The "Hispanic" ethnic group in San Antonio (Comanche: fit in, public school)

[kenshin522]

Hello again, I have been curious on this for a while and wonder what other people think... This topic revolves around the Hispanic population of San Antonio and their ancestral roots.

Most people can agree that the vast majority of Hispanics of San Antonio are technically Mestizo people. However, what is not very clear is their AmerIndian origins.

Most people today would simply assert that these people descend from people of Mexico and whom most if not all descend from the Uto-Aztecan group known as the Aztecs.

Although there is some truth to that it certainly does not account for all AmerIndian groups visible in San Antonio.

One thing most people seem to forget is that the native population of present day San Antonio were groups of nomadic and semi-nomadic people known as Coahuiltecans. These people were linguistically and ethnically related peoples who spanned most of historic South Texas.

After the Spanish came to this land they claimed it as their territory and built missions which to convert these Indians into citizens of New Spain.
Therefore the majority of these Indians and their descendants after contact with the missions and Spanish people would now speak the Spanish language and have aquired "Hispanic" names through conversion...

What we are taught is that most of these tribes no longer exist.. But still there are "some" decendants in the area... However there are a few hispanics which I have met and claim to have not decended from people from Mexico. One Lady I met who spoke Spanish, had a Spanish name stated that she wasnt even Hispanic but that all she knew is that her family had always been here in this area.

Phenotypically many San Antonio Hispanics appear much like Native Americans' from the USA. This includes lighter skin, more Asianic and gentle features compared with the AmerIndians of Mexico who are much darker in complexion as well as more robust features. Low hairlines like those in Aztecs' and Otomis', while noticeable are not as frequent as some might expect even in the predominate or full blood Amerindian.


Many of the Hispanics of this city appear to be of the Coahuiltecan lineage.
Some of these people may also decend from the Comanches and Apaches who also settled this area.

Note that I am NOT implying that ALL of the Hispanics of this city are of this decent.. There are many Mestizos and Indians from Mexico present here and while they do make up a noticeable amount it doesnt compare with other phenotypes which do not resemble them...

Based on my hypothesis of the city's 58 percent Hispanic population (though the number is probably higher since this is not based on those who are undocumented)... Roughly 30% to 32% of them diverge from the original AmerIndians of this state, including Apaches, Comanches, Kickapoos and Coahuiltecans.

Any other views, thoughts or opinions on this?

This is not a racist thread it is an observation and culturally appreciative thread that maybe will awaken some hispanics who read it to become interested in their background and cultural past. Especially when the notion that one of Hispanic decent originates in present day Mexico or other Latin American countries. When infact this is their ancestral historic homeland.

[CelesteDF]

I'm sorry, but was there a question in there?

Oh, and by the way, if you meant for this to be a poll, I live in San Antonio and am Hispanic but not descended from Mexicans, Indians or other indigenous peoples.

[kenshin522]

Hello CelesteDF, glad I had a positive response.. I am actually looking for opinions, others views and the alike. In the Americas there are many kinds of Hispanics... White Hispanics, Black Hispanics, AmerIndian hispanics, Mestizo Hispanics, and Mulatto Hispanics. My post was directed more so at the majority of the hispanic pop of San Antonio which is that of Mestizo/AmerIndian heritage. Though I do recognize the other kinds of hispanics in this city.

In short... hispanic is not a race but a ethnicity based on family origins in Spanish held/conquered lands in the Americas... though I know a few Spaniards in spain who don't like that they cannot themselves be reffered to as hispanics.

But since you mentioned poll... Sure... It can be a poll as well.
Again I posted this mainly to see others views on the subject.

[Goominim]

Hello Kenshin, Thanks for your interesting post. This is my first. Hello all! I'm a hispanic male, and have sometimes wondered about my ancestry. I know very little about it. I do know that my parents were born here (both are in their 80s), and that my grandparents came from Mexico when they were young. Not much was taught in public school about the hispanic population, from what I remember. I don't even think the word hispanic was used back then (was it?) - I'm in my 40s. I have been mistaken for being Asian on mutiple occassions, though I am relatively dark complected. You relate Asianic features to Native Americans (are all "Native Americans" from what is now the US?), but mentioned that they are light complected. I wonder where I fit in with all this?

[Goominim]

This is weird. I've never heard of the term Mestizo. Interesting article on the Wiki: Mestizo - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[imaterry78259]

Hispanic culture- I was watching an African musical video last night and realize that this is the orgin of the music in Mexico. The salsa and other type music and dances comes from there. I know that Mexico also has a German/Czech influence also do to the wealthy Europeans who settle there. My wife who is German notice right away where the orgins come from. The SW Indian orgins are more Asian

[majormadmax]

Howdy Kenshin!

Interesting post, I am sure there has been some research done on this, have you checked UTSA? Whereas ethnic origin is important, I find culture to be more interesting, and there is definitely established cultures in San Antonio's history.

If I may ask, what is your background/interest in this area? You have most definitely done your homework, and I don't think there is any way your post could be considered racist. I am interested in learning more about the lineage of the different Hispanic peoples that are here, if you learn anything offline I would be grateful if you share that info here.

Cheers! M2

[hello13685]

Very interesting and educational post. Thank you
I'd also be interested to know why "Hispanic" became the preferred term in South Texas, whereas "Latino" is largely preferred in California. Any ideas?

[wehotex]

Originally Posted by hello13685

Very interesting and educational post. Thank you
I'd also be interested to know why "Hispanic" became the preferred term in South Texas, whereas "Latino" is largely preferred in California. Any ideas?

i first heard the term "hispanic" when i was in high school in 1980 in texas. it's always been the term that i've heard here. i've wondered the same question when i lived in california. i think that calif prefers the term "latino" because it captures more of the various nationalities out there. as you know, they caome from ALL of the latin countries out there. so cal also has a lot more 1st and 2nd generation born immigrants, resulting from all of the illegal immigrants that they have as well as legal. "latino" is a spanish word which a new immigrant would identify with instead of the more assimilated sounding "hispanic". also, the word "hispanic" was coined by civil rights groups, some of which are hq'd in texas.

[kenshin522]

Hi all, I'll be offline for a bit but to answer some questions... Native American refers to the indigenous people of North and South America... This entire land prior to European Conquering and settlement was inhabited by these people.

I basically took interest in this thing a couple of years ago and did independant research on the topic. Especially since i was curious of my own background.