Slavery in Brazil - Slave Identities

Slave Identities

In colonial Brazil, identity became a complex combination of race, skin color, and socioeconomic status because of the extensive diversity of the both the slave and free population. For example, in 1872 43% of the population was free mulattos and blacks. The fact that slavery was not synonymous with a particular skin color, as was the case in the United States at the same time, had important implications towards this complexity. There are four broad categories that show the general divisions among the identities of the slave and ex-slave populations: African-born slaves, African-born ex-slaves, Brazilian-born slaves, and Brazilian-born ex-slaves.