During the French colonial period (1830–1962), Algeria contained a large European population of 1.6 million who constituted 15.2% of the total population in 1962. Consisting primarily of French people, other populations included Spaniards in the west of the country, Italians and Maltese in the east, and other Europeans in smaller numbers. Known as Pieds-Noirs, European colonists were concentrated on the coast and formed a majority of the population of Oran (60%) and important proportions in other large cities like in the capital Algiers and Bône. In religion, they were mostly Roman Catholic Christians. In 1871, the indigenous Jews obtained the French nationality, and they were also considered as Pieds-Noirs.