Canary Islanders

The original inhabitants of the Canary Islands are commonly known as Guanches (although this term in its strict sense only refers to the original inhabitants of Tenerife). They are most probably descendants of the Berbers of North Africa. The islands were conquered by Castile at the beginning of the 15th century. In 1402, they began to subdue and suppress the native Guanche population. The Guanches were initially enslaved and gradually absorbed. As a result, genetic analyses of modern Canarians show mainly a mixture of predominant European and also North African genes, with low frequencies of sub-Saharan genes, sometimes with substantial variation between individuals (see Ancestry). After subsequent settlement by Europeans, the remaining Guanches were gradually assimilated by the settlers and their culture largely vanished. Alonso Fernández de Lugo, conqueror of Tenerife and La Palma, oversaw extensive immigration to these islands during a short period from the late 1490s to the 1520s from mainland Europe, mostly Castile and Portugal. At subsequent judicial enquiries, Fernández de Lugo was accused of favoring Genoese and Portuguese immigrants over Castilians. ==Ancestry==

The native inhabitants of the Canary Islands possess a gene pool that is predominantly European, with specific contributions from Andalusians, Castilians, Galicians, and Portuguese, as well as from Normans, Genoese, and Flemings, alongside a variable input from the native Guanche population. Guanche genetic markers have also been found recently in Puerto Rico and, at low frequencies, in peninsular Spain after later emigration from the Canary Islands. Population genetics 1972 Uniparental markers The most frequent (maternal-descent) mtDNA haplogroup in Canary Islands is H (37.6%), followed by U6 (14.0%), T (12.7%), not-U6 U (10.3%) and J (7.0%). Two haplogroups, H and U6, alone account for more than 50% of the individuals. Significant frequencies of sub-Saharan maternal L haplogroups (6.6%) is also consistent with the historical records on introduction of sub-Saharan female slave labour in Canary Islands. However, some Sub-Saharan female lineages are also found in North African populations, and as a result, some of these L lineages could have been introduced to the Islands from North Africa. A 2009 study of DNA extracted from the remains of aboriginal inhabitants found that 7% of lineages were haplogroup L, which leaves open the possibility that these L lineages were part of the founding population of the Canary Islands. Sub-Saharan female lineages have been found in frequencies of 10% or more in some islands. A 2003 genetics research article by Nicole Maca-Meyer et al. published in the European Journal of Human Genetics compared aboriginal Guanche mtDNA (collected from Canarian archaeological sites) to that of today's Canarians and concluded that "despite the continuous changes suffered by the population (Spanish colonization, slave trade), aboriginal mtDNA lineages constitute a considerable proportion [42–73%] of the Canarian gene pool". According to this article, both percentages are obtained using two different estimation methods; nevertheless according to the same study the percentage that could be more reliable is the one of 73%. of El Hierro by Leonardo Torriani, 1592 Although the Berbers are the most probable ancestors of the Guanches, it is deduced that important human movements (e.g., the Islamic-Arabic conquest of the Berbers) have reshaped Northwest Africa after the migratory wave to the Canary Islands and the "results support, from a maternal perspective, the supposition that since the end of the 16th century, at least, two-thirds of the Canarian population had an indigenous substrate, as was previously inferred from historical and anthropological data". mtDNA haplogroup U subclade U6b1 is Canarian-specific. , 1828 Y-DNA, or Y-chromosomal, (direct paternal) lineages were not analysed in this study; however, an earlier study giving the aboriginal y-DNA contribution at 6% was cited by Maca-Meyer et al., but the results were criticized as possibly flawed due to the widespread phylogeography of y-DNA haplogroup E1b1b1b, which may skew determination of the aboriginality versus coloniality of contemporary y-DNA lineages in the Canaries. Regardless, Maca-Meyer et al. state that historical evidence does support the explanation of "strong sexual asymmetry...as a result of a strong bias favoring matings between European males and aboriginal females, and to the important aboriginal male mortality during the Conquest". Indeed, according to a recent study by Fregel et al. 2009, in spite of the geographic nearness between the Canary Islands and Morocco the genetic ancestry of the Canary islands males is mainly of European origin. Nearly 67% of the haplogroups resulting from are Euro–Eurasian (R1a (2.76%), R1b (50.62%), J (14%), I (9.66%) and G (3.99%)). Unsurprisingly the Castillian conquest brought the genetic base of the current male population of the Canary Islands. Nevertheless, the second most important haplogroup origin is Northern Africa. E1b1b (14% including 8.30% of the typical berber haplogroup E-M81), E1b1a and E1a (1.50%), and T (3%) haplogroups are present at a rate of 33%. According to the same study, the presence of autochthonous North African E-M81 lineages, and also other relatively abundant markers (E-M78 and J-M267) from the same region in the indigenous Guanche population, "strongly points to that area [North Africa] as the most probable origin of the Guanche ancestors". In this study, Fregel et al. estimated that, based on Y-chromosome and mtDNA haplogroup frequencies, the relative female and male indigenous Guanche contributions to the present-day Canary Islands populations were respectively of 41.8% and 16.1%. of individual genomic admixture proportions in Canary Islanders by Guillen-Guio et al. 2018. According to the authors "the proportion of SSA ancestry we observed in Canary Islanders likely originated in the postconquest importation of enslaved African people.". This study reported the below Genomic Ancestry Proportions in Canary Islanders. Source: Genomic Ancestry Proportions (from ADMIXTURE, K-4) in Canary Islanders (Guillen-Guio et al. 2018) Ancient Canarians The Guanches are related to the indigenous Berbers. In 2017, the first genome-wide data from the Guanches confirmed a North African origin and that they were genetically most similar to ancient North African Berber peoples of the nearby North African mainland. It also showed that modern inhabitants of Gran Canaria carry an estimated 16%–31% Guanche autosomal ancestry. ==Culture==

demonstration at a restaurant in La Gomera Modern-day Canarian culture is Spanish, with some Guanche influences. Some of the Canarian traditional sports such as lucha canaria ("Canarian fight"), juego del palo ("stick game") or salto del pastor ("shepherd's jump"), among others, have their roots in Guanche culture. Additionally, other traditions include Canarian pottery, words of Guanche origin in the Canarian speech and the rural consumption of guarapo gomero and gofio. The inhabitants of La Gomera also retain an ancient way of communicating across deep ravines by means of a whistled speech called Silbo Gomero, which can be heard up to away. This indigenous whistled language was invented by the Guanches, and was then adopted by the Spanish settlers in the 16th century after the Guanches were culturally assimilated into the population. The language was also formerly spoken on El Hierro, Tenerife and Gran Canaria. Canarian Spanish The Spanish language variety that is typical and conventional in the Canary Islands is usually called the Canarian Spanish, Canarian dialect or Canarian speech, and is used by the approximately two million Spanish speakers who live in the Canary Islands. It is a dialect variety that falls within what has been called the "Atlantic variety", similar to those of Spanish-speaking America, and also to those of the south of the Iberian Peninsula, especially western Andalusia. The dialect most similar to the Canarian dialect, given the historical link between both areas, is the Caribbean dialect, spoken in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola (Dominican Republic), and the coast of the Caribbean Sea (Venezuela, northern Colombia, and Panama). In addition, lexically, the Canarian dialect is widely influenced by the Portuguese language, from which a certain part of its lexicon is derived. Religion Catholic Church , the first Canarian catholic saint The majority of native Canary Islanders are Catholic with various smaller foreign-born populations of other Christian beliefs such as Protestants from northern Europe. in San Cristóbal de La Laguna The appearance of the Virgin of Candelaria (Patron of Canary Islands) was credited with moving the Canary Islands toward Christianity. In this sense, it is also important to highlight the figure of Saint Peter of Saint Joseph de Betancur, a missionary in Guatemala in the 17th century, who is the first saint of Canarian origin. Another saint venerated by the Catholic Church with this ethnic origin is Saint Joseph of Anchieta, also a missionary, in this case in 16th century Brazil. The Canary Islands are divided into two Catholic dioceses, each governed by a bishop: • Diócesis Canariense: Includes the islands of the Eastern Province: Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. Its capital was San Marcial El Rubicón (1404) and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (1483–present). There was a previous bishopric which was based in Telde, but it was later abolished. • Diócesis Nivariense: Includes the islands of the western province: Tenerife, La Palma, La Gomera, and El Hierro. Its capital is San Cristóbal de La Laguna (1819–present). Other religions Around 5 percent of Canarians belong to a minority religion. Separate from the overwhelming Christian majority are a minority of Muslims who are usually foreign-born. At present, there are in the Canary Islands a figure of approximately 70,000 Muslims and 40 mosques and places of worship throughout the archipelago. Among the followers of Islam, the Islamic Federation of the Canary Islands exists to represent the Islamic community in the Canary Islands as well as to provide practical support to members of the Islamic community. For its part, there is also the Evangelical Council of the Canary Islands in the archipelago. Other religious faiths represented include Jehovah's Witnesses, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as Hinduism. • Catholic 84.9% • Atheist/Agnostic/Unbeliever 12.3% • Other religions 1.7% Among the believers 38.7% attend religious services frequently. ==Canarian diaspora==

Historically, the Canary Islands have served as a hub between Spain and the Americas; favoured by that circumstance, large groups of Canary islanders have emigrated and settled all over the New World as early as the 15th century, mainly in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Uruguay. ==Demographics==

The Canarian population includes long-tenured and new waves of mainland Spanish immigrants, old settlers of Portuguese, Italian, Flemish, British, and French origin, as well as recent foreign-born arrivals. In 2019 the total population was 2,153,389, of which 72.1% were native Canary Islanders. ==Notable Canarians==