Haitian People - Race

Race

90-95% Percent of Haitians are of African descent. 80-85% of these are of African descent and other racial make-up. Sacatras, also known in Creole as ‘’brin’’, are heavily of African descent. They have a dark brown skin complexion and heavy African features. ‘’Griffes’’ are the offspring of ‘’Mulâtres’’ and ‘’Noirs’’.They may be marked by brown or chestnut skin color lighter than that of a ‘’Sacatra’’. They may have African features that may have been smoothed out a little. ‘’Griffes’’ are known in common Creole as ‘’Marron’’. During colonial times when races first began intermixing in ‘’Saint-Domingue’’ labels where given by exact genetic make-up but in modern Haiti many mixed raced people intermixed over generations so the exact genetic make-up of a person is often hard to keep track of. Racial labeling is often designated by skin color and hair type. 20-30% of Haiti’s population is of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. The majority of this population is of mixed race, these Haitians have heavier European features. Racial groups that carry such features in Haiti are: ‘’Mulâtres’’ (‘’Milâte’’ in Creole), ‘’grimauds’’, ‘’jaunes’’ and ‘’roses’’. ‘’Mulâtres’’ vary in skin color. The defining features of a ‘’Mulâtre’’ is his or her loosely coiled or straight hair and their fair skin complexion (although a dark skinned person who has loosely coiled or straight hair may also be called milâte). ‘’Grimauds’’ are solely marked by their fair skin while ‘’jaunes’’ have a fairer complexion than the ‘’grimauds’’. ‘’Roses’’ have the fairest complexion of all people of African descent and look mostly European. The only thing that separates ‘’grimauds’’, ‘’jaunes’’ and ‘’roses’’ from being ‘’mulâtre’’ is that they do not have loosely coiled nor straight hair. Another much smaller group are the ‘’marabouts’’ and their descendants. ‘’marabouts’’ are the descendants of African maroons and Taino Indians. Their descendants may also have European blood. They are marked by Dark skin and long black loosely coiled or straight hair as well as certain facial features.

• Blanc adj./n. A white person (this term is also used on a non racial basis to refer to foreigners)
• Brun adj. to have a brown skin complexion
• Grimaud adj./n. a faire skinned
• Jaune adj. to be “yellow skinned” (fairer than a grimaud)
• Marabout n. a person of mixed African and Taino descent or African, European and Taino descent (typically dark or brown skinned with loosely coiled or straight hair)
• Marron adj. to have a brown or chestnut skin complexion
• Mulâtre n. a faire skinned Negro who has loosely coiled or straight hair
• Nègre n. A black person
• Négresse n. a black female
• Noir n. A black person and all mixes of black
• Rose adj. to be “pink skinned” (fairer than a jaune and very faire in complexion)