| |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
| 4,700,000 27% of Chile's population | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Santiago, Viña del Mar, Valparaíso, Punta Arenas, Concepción, Osorno. | |
| Languages | |
| Chilean Spanish, Euskera (Basque), French | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholicism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Basque people, Basque diaspora, Spanish people, French people, Basque Argentine, Basque Mexican, Basque Uruguayan |
Many Basques arrived in Chile in the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and early 20th century from their homeland in northern Spain (see Basque Provinces) and parts of southwestern France, as conquistadors, soldiers, sailors, merchants, priests and labourers. Due to their traditional hard work and entrepreneurship, many of them rose to the top of the social scale and intermarried into the Chilean elites of Castilian descent, giving birth to the new Basque-Chilean aristocracy in Chile. This union is the basis of the Chilean elite of today. But also, they immensely contributed to the ethnic make up of the bulk of the Chilean population. The Basque settlers also intermarried into the Mestizo and Castizo population of central Chile in the middle of the colonial period to form the large Criollo population that exists in Chile today; Castizos create modern middle and lower classes. Many years after the first waves of settlers, thousands of Basque refugees fleeing Spanish Civil War in 1939 also settled and have many descendants in the country and have even intermarried with Spanish ethnic groups other than Castilians, and other European ethnic groups. An estimated 1.6 million (10%) to 5 million (30%) Chileans have a surname (one or both) of Basque origin. This figure is to the least as the number of Basque descendence is great and plentiful. Due to Basque migration, Chile has a higher number of people of Basque descent than the Basque Country itself. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Miguel de Unamuno once said: "There are at least two things that clearly can be attributed to the Basques: the Society of Jesus and the Republic of Chile." [9]
The Basque presence in Chile began in the Conquista period, for in the armies of the first colonizers came an important number of soldiers from the Basque Provinces and from Navarra. In the 16th century, of the 157 Peninsular families that settled in Chile, 39 had Basque surnames. This number progressively grew, as reflected in the number of governors of Basque origin.
Forms a regional immigration corridor between Spain and Chile, one that is large, visible, and continues over time. Basque immigration can be divided into historical periods: discovery, foundation, and colonial period; the wave of immigration of the 18th century; and the recent immigrants (19th and 20th centuries).
During the 18th century, the country experimented a mass immigration coming from the Basque provinces and Navarre, by the end of the 18th century represents 30% of the Chilean population. [10] This raised the Basques to being the most important regional group in the population, displacing the natives and descendants of those born in New Castile, Old Castile, and Andalucía. These immigrant families initially dedicated themselves to their preferred form of business, and in successive years produced many alliances with families of Castilian origin possessing lands and titles, giving birth to a new social group known in Chilean history as the Castilian-Basque aristocracy; others integrated with the castizo middle class.
In the second half of the 19th century came a new wave of Basque immigration, this time as much from the Spanish regions as the French. This migratory flood are extended until the end of the Spanish Civil War.
A list of well known Chileans of Basque descendence is too great to name but the following shows a short list of some.
Chile's 2017 census reported a population of 17,574,003 people. Its rate of population growth has been decreasing since 1990, due to a declining birth rate. By 2050 the population is expected to reach approximately 20.2 million people, at which point it is projected to either stagnate or begin declining. About 85% of the country's population lives in urban areas, with 40% living in Greater Santiago alone. The largest agglomerations according to the 2002 census are Greater Santiago with 5.6 million people, Greater Concepción with 861,000 and Greater Valparaíso with 824,000.
The Basque diaspora is the name given to describe people of Basque origin living outside their traditional homeland on the borders between Spain and France. Many Basques have left the Basque Country for other parts of the globe for economic and political reasons, with a substantial population in Chile and Colombia.
Francisca Xaviera Eudoxia Rudecinda Carmen de los Dolores de la Carrera y Verdugo, better known as Javiera Carrera, was a Chilean independence activist. Together with her brothers José Miguel, Juan José and Luis, she was one of the leading figures of the early Chilean struggle for independence during the period known as the Patria Vieja. She is credited with having sewn the first national flag of Chile and is considered to be the "Mother of Chile".
The Allende family is a Chilean family of Spanish descent. They became well known during the 19th century and are based in Santiago. They have played a very significant role in Chilean politics.
Chileans are an ethnic group and nation native to the country of Chile and its neighboring insular territories. Most Chileans share a common culture, history, ancestry and language. The overwhelming majority of Chileans are the product of varying degrees of admixture between European ethnic groups with peoples indigenous to Chile's modern territory. Chile is a multilingual and multicultural society, but an overwhelming majority of Chileans have Spanish as their first language and either are Christians or have a Christian cultural background.
Immigration to Chile has contributed to the demographics and the history of this South American nation. Chile is a country whose inhabitants are mainly of Iberian, mostly of Andalusian and Basque origin, and Native American, mostly descended from Mapuche peoples. A moderate numbers of European immigrants settled in Chile during the 19th and 20th centuries, mainly Spanish, as well as Germans, British, French, Southern Slavs, and Italians who have made additional contributions to the racial complex of Chile. However, this immigration was never in a large scale, contrasting with mass migrations that characterized Argentina, Uruguay and southern Brazil, and therefore, anthropologically, its impact with lesser consequence. At the same time, some separate cultural aspects, such as German cakes, British afternoon tea, and Italian pasta, were preserved. The fusion is also visible in the architecture of Chilean cities. This intermarriage and mixture of cultures and races have shaped the present society and culture of Chile.
Commodore Arturo Merino Benítez, was an aviator with rank of Commodore, and the founder of both the Chilean Air Force (1930) and LAN Chile (1929) the national airline. Known as the “Father of Chilean Aeronautics.” Chile's largest airport was named in his honour, Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport. His parents were Pedro Merino Feliú and Clorinda Benítez Labbé. He was considered a close ally of Chilean socialist President Salvador Allende. He died from a stroke at age 82, his remains are at the Cementerio General de Santiago.
Spanish Chileans refer more often to Chileans of post-independence Spanish immigrant descent, as they have retained a Spanish cultural identity. People of pre-independence Spanish descent are usually not considered Spanish Chileans even though they form a large majority of the Chilean population and have Spanish surnames and ancestry. This is because they rejected Spanish identity for the emergent Chilean one on the eve of national independence.
The president of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile is the highest authority of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile. The office was established in 1811 by the First National Congress of Chile.
The Larraín family is an influential Chilean family of Basque origin. Their members include prominent aristocratic politicians and businessmen. The Larrain family first arrived in Chile more than 450 years ago, and they have been part of Chile's history ever since. The Larrain family form part of a group of families commonly referred to as the 'double-RRs', surnames which include two RRs.
Juan Guzmán Cruchaga was a Chilean poet and diplomat. He won the Chilean National Prize for Literature in 1962. Guzman Cruchaga was of Basque descent. He was the son of Juan José Guzmán Guzmán and Amelia Cruchaga Aspillaga. He attended the colegio de San Ignacio from 1905, finishing his humanities subjects in 1912. In 1913 he enrolled into the Faculty of Law of Universidad de Chile, quitting during his third year there.
Fernando José Larraín de Toro is a Chilean comedian and film/television actor. He is of Basque descent.
María Eugenia Larraín Calderón, known as KenitaLarraín, is a Chilean model and socialite.
Paz Eufrasia Yrarrázaval Donoso was a Chilean actress, best known for her work in television series during the 1980s and 1990s. Her credits included Mi nombre es Lara, La madrastra and La torre 10.
Olga Maturana Espinosa was a Chilean politician born in Santiago. Maturana worked as Councillor of Pichilemu in 1950, and became the first female Mayor of Pichilemu in 1951.
The Spanish diaspora consists of Spanish people and their descendants who emigrated from Spain. In the Americas, term most often refers to residents with Spanish nationality; this is in contrast to "Hispanic" which is usually used to describe Spanish-speaking populations in general. The diaspora is concentrated in places that were part of the Spanish Empire. Countries with sizeable populations are Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, and, to a lesser extent, Brazil, Belize, Haiti, United States, Canada, the Philippines and wider Europe.
General elections were held in Chile on 19 November 2017 to elect the president, all 155 members of the Chamber of Deputies, 23 of the 43 members of the Senate and 278 members of regional boards. All elected members would serve a four-year term, aside from the senators would serve for eight years.
In Chile the Castilian–Basque aristocracy formed the social and political elite of the country after gaining independence in the early 19th century. Despite the abolition of noble titles in 1817 and the mayorazgo inheritance institution in 1852, the social status of this group remained largely unaffected.
The following is a list of events in the year 2023 in Chile.
