Afro Bolivian
Encyclopedia
Afro Bolivians are Bolivia
ns of Africa
n ancestry, and to historical or cultural elements in Bolivia
thought to emanate from this community. The term can refer to the combining of African and other cultural elements found in Bolivian society such as religion
, music
, language
, the arts
, and class
culture.
The conditions that the slaves had to work in were horrible. In fact, the slaves working in the mines survived no more than 6 months. First off, Potosí is 14,000 feet in elevation, making it the highest city in the world. Naturally, the slaves were not used to working at such a high altitude. Also many of the lives of these Native and African workers fell short because of the toxic smelter fumes and the mercury vapors that they were inhaling while working the mines. Also, because the slaves had to work in the very dark mines for about four months, once they finally left these dark mines, they had to be blindfolded to protect their eyes from the sunlight, which they hadn’t seen in a long time.
Although it was a requirement for the Natives and Africans over 18 years of age to work in the mines for 12 back-breaking hours, younger children were still put to work in the mines. These children worked fewer hours; however, they were still exposed to the extremely harsh conditions, including asbestos, toxic gases, cave-ins, and explosions. It is estimated that as many as eight million Africans and Natives died from working in the harsh conditions of the mines from a time span of 1545, when the Spaniards first put the Natives to work, until 1825, the end of the colonial period. This colonial period is certainly the worst human rights abuse of Europe’s colonial era.
The Spaniards' way of fortifying the slaves against the harsh conditions in the mines was to chew coca leaves. Coca, which would eventually become a very important element of Bolivian culture, is an agricultural product that is consumed in Bolivia, but can also be processed into cocaine. By chewing the coca leaves, the slaves numbed their senses to the cold, as well as preventing the feeling of hunger and alleviating altitude sickness.
or La Saya. Saya, which is growing in popularity in Bolivia, is still very misunderstood. The reason for this lack of understanding of saya is because the interpretation of the instruments as well as the rhythm is very peculiar. It involves Andean instruments incorporated with African percussion. The primary instrument is the drum, which was passed on by their African ancestors, along with gourds, shakers, and even jingles bells that are attached to their clothing on the ankle area.
During the performance of saya, the Afro-Bolivians wear Aymara style clothing. The women wear a bright multi-colored blouse with ribbons, a multi-colored skirt called a “pollera”, with a “manta” (back cover) in their hand, and a bowler hat. The men on the other hand, wear a hat, feast shirt, an Aymara style slash around the waist, woolen thick cloth pants called “bayeta pants”, and sandals.
Every rhythm of Saya begins with the beating of a jingle bell by the Caporal (foreman) who guides the dance. This Caporal (also called capataz) guides the dancers with a cudgel (whip) in hand, decorated pants, and jingle bells near the ankles. The women, who have their own guide during this dance, sing while moving their hips, shaking their hands, as well as dialoguing with the men who play the bass drum and coancha.
It has been estimated that 25,000 Afro-Bolivians live in the Yungas. One thing we do know is that the Afro-Bolivians are proud of their culture and have fought very hard to preserve it. In fact, in the town of Mururata, the Afro-Bolivians managed to keep their original culture for a long time, and even have a direct descendant of an African King living there.Afro-bolivan spread to east in Cochabamba and Santa Cruz de la Sierra, But in Santa Cruz there is more Afro-Brazilian than Afro-Bolivian. Not only that, but they are also in the process of trying to put together African culture classes for the young people, in an attempt to maintain their African culture.
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
ns of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n ancestry, and to historical or cultural elements in Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
thought to emanate from this community. The term can refer to the combining of African and other cultural elements found in Bolivian society such as religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, language
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
, the arts
ARts
aRts, which stands for analog Real time synthesizer, is an audio framework that is no longer under development. It is best known for previously being used in KDE to simulate an analog synthesizer....
, and class
Social class
Social classes are economic or cultural arrangements of groups in society. Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political scientists, economists, anthropologists and social historians. In the social sciences, social class is often discussed in terms of 'social stratification'...
culture.
History of slavery in Bolivia
In 1544, the Spanish Conquistadors discovered the silver mines in a city now called Potosí, which is on the base of Cerro Rico (Rich Mountain) in Bolivia. Almost immediately, they began enslaving the natives as workers in the mines. However, the health of the natives working in the mines became very poor, which is why the Spanish began to look towards a new group for labor. By the beginning of the Seventeenth Century, the Spanish mine owners and barons began bringing in African slaves in high numbers to help work the mines with the natives who were still able.The conditions that the slaves had to work in were horrible. In fact, the slaves working in the mines survived no more than 6 months. First off, Potosí is 14,000 feet in elevation, making it the highest city in the world. Naturally, the slaves were not used to working at such a high altitude. Also many of the lives of these Native and African workers fell short because of the toxic smelter fumes and the mercury vapors that they were inhaling while working the mines. Also, because the slaves had to work in the very dark mines for about four months, once they finally left these dark mines, they had to be blindfolded to protect their eyes from the sunlight, which they hadn’t seen in a long time.
Although it was a requirement for the Natives and Africans over 18 years of age to work in the mines for 12 back-breaking hours, younger children were still put to work in the mines. These children worked fewer hours; however, they were still exposed to the extremely harsh conditions, including asbestos, toxic gases, cave-ins, and explosions. It is estimated that as many as eight million Africans and Natives died from working in the harsh conditions of the mines from a time span of 1545, when the Spaniards first put the Natives to work, until 1825, the end of the colonial period. This colonial period is certainly the worst human rights abuse of Europe’s colonial era.
The Spaniards' way of fortifying the slaves against the harsh conditions in the mines was to chew coca leaves. Coca, which would eventually become a very important element of Bolivian culture, is an agricultural product that is consumed in Bolivia, but can also be processed into cocaine. By chewing the coca leaves, the slaves numbed their senses to the cold, as well as preventing the feeling of hunger and alleviating altitude sickness.
The Yungas
After their emancipation in the 19th century, Afro-Bolivians would relocate to a place called the Yungas. The Yungas, which is not far north from the city of La Paz, is where most of the country’s coca is grown. In parts of the Yungas such as Coroico, Mururata, Chicaloma, Calacala - Coscoma, and Irupana are a large number of Bolivians of African heritage. Before the Bolivians relocated to the Yungas, it was a place mostly inhabited by Aymara Indians (Indigenous group that makes up about 25% of the indigenous population and along with the other indigenous group called the Quechua Indians make up the majority of the indigenous population) and mestizos(European and Native mixed people). It is believed that the Natives thought that darker skin was more attractive, which is why they were impressed with the skin of the Africans when they first began arriving to Bolivia. For this reason, it is no surprise that many of the Afro-Bolivians would intermarry with the Aymara, adopt many of their cultural elements such as their style of dressing, and even become an Aymara speaking subculture.Some black Indians with drums of African origin
Although these Afro-Bolivians were free, they still had a difficult battle in trying to maintain their culture. Many elements of their culture began to disappear, such as their feast, language, and spiritual sense to name a few. They had to fight very strongly against the colonial aggression and exclusion of their post-emancipation culture. One of the ways that they were able to hold onto this culture was through their music and dance.Saya music
The biggest African influence in Bolivian culture is Saya musicAfro-Bolivian Saya
The Afro-Bolivian Saya is an art form of traditional Andean and Afro-Bolivian music and dance originated in the Department of La Paz, Bolivia...
or La Saya. Saya, which is growing in popularity in Bolivia, is still very misunderstood. The reason for this lack of understanding of saya is because the interpretation of the instruments as well as the rhythm is very peculiar. It involves Andean instruments incorporated with African percussion. The primary instrument is the drum, which was passed on by their African ancestors, along with gourds, shakers, and even jingles bells that are attached to their clothing on the ankle area.
During the performance of saya, the Afro-Bolivians wear Aymara style clothing. The women wear a bright multi-colored blouse with ribbons, a multi-colored skirt called a “pollera”, with a “manta” (back cover) in their hand, and a bowler hat. The men on the other hand, wear a hat, feast shirt, an Aymara style slash around the waist, woolen thick cloth pants called “bayeta pants”, and sandals.
Every rhythm of Saya begins with the beating of a jingle bell by the Caporal (foreman) who guides the dance. This Caporal (also called capataz) guides the dancers with a cudgel (whip) in hand, decorated pants, and jingle bells near the ankles. The women, who have their own guide during this dance, sing while moving their hips, shaking their hands, as well as dialoguing with the men who play the bass drum and coancha.
Afro-Bolivians today
Even though Bolivia had the richest silver mine in the world in the 17th century, it is currently the 2nd poorest country in South America. The majority of the Bolivians lives in rural areas, are unable to acquire basic needs, and depend on farming for their survival. In fact, it was reported at Bolivia’s national referendum in 2004, that Afro-Bolivians (as well as the indigenous people) face discrimination, disadvantages in health, life expectancy, education, income, literacy, and work under brutal conditions.It has been estimated that 25,000 Afro-Bolivians live in the Yungas. One thing we do know is that the Afro-Bolivians are proud of their culture and have fought very hard to preserve it. In fact, in the town of Mururata, the Afro-Bolivians managed to keep their original culture for a long time, and even have a direct descendant of an African King living there.Afro-bolivan spread to east in Cochabamba and Santa Cruz de la Sierra, But in Santa Cruz there is more Afro-Brazilian than Afro-Bolivian. Not only that, but they are also in the process of trying to put together African culture classes for the young people, in an attempt to maintain their African culture.
Notable Afro Bolivians
- Gustavo PinedoGustavo PinedoGustavo Pinedo Zabala is a Bolivian footballer, who is currently playing for Blooming in the Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano....
, football player - Ramiro Ballivián, football player, currently playing for Club UniversitarioClub UniversitarioClub Deportivo Universitario San Francisco Xavier is a professional football team based in Sucre, Bolivia that competes in the Bolivian Primera División....
- Julio PinedoJulio PinedoJulio Pinedo is the ceremonial king of the Afro Bolivian people of the Nor Yungas province, crowned in 1992, thirty years after the death of the previous king, his ancestor Bonifacio Pinedo. His position gained official recognition in 2007 when he was sworn in by the prefect of La Paz.-References:...
, Afro Bolivian King - Bonifacio PinedoBonifacio PinedoBonifacio Pinedo, also known as the Marqués de Pinedo of Bolivia, was king of Bolivia and the last Afro Bolivian king. Born in the tropical regions of Yungas in Bolivia, his monarchy is one of the few traditional African monarchies that has survived to the present day...
, Afro Bolivian King - Melina Avendaño, Miss ChuquisacaChuquisaca DepartmentChuquisaca is a department of Bolivia located in the center south. It borders on the departments of Cochabamba, Tarija, Potosí, and Santa Cruz. The departmental capital is Sucre, which is also the constitutional capital of Bolivia.-Geography:...
- Augusto AndaverisAugusto AndaverisAugusto Andaveris Iriondo is a Bolivian football striker who currently plays for Club Aurora of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano....
, football player - Paola Menacho, actress
- Edhemir Rodríguez, football player, currently playing for Club Bamin Real PotosiClub Bamin Real PotosíClub Bamin Real Potosí is a Bolivian football club based in Potosí. Founded on 20 October 1941, it currently plays in Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano, holding home games at Estadio Victor Agustín Ugarte, with a 32,000-seat capacity.-History:...