Afro-Haitian facts for kids
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| c. 10,114,378 | |
| Languages | |
| French · Haitian Creole | |
| Religion | |
| Catholicism · Haitian Vodou | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Haitians · West/Central Africans · Afro-Argentines · Afro-Caribbeans · Afro-Chileans · Afro-Costa Ricans · Afro-Cubans · Afro-Dominicans (Dominican Republic) · Afro-Ecuadorians · Afro-Jamaicans · Afro-Latin Americans · Afro-Mexicans · Afro-Peruvians · Afro-Puerto Ricans · Afro-Trinidadians and Tobagonians · Afro-Uruguayans · Creoles · Louisiana Creoles · African-American people |
Afro-Haitians or Black Haitians, are Haitian people whose ancestors were Africans. Most Afro-Haitians are descended from West African slaves. The slaves were brought over to work in plantations, mainly for sugar canes.
The vast majority (about 90%) of Haitians are of African descent. Of them, about 25-30% are of mixed race or mulatto.
Origins
| Region descended from, 1535-1791 | Amount % |
|---|---|
| Senegambia (Wolof) | 6.5 |
| Sierra Leone (Zape) | 3.1 |
| Windward Coast | 1.1 |
| Gold Coast (Akan, Bran) | 4.3 |
| Bight of Benin (Yoruba, Aja, Terranova) | 24.7 |
| Bight of Biafra (Igbo, Kalabari) | 4.6 |
| West-central Africa (Kongo, Mbundu) | 46.1 |
| Southeast Africa | 3.3 |
| (Unknown) | 6.3 |
Haiti, just like in any region in the Americas, received slaves from all over West and Central Africa. Although Haitian slaves were from all over Africa, the most common were Kongos from the Congo region, and Ewe and Fon tribes of current-day Benin or Togo. There was also a lot of Igbo people from Nigeria.
Haitian Voodoo is obviously from the Fon people of Benin, when they came in large numbers as slaves to work in plantations as maids, farmers, and sugar cane cutters have kept their traditions strong and alive till this day after 300 years away from their original home.
The African influence can also be seen in the language Haitians use to speak; Haitian Creole is a French-based language with strong African influence in the phonetics, vocabulary, syntax, grammar, pronunciations. There are many words of African origin used in every day speech. Haitian food is mostly of African origin, including the names of the food. The music of Haiti is filled with African rhythms and instruments, the use of call and response as well as vocal African songs.
