Spanish Chileans refer more often to

Chileans 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 o ...

of post-independence

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

immigrant descent, as they have retained a Spanish cultural identity. People of pre-independence Spanish descent are typically not classified as 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.

History

The earliest European immigrants were Spanish colonisers who arrived in the 16th century. They came to form the majority of the population by the time of Chilean independence. They came mainly from Castile and

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

and formed the majority population. The

Amerindian In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...

population of central Chile was absorbed into the Spanish settler population in the beginning of the colonial period to form the large

mestizo ( , ; fem. , literally 'mixed person') is a term primarily used to denote people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturall ...

population that exists in Chile today; mestizos create modern middle and lower classes. In the 18th and 19th centuries, many

Basques The Basques ( or ; ; ; ) are a Southwestern European ethnic group, characterised by the Basque language, a Basque culture, common culture and shared genetic ancestry to the ancient Vascones and Aquitanians. Basques are indigenous peoples, ...

from both

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

came to

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

where they integrated into the existing elites of Castilian origin.Diariovasco.
/ref>entrevista al Presidente de la Cámara vasca.
Other

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an nationalities then followed and also became rich and fused with each other and the Basque-Castilian elite to create modern middle and upper classes. At the beginning of the Guano era in 1840s, one of Peru's most prosperous time periods, immigration from Spain greatly increased and the economy was booming and standard of living was high. This era ended in 1866 with the

Chincha Islands War The Chincha Islands War, also known as Spanish–South American War (), was a series of coastal and naval battles between Spain and its former colonies of Peru, Chile, Ecuador, and Bolivia from 1865 to 1879. The conflict began with Spain's seiz ...

wherein anti-Spanish sentiments in Peru also arose in Chile and in which Peru emerged victorious. In 1903, a fleet of 88 Canarian families—400 persons—arrived in

Budi Lake Budi Lake (, ) from the Mapudungun word ''Füzi'' which means salt, is a tidal brackish water lake located near the coast of La Araucanía Region, southern Chile. The lake is part of the boundaries between Saavedra and Teodoro Schmidt commune ...

, that currently have more than 1,000 descendants, as a response to the government's call to populate this region and signed contracts for the benefit of a private company. While many

Canarians Canary Islanders, or Canarians (), are the people of the Canary Islands, an autonomous community of Spain near the coast of Northwest Africa. The distinctive variety of the Spanish language spoken in the region is known as ''habla canaria'' (Ca ...

obeyed their servitude, some of those who disobeyed the provisions of repopulation tried to escape their servitude and were arrested, and the indigenous

Mapuche The Mapuche ( , ) also known as Araucanians are a group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging e ...

people took pity on the plight of these Canarians who were established on their former lands. The Mapuches welcomed them and joined their demonstrations in the so-called "revolt of the Canarians", and many Canarians integrated into Mapuche population to add the large mestizo population that exists in Chile.Archipiélago noticias. Canarios en Chile
(in Spanish: Canarians in Chile). Posted Luis León Barreto. Retrieved December 21, 2011, to 23:52 pm. In the 20th century, there was an influx of refugees of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

and Franco's regime.(see Winnipeg ship) They have kept their Spanish national identity and set up Spanish clubs throughout the country. The

Spanish culture The culture of Spain is influenced by its Western world, Western origin, its interaction with other cultures in Europe, its historically Catholic Church in Spain, Catholic religious tradition, and the varied national and regional identity in Sp ...

of the original settlers slowly evolved into Chilean folk culture, especially the

huaso A ''huaso'' () is a Chilean countryman and skilled horseman, similar to the United States, American cowboy, the Mexico, Mexican ''charro'' (and its northern equivalent, the ''vaquero''), the ''gaucho'' of Argentina, Uruguay and Rio Grande Do S ...

one, and at the time of independence had abandoned national affiliation with Spain.

Notable Spanish Chileans

Isabel Allende Isabel Angélica Allende Llona (; born 2 August 1942) is a Chilean-American writer. Allende, whose works sometimes contain aspects of the magical realism genre, is known for novels such as '' The House of the Spirits'' (''La casa de los espír ...

, writer *

Alejandro Amenábar Alejandro Fernando Amenábar Cantos (born 31 March 1972) is a Chilean-Spanish film director, screenwriter and composer. He has won nine Goya Awards—including Best Director for his 2001 film '' The Others''—and two European Film Awards amon ...

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

* Manuel Blanco Encalada, 1st (provisional)

President of Chile The president of Chile (), officially the president of the Republic of Chile (), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Chile. The president is responsible for both Government of Chile, government administration and s ...

(1826), Vice-Admiral in the

Chilean Navy The Chilean Navy () is the naval warfare service branch of the Chilean Armed Forces. It is under the Ministry of National Defense (Chile), Ministry of National Defense. Its headquarters are at Edificio Armada de Chile, Valparaiso. History Ori ...

* Matías Cousiño,

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...

magnate The term magnate, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or ot ...

and patriarch of the Cousiño family * Javiera Díaz de Valdés, actress * Karen Doggenweiler Lapuente, journalist, TV hostess *

Roberto Matta Roberto Sebastián Antonio Matta Echaurren (; November 11, 1911 – November 23, 2002), usually known simply as Matta, also as Sebastián Matta or Roberto Matta, was one of Chile's best-known Painting, painters and a seminal figure in 20th ...

abstract expressionist Abstract expressionism in the United States emerged as a distinct art movement in the aftermath of World War II and gained mainstream acceptance in the 1950s, a shift from the American social realism of the 1930s influenced by the Great Depressi ...

and

surrealist Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

* Jorge Montt, 12th

president of Chile The president of Chile (), officially the president of the Republic of Chile (), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Chile. The president is responsible for both Government of Chile, government administration and s ...

(1891–1896), vice-admiral of the Chilean navy * Carlos Pezoa Véliz, writer * José Piñera, businessman and politician *

Sebastián Piñera Miguel Juan Sebastián Piñera Echenique (; 1 December 1949 – 6 February 2024) was a Chilean businessman and politician who served as President of Chile from 2010 to 2014 and again from 2018 to 2022. The son of a Christian Democratic Party (C ...

, businessman and President of Chile (2010-2014 and 2018-2022) *

Arturo Prat Agustín Arturo Prat Chacón (; April 3, 1848 – May 21, 1879) was a Chilean Navy officer and lawyer. He was killed in the Battle of Iquique, during the War of the Pacific. During his career, Prat had taken part in several naval engagements, in ...

, Navy officer and national hero * Carlos Prats, Former Army Commander in Chief *

José Joaquín Prieto José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced very differently in each of the two languages: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , ...

, Army General and President of Chile (1831-1841) *

Germán Riesco Germán Riesco Errázuriz (; May 28, 1854 – December 8, 1916) was a Chilean political figure, and he served as President of Chile between 1901 and 1906. Early life He was born in Rancagua, the son of Mauricio Riesco, a Spanish people, Spani ...

, President of Chile (1901-1906) * Carolina Tohá, politician * José Tohá, politician * Leonor Varela, actress

List of Spanish cultural centres and other institutions in Chile

They have regional cultural centres in Santiago and other large cities. * 7ª. Cía. de Bomberos "Bomba España",

Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669. Once claimed by Bolivia follo ...

* Centro Español de Antofagasta * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia de Antofagasta * Centro Español,

Arica Arica ( ; ) is a commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The city is the ca ...

* Estadio Español de Chiguayante * Centro Español de

Chillán Chillán () is the capital List of cities in Chile, city of Ñuble Region, Diguillín Province, Chile, located about south of the country's capital, Santiago, near the center of the country. It has been the capital of the new Ñuble Region since ...

* Hogar Español de Chillán * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia de Chillán * Centro Español de Concepción * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia de Concepción * Colectividad Española,

Coquimbo Coquimbo is a port List of cities in Chile, city, Communes of Chile, commune and capital of the Elqui Province, located on the Pan-American Highway, in the Coquimbo Region of Chile. Coquimbo is situated in a valley south of La Serena, Chile, La S ...

* Corporación Unión Española de

Coyhaique Coyhaique (), also spelled Coihaique in Patagonia, is the Capital (political), capital List of cities in Chile, city of both the Coyhaique Province and the Aysén Region of Chile. Founded by settlers in 1929, it is a young city. Until the twentiet ...

* Centro Español de

Curicó Curicó () is a city located in Chile's central valley and serves as the capital of the Curicó Province, which is part of the Maule Region. Positioned between the provinces of Colchagua and Talca, the region stretches from the Pacific Ocean ...

* Club Deportivo Español de Curicó * Estadio Español de Curicó * Sociedad de Damas del Pilar de Curicó * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia de Curicó * Casino Español de

Iquique Iquique () is a port List of cities in Chile, city and Communes of Chile, commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Pampa del Tamarugal, which is part of the At ...

* Sociedad Española de Beneficencia,

* Sociedad Española de Beneficencia, Las Condes * Estadio Español de Linares * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia, Linares * Centro Español de Los Andes * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia, Los Andes * Centro Español de Los Ángeles * Club Deportivo Español de Osorno * Sociedad Española de SS.MM. de Osorno * Colectividad Valenciana de Chile Providencia * Instituto Chileno de Cultura Hispánica, Providencia * Centro Español de

Puerto Montt Puerto Montt (Mapuche: Meli Pulli) is a port city and commune in southern Chile, located at the northern end of the Reloncaví Sound in the Llanquihue Province, Los Lagos Region, 1,055 km to the south of the capital, Santiago. The commune ...

* Centro Español de Puerto Natales * Sociedad Española de

Punta Arenas Punta Arenas (, historically known as Sandy Point in English) is the capital List of cities in Chile, city of Chile's southernmost Regions of Chile, region, Magallanes Region, Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena. Although officially renamed as ...

* Centro Español de Rancagua * Corporación Club Español de Campo Reñaca- Viña * Centro Cultural Español

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

* Centro Español de San Fernando * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia, San Fernando * 10a. Cía. de Bomberos "Bomba España",

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

Camara Oficial Española de Comercio de Chile

Centro Navarro de Chile
Santiago * Círculo de Profesionales Hispánicos, Santiago * Círculo Español, Santiago * Colectividad Andaluza de Chile, Santiago * Colectividad Asturiana de Chile, Santiago
Colectividad Castellano-Leonesa de Chile
Santiago * Colectividad Madrileña de Chile, Santiago * Comité de Damas de A.I.E.CH., Santiago * Confederación de Bombas Españolas en Chile, Santiago * Coolectividad Aragonesa de Chile, Santiago * Estadio Español de Las Condes * Hogar Español, Santiago * Lar Gallego, Santiago * Sociedad Benéfica La Rioja, Santiago * Sociedad Española de Socorros Mutuos y Beneficencia, Santiago *

Unión Española Club Unión Española S.A.D.P. is a professional football club based in the Independencia neighborhood, commune of Santiago, Chile currently participating in the Primera División de Chile. History Foundation, Amateur Era and First seasons ...

, Santiago * Agrupación Winnipeg, Santiago * Centre Català de Santiago de Xile, Santiago * Centro Vasco, Santiago * 5a. Cía de Bomberos Bomba España de

Talca Talca () is a city and commune in Chile located about south of Santiago, and is the capital of both Talca Province and Maule Region (7th Region of Chile). As of the 2012 census, the city had a population of 201,142. The city is an important ...

* Centro Español de Talca * Club Deportivo Español de Talca * Escuela Especial España, Talca * Ropero Español de Talca * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia de Talca * 4a. Cía. de Bomberos Bomba España,

Temuco Temuco () is a List of cities in Chile, city and Communes of Chile, commune, capital (political), capital of the Cautín Province and of the Araucanía Region in southern Chile. The city is located south of Santiago de Chile, Santiago. The cit ...

* Centro Español de Temuco * Sociedad Española de Beneficencia de Temuco * Centro Español de

Valdivia Valdivia (; Mapuche: Ainil) is a city and commune in southern Chile, administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder, Pedro de Valdivia, and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia, and ...

* 7a. Cía. de Bomberos Bomba España,

Valparaíso Valparaíso () is a major city, Communes of Chile, commune, Port, seaport, and naval base facility in the Valparaíso Region of Chile. Valparaíso was originally named after Valparaíso de Arriba, in Castilla–La Mancha, Castile-La Mancha, Spain ...

* Sociedad Española de Beneficencia, Valparaíso * Club Unión Española Valparaíso,

Viña del Mar Viña del Mar (; meaning "Vineyard of the Sea") is a List of cities in Chile, city and Communes of Chile, commune on Zona Central, Chile, central Chile's Pacific coast. Often referred to as ("The Garden City"), Viña del Mar is located withi ...

* Soc. de Beneficencia Damas Españolas Viña del Mar

References

{{Spanish diaspora European diaspora in Chile Spanish diaspora in South America

History

Notable Spanish Chileans

List of Spanish cultural centres and other institutions in Chile

See also

References