Afro-Peruvian Culture An Integral Part of Peru

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As with so many areas in the world, a great number of Africans were brought to Peru, remained and became part of the culture. The first to arrive came in with the Spanish conquistadors. They not only fought with the Spanish, they performed a number of jobs, both skilled and unskilled. In 1525, they returned to Peru to settle here permanently.

At first, they tended to be intermediaries between the Spanish and the indigenous populations. However, as those two cultures began to mix, creating a mestizo population, the Afro-Peruvians were pushed down to a lower level of society, being replaced by the mestizos.

Although in the beginning, the Afro-Peruvians worked a lot as artisans, they were supplanted in this area as well. Following the early part of the colonial period, they were to end up working more on plantations where sugar, rice or cotton were grown.

During the slave trade, up until the middle of the 19th century, many slaves were brought into Peru. Slavery was abolished in Peru in 1856 and all Afro-Peruvians were declared to be free. As was often the case in the United States, the freed slaves tended to take on the last name of their owners.

Today, most of the Afro-Peruvian neighborhoods can be found on the coast of Peru. The greatest numbers can be found in Lima, Callao, Ica, Nazca, Chincha and Caete, with a particular emphasis on Callao. There are also great numbers in Piura, Tumbes and Lambayeque in the north. The communities are often found in farming areas where mangos, rice and sugar are grown. In addition to these areas, there are also small pockets of Afro-Peruvians to be found in the Amazon.

According to unofficial estimates, Afro-Peruvians make up around 10 to 15% of the entire country's population. Afro-Peruvian Culture Day is celebrated on June 4. Despite their many contributions to the culture of the country, there is still a great deal of racism and inequality.

As with so many of the places in the world where Africans were brought as slaves, they have had a significant impact on the music and dancing in Peru. One instance of this is the development of the cajon. The Spanish banned drums during the colonial period because they feared that they could be used for communication as well as to put the people listening to them into a trance so they would not listen to the Christian dogma.

What were prohibited were the African's traditional instruments such as marimbas and drums with skins. The result was that the slaves substituted tables, chairs and wooden boxes for the drums. Over time, the box developed into the cajon, a large wooden box which is now one of Peru's national instruments.

The best way to really get a feel for this culture is to travel about 200 km south of Lima to Chincha. There are a few bus lines that can take you that way, such as Ormeno, and the trip will take about 3 hours. It's especially good if you can get there at the end of February for the Verano Negro Festival. Nearby El Carmen also has a lot to offer for experiencing more about this important part of Peruvian heritage.