Castizo facts for kids

Castizo (ca-STEE-tzo) is a Spanish term for a person who is around 3/4 Caucasian and 1/4 Indigenous ancestry.

Castizos are mostly found in the Southern cone region of Latin America (especially Chile, Argentina and Brazil), Costa Rica, as well as parts of Northern and Western Mexico, many of the Canadian Metis (those of mixed French-Canadian and First Nations ancestry) and Mixed-Blood Americans (those who mixed of Anglo-American and Native Americans from the United States) are Castizos.

Castizos usually have more Caucasian traits, but many can have light features, but with heavy Native American features, while many can have a dark Native American-like pigmentation, but totally Caucasian features.

Famous Castizos include Johnny Depp, Gael Garcia Bernal, and Enrique Peña Nieto, it's unknown whether they are genetically Castizo, but based on their phenotype, they appear to be.

Images for kids

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  The child of a Spaniard (right) and a mestiza (middle) is a castiza. By Miguel Cabrera. (1763)

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  The child of a Spaniard (left) and a castiza woman is considered a Spaniard. (1799)

See also

In Spanish: Castizo (casta) para niños