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Canary Islanders, or Canarians ( es, canarios), are a Romance people and ethnic group. They reside on the
Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...
, an autonomous community of Spain near the coast of northwest Africa, and descend from a mixture of European settlers and aboriginal Guanche peoples.Ricardo Rodríguez-Varel et al. 2017
Genomic Analyses of Pre-European Conquest Human Remains from the Canary Islands Reveal Close Affinity to Modern North Africans
/ref> Genetics shows modern Canarian people to be, on average, a population of mostly European ancestry, with some Northwest African admixture. The distinctive variety of the Spanish language spoken in the region is known as '' habla canaria'' (''Canary speech'') or the (''dialecto'')'' canario'' (
Canarian dialect Canarian Spanish (Spanish terms in descending order of frequency: , , , or ) is a variant of standard Spanish spoken in the Canary Islands by the Canary Islanders. The variant is similar to the Andalusian Spanish variety spoken in Western Andal ...
). The Canarians, and their descendants, played a major role during the conquest, colonization, and eventual independence movements of various countries in Latin America. Their ethnic and cultural presence is most palpable in the countries of Uruguay, Venezuela, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.


History

The original inhabitants of the Canary Islands are commonly known as Guanches (although this term in its strict sense only refers to the original inhabitants of Tenerife). They are believed to be either
Berbers , image = File:Berber_flag.svg , caption = The Berber ethnic flag , population = 36 million , region1 = Morocco , pop1 = 14 million to 18 million , region2 = Algeria , pop2 ...
in origin or a related group. The islands were conquered by Castile at the beginning of the 15th century. In 1402, they began to subdue and suppress the native Guanche population. The Guanches were initially enslaved and gradually absorbed. As a result, modern Canarian people are mixture of mostly European and North African, with low frequencies of sub-saharan. However, there are variation in its population depending on the individual. After subsequent settlement by Europeans, the remaining Guanches were gradually diluted by the settlers and their culture largely vanished. Alonso Fernández de Lugo, conqueror of Tenerife and La Palma, oversaw extensive immigration to these islands during a short period from the late 1490s to the 1520s from mainland Europe, mostly Castile and Portugal. At subsequent judicial enquiries, Fernández de Lugo was accused of favoring Genoese and Portuguese immigrants over Castilians.


Ancestry

The native inhabitants of the Canary Islands hold a gene pool that is predominantly European and native Guanche. Guanche genetic markers have also been found recently in Puerto Rico and, at low frequencies, in peninsular Spain after later emigration from the Canary Islands.


Population genetics


Uniparental markers

The most frequent (maternal-descent) mtDNA haplogroup in Canary Islands is H (37.6%), followed by U6 (14.0%), T (12.7%), not-U6 U (10.3%) and J (7.0%). Two haplogroups, H and U6, alone account for more than 50% of the individuals. Significant frequencies of sub-Saharan maternal L haplogroups (6.6%) is also consistent with the historical records on introduction of sub-Saharan female slave labour in Canary Islands. However, some Sub-Saharan female lineages are also found in North African populations, and as a result, some of these L lineages could have been introduced to the Islands from North Africa. A 2009 study of DNA extracted from the remains of aboriginal inhabitants found that 7% of lineages were haplogroup L, which leaves open the possibility that these L lineages were part of the founding population of the Canary Islands. Sub-Saharan female lineages have been found in frequencies of 10% or more in some islands. A 2003 genetics research article by
Nicole Maca-Meyer Nicole may refer to: People * Nicole (name) * Nicole (American singer) (born 1958), a contestant in season 3 of the American ''The X Factor'' * Nicole (Chilean singer) (born 1977) * Nicole (German singer) (born 1964), winner of the 1982 Euro ...
et al. published in the ''
European Journal of Human Genetics The ''European Journal of Human Genetics'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the Nature Publishing Group on behalf of the European Society of Human Genetics. It covers all aspects of human genetics. Abstracting and inde ...
'' compared aboriginal Guanche mtDNA (collected from Canarian archaeological sites) to that of today's Canarians and concluded that "despite the continuous changes suffered by the population (Spanish colonization, slave trade), aboriginal mtDNA lineages constitute a considerable proportion 2–73%of the Canarian gene pool". According to this article, both percentages are obtained using two different estimation methods; nevertheless according to the same study the percentage that could be more reliable is the one of 73%.Ancient mtDNA analysis and the origin of the Guanches
/ref> Although the
Berbers , image = File:Berber_flag.svg , caption = The Berber ethnic flag , population = 36 million , region1 = Morocco , pop1 = 14 million to 18 million , region2 = Algeria , pop2 ...
are the most probable ancestors of the Guanches, it is deduced that important human movements (e.g., the Islamic-Arabic conquest of the Berbers) have reshaped Northwest Africa after the migratory wave to the Canary Islands and the "results support, from a maternal perspective, the supposition that since the end of the 16th century, at least, two-thirds of the Canarian population had an indigenous substrate, as was previously inferred from historical and anthropological data." mtDNA haplogroup U subclade U6b1 is Canarian-specific A 2019 genetics research article confirms that most lineages observed in the ancient samples have a Mediterranean distribution, and belong to lineages associated with the Neolithic expansion in the Near East and Europe (T,J,X…). This phylogeographic analysis of Canarian ancient mitogenomes, the first of its kind, shows that some lineages are restricted to Central North Africa (H1cf, J2a2d and T2c1d3), while others have a wider distribution, including both West and Central North Africa, and, Europe and the Near East. Y-DNA, or Y-chromosomal, (direct paternal) lineages were not analysed in this study; however, an earlier study giving the aboriginal y-DNA contribution at 6% was cited by Maca-Meyer et al., but the results were criticized as possibly flawed due to the widespread phylogeography of y-DNA haplogroup E1b1b1b, which may skew determination of the aboriginality versus coloniality of contemporary y-DNA lineages in the Canaries. Regardless, Maca-Meyer et al. state that historical evidence does support the explanation of "strong sexual asymmetry...as a result of a strong bias favoring matings between European males and aboriginal females, and to the important aboriginal male mortality during the Conquest." Indeed, according to a recent study by Fregel et al. 2009, in spite of the geographic nearness between the Canary Islands and Morocco the genetic ancestry of the Canary islands males is mainly of European origin. Nearly 67% of the haplogroups resulting from are Euro–Eurasian ( R1a (2.76%),
R1b Haplogroup R1b (R-M343), previously known as Hg1 and Eu18, is a human Y-chromosome haplogroup. It is the most frequently occurring paternal lineage in Western Europe, as well as some parts of Russia (e.g. the Bashkirs) and pockets of Central A ...
(50.62%), J (14%), I (9.66%) and G (3.99%)). Unsurprisingly the Castillian conquest brought the genetic base of the current male population of the Canary Islands. Nevertheless, the second most important haplogroup origin is Northern Africa. E1b1b (14% including 8.30% of the typical
berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...
haplogroup E-M81), E1b1a and E1a (1.50%), and T (3%) haplogroups are present at a rate of 33%. According to the same study, the presence of autochthonous North African E-M81 lineages, and also other relatively abundant markers (E-M78 and J-M267) from the same region in the indigenous Guanche population, "strongly points to that area
orth Africa Orth can refer to: Places * Orth, Minnesota, an unincorporated community in Nore Township, Minnesota, United States * Orth an der Donau, a town in Gänserndorf, Lower Austria, Austria * Orth House, a historic house in Winnetka, Illinois, United St ...
as the most probable origin of the Guanche ancestors". In this study, Fregel et al. estimated that, based on Y-chromosome and mtDNA haplogroup frequencies, the relative female and male indigenous Guanche contributions to the present-day Canary Islands populations were respectively of 41.8% and 16.1%.


Mitochondrial DNA

Regarding mitochondrial DNA, the maternal lineages of Canary Islanders are characterized by the prevalence of European ancestry in all islands except La Gomera, in which the Northwest African lineage is stronger. A 2002 study analyzing the mithocondrial DNA from the teeth of the 18th century Canarian population, found that the 18th century Canary Islanders had a bit more of North African heritage than European, with minor Sub-Saharian roots, which the author links to the former trade of black slaves.


Autosomal DNA

An autosomal study in 2011 found an average Northwest African influence of about 17% in Canary Islanders with a wide interindividual variation ranging from 0% to 96%. According to the authors, the substantial Northwest African ancestry found for Canary Islanders supports that, despite the aggressive conquest by Castile in the 15th century and the subsequent immigration, genetic footprints of the first settlers of the Canary Islands persist in the current inhabitants. Paralleling mtDNA findings, the largest average Northwest African contribution was found for the samples from La Gomera. Another recent study by Guillen-Guio et al. 2018 sequenced the entire genomes of a sample of 400 adult men and women from all the islands except La Graciosa to determine the relationship of Canarian genetic diversity to the more frequent complex pathologies in the archipielago. The study indicated that Canarian DNA shows distinctive genetic markers, the result of a combination of factors such as the geographic isolation of the islands, the adaption to the environment of its inhabitants and the historic admixture of the Pre-Hispanic population of the archipielago (coming from North Africa), with European and from Sub-Saharan area individuals. Drawing on these data, it was estimated that the Canarian population is, on average at an autosomal level, 75% European, 22% North African and 3% Sub-saharan.Cuatro apellidos canarios, un bisabuelo peninsular y otro africano
/ref> According to the authors "the proportion of SSA ancestry we observed in Canary Islanders likely originated in the postconquest importation of enslaved African people.". This study reported the below Genomic Ancestry Proportions in Canary Islanders. Source: ''Genomic Ancestry Proportions (from ADMIXTURE, K-4)'' in Canary Islanders (Guillen-Guio et al. 2018)


Ancient Canarians

The Guanches are related to the indigenous Berbers. In 2017, the first genome-wide data from the Guanches confirmed a North African origin and that they were genetically most similar to ancient North African
Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...
peoples of the nearby North African mainland. It also showed that modern inhabitants of Gran Canaria carry an estimated 16%–31% Guanche autosomal ancestry.


Culture

Modern-day Canarian culture is Spanish, with some Guanche influences. Some of the Canarian traditional sports such as ''
lucha canaria Canarian Wrestling is a form of folk wrestling, originally from the Canary Islands, where it is known as . Description Wrestlers start in the middle of a sand circle, called . The aim is to make their opponent touch the sand with any part of th ...
'' ("Canarian fight"), '' juego del palo'' ("stick game") or ''
salto del pastor The shepherd's leap ( es, Salto del pastor) is a folk sport practised throughout the Canary Islands. History The origins of ''salto del pastor'' may date back to the Guanches, the aboriginal inhabitants of the islands prior to the Castilian c ...
'' ("shepherd's jump"), among others, have their roots in Guanche culture. Additionally, other traditions include Canarian pottery, words of Guanche origin in the Canarian speech and the rural consumption of '' guarapo gomero'' and '' gofio''. The inhabitants of La Gomera also retain an ancient way of communicating across deep ravines by means of a whistled speech called ''Silbo Gomero'', which can be heard up to away. This indigenous whistled language was invented by the Guanches, and was then adopted by the Spanish settlers in the 16th century after the Guanches were culturally assimilated into the population. The language was also formerly spoken on el Hierro, Tenerife and Gran Canaria The holidays celebrated in the Canary Islands are of international, national and regional or insular character. The official day of the autonomous community is Canary Islands Day on 30 May. The anniversary of the first session of the Parliament of the Canary Islands, based in the city of
Santa Cruz de Tenerife Santa Cruz de Tenerife, commonly abbreviated as Santa Cruz (), is a city, the capital of the island of Tenerife, Province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and capital of the Canary Islands. Santa Cruz has a population of 206,593 (2013) within its admi ...
, held on 30 May 1983, is commemorated with this day. The most famous festival of the Canary Islands is the carnival. The carnival is celebrated in all the islands and all its municipalities, perhaps the two busiest being those of the two Canarian capitals; the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (''Tourist Festival of International Interest'') and the
Carnival of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria The Carnival of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is one of the most famous carnivals of Spain. The event is celebrated every year in the month of February in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Events The events include the Gala of the Queen and the Gala ...
. It is celebrated on the streets between the months of February and March. But the rest of the islands of the archipelago have their carnivals with their own traditions among which stand out: The Festival of the Carneros of El Hierro, the Festival of the Diabletes of Teguise in
Lanzarote Lanzarote (, , ) is a Spanish island, the easternmost of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean. It is located approximately off the north coast of Africa and from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering , Lanzarote is the fourth-largest of the i ...
, Los Indianos de La Palma, the Carnival of San Sebastián de La Gomera and the Carnival of Puerto del Rosario in
Fuerteventura Fuerteventura () is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the North Africa region, and politically part of Spain. It is located away from the northwestern coast of Africa. The island was declared a biosphere reserve by UNES ...
. The strong influence of Latin America in Canarian culture is due to the constant emigration and return over the centuries of Canarians to that continent, chiefly to Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Venezuela. To a lesser extent, they also went to the US states of Louisiana (mostly the southern portion) and Texas (mostly in and around San Antonio), and some areas in eastern Mexico including
Nuevo León Nuevo León () is a state in the northeast region of Mexico. The state was named after the New Kingdom of León, an administrative territory from the Viceroyalty of New Spain, itself was named after the historic Spanish Kingdom of León. With a ...
and Veracruz.


Religion


Catholic Church

The majority of native Canary Islanders are Roman Catholic with various smaller foreign-born populations of other
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
beliefs such as
Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
from northern Europe. The appearance of the Virgin of Candelaria (Patron of Canary Islands) was credited with moving the Canary Islands toward Christianity. Two Catholic saints were born in the Canary Islands: Peter of Saint Joseph de Betancur and José de Anchieta. Both born on the island of Tenerife, they were respectively missionaries in
Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...
and Brazil. The Canary Islands are divided into two Catholic dioceses, each governed by a bishop: * Diócesis Canariense: Includes the islands of the Eastern Province: Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. Its capital was San Marcial El Rubicón (1404) and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (1483–present). There was a previous bishopric which was based in Telde, but it was later abolished. * Diócesis Nivariense: Includes the islands of the western province: Tenerife, La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro. Its capital is San Cristóbal de La Laguna (1819–present).


Other religions

Around 5 percent of Canarians belong to a minority religion. Separate from the overwhelming Christian majority are a minority of Muslims who are usually foreign-born.Un 5% de canarios profesa una religión minoritaria
/ref> At present, there are in the Canary Islands a figure of approximately 70,000 Muslims and 40 mosques and places of worship throughout the archipelago. Among the followers of
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
, the
Islamic Federation of the Canary Islands The Islamic Federation of the Canary Islands (in Spanish: ''Federación Islámica de Canarias'') is a Muslim religious organization that brings together associations and Islamic religious communities around the Canary Islands. Its headquarters is ...
exists to represent the Islamic community in the Canary Islands as well as to provide practical support to members of the Islamic community.


Statistics

The distribution of beliefs in 2012 according to the CIS Barometer Autonomy was as follows: *Catholic 84.9% *Atheist/Agnostic/Unbeliever 12.3% *Other religions 1.7% Among the believers 38.7% go to religious services frequently.


Canarian diaspora

Historically, the Canary Islands have served as a hub between Spain and the Americas; favoured by that circumstance, large groups of Canary islanders have emigrated and settled all over the New World as early as the 15th century, mainly in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Venezuela and Uruguay.


Demographics

The Canarian population includes long-tenured and new waves of mainland Spanish immigrants, including Andalucians, Galicians,
Castilians Castilians (Spanish: ''castellanos'') are those people who live in certain former areas of the historical Kingdom of Castile, but the region's exact limits are disputed. A broader definition is to consider as Castilians the population belonging ...
, Catalans,
Basques The Basques ( or ; eu, euskaldunak ; es, vascos ; french: basques ) are a Southwestern European ethnic group, characterised by the Basque language, a common culture and shared genetic ancestry to the ancient Vascones and Aquitanians. Bas ...
and Asturians of Spain; old settlers of Portuguese, Italian, the Dutch or Flemish, British, and
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
origin, as well as recent foreign-born arrivals. In 2019 the total population was 2,153,389, of which 72.1% were native Canary Islanders. A total of 80.6%, or 1,735,457, were born in Spain and 19.4%, or 417,932, were born outside the country. Of these, the majority are from the Americas, mainly from Venezuela (66,573) and Cuba (41,792) and
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
(31,368). There are 38,768 people from Africa, the majority from Morocco (24,268).


Canarian identity

According to a 2012 study by the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas, when asked about national identity, the majority of respondents from the Canary Islands (49.3%) consider themselves Spanish and Canarian in equal measures, followed by 37.1% who consider themselves more Canarian than Spanish. Only 6.1% of the respondents consider themselves only Canarian.


Notable Canarians

* Wenceslao Benítez Inglott, navy officer, scientist, and engineer. * Javier Bardem, actor * José de Anchieta, Jesuit priest, saint and missionary in Brazil. *
Rosana Arbelo Rosana Arbelo (; full name Rosana Arbelo Gopar; born October 24, 1963), is a Spanish singer and composer. In the Spanish-speaking world, she is known professionally as simply Rosana. She was born on the island of Lanzarote in the Canary Islan ...
, singer *
Mary of Jesus de León y Delgado Mary of Jesus de León y Delgado ( es, Sor María de Jesús), was a Spanish Dominican lay sister, mystic and visionary, known popularly as "La Siervita" (the Little Servant). She lived a life which was austere and simple, and many miracles wer ...
, Dominican
lay Sister Lay brother is a largely extinct term referring to religious brothers, particularly in the Catholic Church, who focused upon manual service and secular matters, and were distinguished from choir monks or friars in that they did not pray in choir, ...
and mystic. *
Amaro Pargo Amaro Rodríguez-Felipe y Tejera Machado (3 May 16784 October 1747), better known as Amaro Pargo (), was a famous Spanish Privateer, corsair. He was one of the most renowned corsairs in Spain of the Golden Age of Piracy. He was noted for his ...
, one of the most famous corsairs of the golden age of piracy. *
Rafael Arozarena Rafael Arozarena (April 4, 1923 – September 30, 2009) was a Spanish poet and novelist, born in Tenerife, Canary Islands. He studied medicine and after that he started writing books, because writing was what he liked the most and what he usually ...
, writer *
Carolina Bang Carolina Herrera Bang (born 21 September 1985), professionally known as Carolina Bang, is a Spanish actress and producer. She is the best known to wider audience for her roles in Álex de la Iglesia's films ''The Last Circus'' (2010), ''As Luck W ...
, actress *
Bencomo Bencomo (; 1438 – 1495) was the penultimate ''mencey'' or king of Taoro, a Guanche ''menceyato'' on the island of Tenerife. He fought in the First Battle of Acentejo, a victory for the Guanches against the invading Castilians, after having refu ...
, pre-Hispanic King *
Beneharo Beneharo was a Guanches, Guanche king of Menceyato de Anaga on the island of Tenerife. Beneharo made peace in 1492 with Lope de Salazar, who had been sent by the governor of Gran Canaria Francisco Maldonado. After a slave raid shortly after again ...
, pre-Hispanic King * Agustín de Betancourt y Molina, engineer, Russian General * Peter of Saint Joseph Betancur, saint and missionary in
Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...
. *
Joseph of Anchieta José de Anchieta y Díaz de Clavijo (Joseph of Anchieta) (19 March 1534 – 9 June 1597) was a Spanish Jesuit missionary to the Portuguese colony of Brazil in the second half of the 16th century. A highly influential figure in Brazil's ...
, saint and missionary in Brazil. * Manolo Blahnik, fashion designer *
José Comas Quesada José Comas Quesada (3 February 1928 – 14 January 1993) was a Canarian painter born in the Puerto de la Luz, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. He is considered one of the greatest exponents of watercolour painting, both in the Canaries and Spain, of ...
, painter * Óscar Domínguez, painter *
Ana Guerra Ana Alicia Guerra Morales (born 18 February 1994), better known as Ana Guerra, is a Spanish singer. She rose to prominence when she took part in series nine of the reality television talent competition ''Operación Triunfo'', where she finishe ...
, singer * Agoney, singer *
Doramas Doramas (also spelled Doramos) was a 15th-century indigenous warrior of the Canary Islands who was a member of the resistance on the island of Gran Canaria. He fought against an invasion by the Crown of Castile in the late 15th century which ...
, pre-Hispanic warrior * José Doreste, sailor, yacht racer and Olympic champion *
Luis Doreste Luis Doreste Blanco (born 7 March 1961 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas) is a Spanish sailor who won gold medal both in the 1984 Summer Olympics (470 (dinghy), 470 class), and in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona (Flying Dutch ...
, sailor, yacht racer and world champion and Olympic champion *
Ruslan Ela Ruslan may refer to: * ''Ruslan'' (film), a 2009 film starring Steven Segal * Ruslan (given name), male name used mainly in Slavic countries, with list of people * Antonov An-124 ''Ruslan'', large Soviet cargo aircraft, later built in Ukraine and ...
, soccer player *
Nicolás Estévanez Nicolás Estévanez Murphy (17 February 1838 – 19 August 1914) was a Spanish military officer, politician, essayist and poet. A federal republican, he briefly served as civil governor of Madrid and as Minister of War in the wake of the proclam ...
, politician *
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (born 5 December 1967) is a Spanish film director, script writer, and producer. He directed ''Intacto'' and '' 28 Weeks Later'', the sequel to Danny Boyle's ''28 Days Later''. His film ''Esposados'' was nominated for the Aca ...
, filmmaker *
Pedro García Cabrera Pedro García Cabrera (19 August 1905 – 20 March 1981) was a Spanish writer and poet. A member of the Generation of '27, he is considered one of the greatest poets of the Canary Islands. Biography Early life Born in Vallehermoso, on the islan ...
, poet * Antonio González y González, scientist, chemist * Fernando Guanarteme, pre-Hispanic king *
Pedro Guerra Pedro Manuel Guerra Mansito (born 2 June 1966 in Güímar, Tenerife) is a Spanish singer-songwriter. Biography Guerra is the son of Pedro Guerra Cabrera, the first President of the Canarian Parliament. He began studying the guitar at the C ...
, music composer and singer *
Ángel Guimerá Angel is a given name meaning "angel", " messenger". In the English-speaking world Angel is used for both boys and girls. From the medieval Latin masculine name ''Angelus'', which was derived from the name of the heavenly creature (itself derived ...
, writer *
Emeterio Gutiérrez Albelo Emeterio Gutiérrez Albelo (Icod de los Vinos, Tenerife, Canary Islands, August 20, 1905 - Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, August 6, 1969) was a Spanish poet and participated in the Generación del 27. His father, Emeterio Gutiérrez Lópe ...
, poet * Nancy Fabiola Herrera, mezzo-soprano opera singer * K-Narias, reggaeton pop duo * Alfredo Kraus, opera singer *
Fernando León y Castillo Fernando León y Castillo, Marqués del Muni (Telde, Canary Islands, 1842 - Biarritz, France, 1918) was a Spanish politician and diplomat, he decided on an intervention of Spain and North Africa. He went to Madrid and collaborated in liberal pu ...
, politician *
Juan Fernando López Aguilar Juan Fernando López Aguilar (born 10 June 1961) is a Spanish jurist and politician of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) who has been serving as a member of the European Parliament since 2009. He served as Minister of Justice in the gov ...
, politician and jurist, former Minister of Justice * Domingo López Torres, painter, writer, poet and
Marxist Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
revolutionary * Maninidra, pre-Hispanic warrior *
César Manrique César Manrique Cabrera ( or ) (24 April 1919 – 25 September 1992) was a Spanish artist, sculptor, architect and nature activist from Lanzarote. Early life Manrique was born in Arrecife, Lanzarote, one of the Canary Islands. His father G ...
, artist * Cristo Marrero Henríquez, professional
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
* Manolo Millares, painter *
Francisco de Miranda Sebastián Francisco de Miranda y Rodríguez de Espinoza (28 March 1750 – 14 July 1816), commonly known as Francisco de Miranda (), was a Venezuelan military leader and revolutionary. Although his own plans for the independence of the Spani ...
, Venezuelan general, politician and precursor of South America independence * Manuel Mora Morales, writer and filmmaker * Juan Negrín, politician * Leopoldo O'Donnell, General and statesman * Frances Ondiviela, telenovela actress, former Miss Spain and model * María Orán, soprano *
Benito Pérez Galdós Benito Pérez Galdós (May 10, 1843 – January 4, 1920) was a Spanish Spanish Realist literature, realist novelist. He was the leading literary figure in 19th-century Spain, and some scholars consider him second only to Miguel de Cervantes ...
, writer *
Domingo Pérez Minik Domingo Pérez Minik ( Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 1903–1989), was a Spanish writer. He was one of the personalities in Spanish critical literature of the 20th century. He initiated his literary activity on Tenerife's review '' Hespérides'' and c ...
, writer * Narciso Rodriguez, American fashion designer born to Cuban parents with Canarian origins *
Sergio Rodríguez Sergio Rodríguez Gómez (; born 12 June 1986) is a Spanish professional basketball player for Real Madrid of the Spanish Liga ACB and the EuroLeague. Standing at , he plays at the point guard position. Rodriguez, nicknamed "El Chacho", won ...
,
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
basketball player * Pedro, professional
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
*
Aythami Ruano Aythami Ruano (born 18 June 1977) is a Spanish judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【 ...
, judoka *
Jerónimo Saavedra Jerónimo Saavedra Acevedo (born 3 July 1936 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria) is a Spanish politician. He served as President of the Canary Islands twice from 1982 to 1987, and again from 1991 to 1993. Biography In 1972 he joined the Spanish So ...
, politician, mayor of Las Palmas and two times president of Canaries * Victoria Sanchez, actress in American and Canadian movies and TV series * David Silva, football player * Carla Suárez Navarro, tennis player * Tanausu, pre-Hispanic King of Aceró *
Tinguaro Tinguaro (or Chimechia) (died December 1495) was a Guanche ''sigoñe'' (warrior) of Tenerife, also known as Achimenchia Tinguaro. He was in charge of the area known as Acentejo. Half-brother of the ''mencey'' (king) Bencomo, Tinguaro led the Guan ...
, pre-Hispanic warrior General *
Goya Toledo Gregoria Micaela Toledo Machín (born 24 September 1969 in Arrecife, Lanzarote), professionally known as Goya Toledo, is a Spanish actress and model. She has appeared in ''Amores Perros'', '' Killing Words,'' and ''13 Roses''. Before venturing ...
, actress and model *
Juan Carlos Valerón Juan Carlos Valerón Santana (born 17 June 1975) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as an attacking midfielder, currently a manager. Over 15 seasons, he amassed La Liga totals of 390 matches and 29 goals in representation of Mallorca, ...
, football player *
Alberto Vázquez-Figueroa Alberto Vázquez-Figueroa (born 11 October 1936 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands) is a Spanish novelist, inventor and industrialist. His novels have sold over 25 million copies worldwide. He is the owner of A.V.F.S.L, a desalinization co ...
, writer *
José Vélez José Velázquez Jiménez (born 15 November 1951 in Telde, Gran Canaria), better known by his stage name José Vélez (), is a Spanish singer. In the late 1960s, a music teacher from the Organización Juvenil Española (Spanish Youth Organisa ...
, singer * Juan Verde Suárez, politician * José Viera y Clavijo, historian *
Eduardo Westerdahl Eduardo Westerdahl (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, 1902 - ibidem, 1983) was a Spanish painter, art critic and writer, and a member of the Surrealist Movement. Biographical notes Westerdahl was born of a Catalan mother and Swedish father ...
, painter, art critic and writer, member of the Surrealist movement


See also

* Berberism *
Canarian dialect Canarian Spanish (Spanish terms in descending order of frequency: , , , or ) is a variant of standard Spanish spoken in the Canary Islands by the Canary Islanders. The variant is similar to the Andalusian Spanish variety spoken in Western Andal ...
* Cubans * Guanche language * Isleños *
Nationalities in Spain Spain is a diverse country integrated by contrasting entities with varying economic and social structures, languages, and historical, political and cultural traditions. According to the current Spanish constitution, the Spanish nation is the ...
* White Puerto Ricans * White Dominicans (Dominican Republic)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Canarian people Ethnic groups in North Africa Ethnic groups in Spain History of North Africa Romance peoples