Paraguayans () are the citizens of Paraguay.
Though the majority of Paraguayans reside in Paraguay, significant communities have been established in multiple countries, most noticeably Argentina, Spain, United States, Brazil.
History
The first inhabitants of Paraguay were the
Guarani people.
Racial and ethnic groups
As in other
countries, in Paraguay, from the onset of
Spanish Empire,
miscegenation or
mestizaje was the norm rather than the exception. Paraguay has one of the most homogeneous populations in South America. About 75% of the people are
mestizo (mixed Spanish and
Guarani people Native American descent), 20% are Whites, and the rest are small minorities of Indigenous or Afro Paraguayan origin.
European or white
Indigenous
While only a 1.7% of
Paraguay's population is fully indigenous according to the 2012 national census, 75% of the population identifies as being partially of indigenous descent;
[ "Paraguay: Ethnic Groups." CIA: The World Factbook. (retrieved 12 July 2011)] however, the majority do not identify as being indigenous but as
Mestizos.
Languages
Paraguay is predominantly a
bilingual country, as the majority of the population uses
Spanish language and
Guarani language. The Constitution of Paraguay of 1992 established Spanish and Guaraní as official languages.
[ (see translator's note)] Spanish, an Indo-European language of the Romance branch, is understood by about 90% of the population as a first or second language. Guaraní, an indigenous language of the
Tupian languages family, is understood by 77%, and its use is regulated by the Academy of the Guaraní Language.
According to Instituto Cervantes' 2020 report "El Español: Una lengua viva", 68.2% of the Paraguayan population (4,946,322 inhabitants) has decent mastery of the Spanish language. The remaining 31.8% (2,306,350 inhabitants) belongs to the Group of Limited Competence, having minimal mastery of the language; the majority of them are Guaraní speakers and speak Spanish as a second language. Only 7.93% are monolingual in Guaraní.
Population
|
1 | Central | 1 866 562 |
2 | Alto Paraná | 784 839 |
3 | Asunción | 477 346 |
4 | Itapúa | 436 966 |
5 | Caaguazú | 430 142 |
6 | San Pedro | 341 895 |
7 | Cordillera | 271 475 |
8 | Concepción | 204 536 |
9 | Paraguarí | 199 430 |
10 | Canindeyú | 189 128 |
11 | Guairá | 180 121 |
12 | Amambay | 173 770 |
13 | Caazapá | 140 060 |
14 | Presidente Hayes | 126 880 |
15 | Misiones | 114 542 |
16 | Ñeembucú | 85 749 |
17 | Boquerón | 68 595 |
18 | Alto Paraguay | 17 608 |
|
Sex
-
Men: 3 078 994: 50,3%
-
Women: 3 030 650: 49,7%
Classification
See also
-
List of Paraguayans
-
Criollo people
-
Paraguayan Americans
-
Paraguayans in Spain