White Bolivians or European Bolivians are

Bolivian people Bolivians ( es, Bolivianos) are people identified with the country of Bolivia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Bolivians, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

whose ancestry lies within the continent of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, most notably

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, and to a lesser extent,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. Bolivian people of European ancestry mostly descend from people who arrived over the centuries from

, beginning five hundred years ago. European Bolivians are a minority ethnic group in Bolivia, accounting for 5% of the country's population. An additional 68% of the population is mestizo, having mixed European and indigenous ancestry.

History

Compared to the

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

population, considerably fewer white and

mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...

Bolivians live in poverty. Conceptions of racial boundaries in Bolivia may be fluid and perceptions of race may be tied to socioeconomic status, with the possibility of a person achieving "whitening" via economic advancement. Differences in language, educational status, and employment status may also reinforce perceptions of what constitutes a person as "white", "mestizo", or "Indigenous".

Numbers

Census data

In the official census in 1900, people who self-identified as "Blanco" (white) composed 12.72% or 231,088 of the total population. This was the last time data on race was collected. There were 529 Italians, 420 Spaniards, 295 Germans, 279 French, 177 Austrians, 141 English and 23 Belgians living in Bolivia.

Surveys

According to a 2014 survey by

Ipsos Ipsos Group S.A. () (an acronym of ) is a multinational market research and consulting firm with headquarters in Paris, France. The company was founded in 1975 by Didier Truchot, Chairman of the company, and has been publicly traded on the Pa ...

, 3 percent of people questioned said they were white.

Geographic distribution

Geographically, the white and mixed-race populations of Bolivia tend to be centered in the country's eastern lowlands. The white and mixed-race Bolivians in this region are relatively affluent compared to poorer, predominantly Indigenous regions of Bolivia.

1900 census

According to the 1900 official Bolivian census, a person who self-identified as “Blanca” white was a descendant of a foreigner, principally a Spaniard. Overall there are

Italians , flag = , flag_caption = The national flag of Italy , population = , regions = Italy 55,551,000 , region1 = Brazil , pop1 = 25–33 million , ref1 = , region2 ...

, Spanish,

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

and French. In total, they represented 12.7 percent of the total population with large populations in Cochabamba and Santa Cruz representing 36.8 percent combined.

Mennonites

In 1995, there were a total of 25 Mennonite colonies in Bolivia with a total population of 28,567. The most populous ones were ''Riva Palacios'' (5,488), Swift Current (2,602), ''Nueva Esperanza'' (2,455), ''Valle Esperanza'' (2,214) and ''Santa Rita'' (1,748). In 2002 there were 40 Mennonite colonies with a population of about 38,000 people. An outreach of

Conservative Mennonites Conservative Mennonites include numerous Conservative Anabaptist groups that identify with the theologically conservative element among Mennonite Anabaptist Christian fellowships, but who are not Old Order groups or mainline denominations. Con ...

can be found at ''La Estrella'', with others in progress. The total population was estimated at 60,000 by Lisa Wiltse in 2010. In 2012 there were 23,818 church members in congregations of

Russian Mennonites The Russian Mennonites (german: Russlandmennoniten it. "Russia Mennonites", i.e., Mennonites of or from the Russian Empire occasionally Ukrainian Mennonites) are a group of Mennonites who are descendants of Dutch people, Dutch Anabaptists wh ...

, indicating a total population of about 70,000. Another 1,170 Mennonites were in Spanish-speaking congregations. The number of colonies was 57 in 2011. In the

Santa Cruz Department Santa Cruz () is the largest of the nine constituent departments of Bolivia, occupying about one-third (33.74%) of the country's territory. With an area of , it is slightly smaller than Japan or the US state of Montana. It is located in the e ...

there is an important colony (70.000 inhabitants) of German-speaking

Mennonite Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radic ...

Culture

Caporales

Caporales The Caporales is a traditional Andean dance originated in Los Yungas of La Paz. Caporales were created and presented to the public for the first time in 1969 by the Estrada Pacheco brothers, who were inspired in the character of the 'Caporal' who ...

is a dance popular in the Andean region of Bolivia. It gained popularity in 1969 by the Estrada Pacheco brothers, inspired by the character of the 'Caporal' or "overseer" of which, historically black slaves, usually mixed race, wore boots and held a whip, the dance originates from the region of the Yungas in Bolivia. The dance has European elements especially with the costumes.

Politics

White Bolivians and mestizos have tended to favor the political opposition against the

Evo Morales Juan Evo Morales Ayma (; born 26 October 1959) is a Bolivian politician, trade union organizer, and former cocalero activist who served as the 65th president of Bolivia from 2006 to 2019. Widely regarded as the country's first president to co ...

administration.

Notable White Bolivians

* Ana María Ortiz - Bolivian Model * Romina Rocamonje - Bolivian model * Ronald Rivero - Bolivian football central defender * Fernando Saucedo - Bolivian footballer *

Carlos Lampe Carlos Emilio Lampe Porras (born March 17, 1987) is a Bolivian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Bolívar and the Bolivia national team. Club career During the 2010 season he was the first choice keeper for Universitar ...

- Bolivian footballer * Alejandro Chumacero - Bolivian politician * Alvaro Garcia Linera - Bolivian politician *

Samuel Doria Medina Samuel Doria Medina Auza (born 4 December 1958) is a politician in Bolivia and former business person. From 1987 until 2014 he was the President and main shareholder in SOBOCE. SOBOCE is the largest cement manufacturer in Bolivia. He is the lea ...

- Bolivian politician *

Jimena Antelo María Jimena Antelo Telchi (born 4 July 1972) is a Bolivian commercial engineer, journalist and television presenter. Early life and education Antelo was born on 4 July 1972 in the Santa Cruz de la Sierra. She began his school studies in 1978, g ...

- Bolivian journalist * Chris Syler - Bolivian singer-songwriter *

Lidia Gueiler Tejada Lidia Gueiler Tejada (28 August 1921 – 9 May 2011) was a Bolivian politician who served as the 56th president of Bolivia on an interim basis from 1979 to 1980. She was Bolivia's first female Head of State, and the second female republican He ...

- Bolivian politician

References and footnotes

{{White people Ethnic groups in Bolivia White Latin American