Brazil

Jan Fiola

The diversity of Brazil's population is reflected in 2000 census data. Whites made up a majority of the population (53.7%). African descendants made up 44.7% of the population, including 38.5% who defined themselves as mulattoes (mixed White and Black) and 6.2% who defined themselves as Black. The population of Japanese, Arabs, and Amerindians made up 0.9% of the total, and another 0.7% of the population was unspecified. This entry looks briefly at indigenous people in Brazil, a nation with an estimated 2007 population of 189.3 million, then focuses on the impact of African slaves and their descendants on the social fabric of Brazil. There are over 200 indigenous groups in Brazil, with varied histories, languages, and cultures. They do share in common that most of the indigenous in the Amazon are often regarded as obstacles to economic development, including logging, ranching, and mining. State policies have varied from supplying communities ...

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