is an important urban, industrial, commercial and transportation center of the country, recognized as the f ...


Foundation of Colonia Tovar

After those first colonization attempts in the 16th century, Germans did not emigrate to Venezuela again until 1842. Between 1814 and 1842, some regions of Germany suffered heavy economic losses, while their inhabitants were paying high taxes. This caused great poverty in the country, which gave many Germans the desire to immigrate in order to escape poverty.Migracion Alemana a Venezuela
(English: German Migration to Venezuela), Posted by Historia. Retrieved 2012-01-07.
To all this must be added that Germans had an excellent reputation as settlers. This positive image was created by pioneers in
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
. On the other hand, Venezuela at the beginning of the 19th century, didn't have much political weight, so there was no fear or interference on their part.Miradas alemanas hacia America Latina
In Spanish: Germany Looks to Latin America). Retrieved 2012-01-07.
During the second government of
José Antonio Páez José Antonio Páez Herrera (; 13 June 1790 – 6 May 1873) was a Venezuelan leader who fought against the Spanish Crown for Simón Bolívar during the Venezuelan War of Independence. He later led Venezuela's independence from Gran Colombia. ...
, the Congress enacted, in May 1840, a new immigration law which provided for a policy of economic and cultural exchanges between Venezuela and Europe. The entrepreneurs received loans on the condition that they accept immigrants over a period of two years. Given the huge population deficit that existed at that time in Venezuela, the Minister of Interior and Justice at the time, Angel Quintero, called for collaboration to
Agustín Codazzi Giovanni Battista Agostino Codazzi (alternatively known in Latin America as Agustín Codazzi; 12 July 1793 – 7 February 1859) was an Italo-Venezuelan soldier, scientist, geographer, cartographer, and governor of Barinas (1846–1847 ...
(traveler and geographer) so that he could indicate the lands eligible to attract European immigration in order to increase the productivity of the country. From the outset, Codazzi thought of Germany because of its economic situation. Along with Alexander Benitz, he began planning an organized immigration. Codazzi made explorations in various fields owned by the family Tovar, who had offered to donate them to establish a colony. So, Codazzi started a propaganda effort to get people to join the project and he chose families from the south of Germany, who then would travel to colonize the country. These families had to be masons, carpenters, blacksmiths, weavers, shoemakers and tailors. They came from the Grand Duchy of Baden and surrounding areas of (Germany), especially from Kaiserstuhl. These areas not only had many taxes, but also had problems related to agricultural productivity. These families left their country in 1842. Thus, on October 14, 1841, 374 people come formally to a Venezuelan port, founding the current
La Colonia Tovar Colonia Tovar ( en, Tovar Colony) is a town of Venezuela, capital of the municipality Tovar in Aragua state. It is located about west of Caracas. It was founded on April 8, 1843, by a group of 390 immigrants from the then independent state of th ...
, with European structures and their particular lifestyle. He formed a company that had as partners Agustin Codazzi and Ramon Diaz, and as a guarantor to Martin Tovar y Ponte. That same year he began work on the land donated by Manuel Felipe Tovar, which would serve as home to German immigrants.venezuelavirtual: La colonia Tovar: alemania criolla. Posted in MiPunto.com
Retrieved 2012-01-07.
Once in Tovar, it was found that of the eighty houses promised only twenty had been built. In addition, the assigned land had been deforested. Nor was there an access road. The administrator to the settlers exploited them for labor and prevented them from leaving the colony. This situation did not improve until 1845, when the government dismissed the administrator from office. Then, in 1852 the territory was transferred to the colony’s families. Between 1858 and 1870, the colony was sacked twice, and once was completely destroyed by flames. From 1870, colonists began to successfully grow coffee. In 1877, Colonia Tovar had only 200 people living there. In 1920 they numbered 850.


German Refugees in the Colonia Agrícola de Turén

During the Second World War, Germany experienced the Nazi persecution, the war,
the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...
, the destruction of Germany and the postwar period that prompted some German immigration to Venezuela. Many of these Germans settled in this country specifically influenced by the testimonies narrated by the German scientist
Alexander Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 17696 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, naturalist, explorer, and proponent of Romantic philosophy and science. He was the younger brother of the Prussian minister ...
about this country, where he spent most of his career in the 19th century. In 1949, a group of Venezuelan and German founded the Asociación Cultural Humboldt (in English: Humboldt Cultural Association), named in honor of this German scientist. This institution, works as a communicating vessel for relationships between Germany and Venezuela, particularly through cultural events. The Germans who came to Venezuela in the second half of the 20th century, mostly worked in German companies that were set on Venezuelan soil. The telecommunications, chemical, pharmaceutical, brewery industries were the most favored destinations, occupationally speaking, for these immigrants.Los alemanes en Venezuela
(In Spanish: The Germans in Venezuela), posted by Karl Krispin. Consulted on April 23, 2012.
Additionally between 1951 and 1954, there were about 53 families of German origin (some from Bukovina) that were refugees in
Colonia agrícola de Turén Colonia may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Colonia (music group), a Croatian dance music group * ''Colonia'' (Autopsia album), 2002 * ''Colonia'' (A Camp album), 2009 * ''Colonia'' (film), a 2015 historical romantic thriller Places *Colonia ...
(State of Portuguesa) . They have farms and agriculture industries. As a witness, they still maintain institutions in order to preserve their language and culture, for example the Lutheran Church that holds periodically mass services in German.


Germans from the remote south of Brazil

There was an attempt of immigration of Teuto-Brazilians in the year 2000, some of German and Italian ancestry. It did not prosper and they returned to Ijuí Jóia and Ausgusto Pestana, the towns from they had come.


Demography

In Colonia Tovar, just a minority of its people speak the Colonia Tovar dialect, a German dialect said to be difficult to understand for native standard German speakers. Most of them have lost their language and culture over the years, keeping only some customs that have remained through programs to promote tourism in the region, considering it a differentiated area of Venezuela. The Germans that arrived to Colonia Agrícola de Turén and the first generation of descendants still keep the language as they hold church masses at Lutheran Church in Turén.


Education

German schools: *
Colegio Humboldt Caracas ''Colegio Humboldt, Caracas'' is a German school located in Caracas, Venezuela.Contactos
" ''Colegio Humb ...
* Colegio Alemán de Maracaibo ** Formerly Colegio Aleman del ZuliaDeutscher Bundestag 4. Wahlperiode Drucksache IV/3672

Archive
.
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Common ...
(West Germany). 23 June 1965. Retrieved on 12 March 2016. p. 29/51.
* Colegio La Esperanza in Valencia, Carabobo.


Surnames

Uslar, Müller, Leitner, Blöhm, Brandt, Hacker, Hahn, Hellmund, Breindenbach, Kanzler, Misle, Tehn, Strubinger, Meyer, Petchner, Weber, Knoweldorf, von Schuckmann, Kameka, Helmeyer, Groskopf, Hausmann, Adler, Isler, Braun, Berl, Behrens, Brener, Dieckmann, Goetz, Röhl, Rahn, Grunn, Goetz, Römer, Volmer, Strohschein, Zingg etc.


References


External links


Travesías: Inspiración para viajeros
(English: Cruises: Inspiration for travelers) {{Portal bar, Germany, Venezuela * German diaspora in South America European Venezuelan