What is the size and type of the population?
The population is approximately 9 million people with a mixture of races and cultures. Approximately 60% are of pure Indian bloodlines, 35% are mestizo (a mixture of Spanish-South American and South American-Indian). They are known as cholos or cholas (male/female) and this name refers to people with Indian bloodlines that have emigrated to the cities and who may still wear some form of their original ethnic dress or costume. These same people who live in the countryside are referred to as campesinos or campesinas. Approximately 1% are of African ancestry, mostly descendants of the slaves during the Spanish conquest and colonial times that were used in the mines of Potosi and other regions that live in the Yungas region. The remaining 4% are made up of mostly European descent mostly from the Spanish and some Germans as well as other groups like Chinese, Korean, Indian and many different religious groups from all over the world.
