Casta

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/casta

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the etymological root?Derived from Spanish and Portuguese, meaning 'lineage' or 'breed'
2. What is the theoretical framework?A postulation of a hierarchical, race-based social system within the Spanish Empire
3. What does the word "Casta" mean?It means lineage or breed, like a family line.
4. How did the Casta system decide who was at the top of society?People with pure Spanish blood were put at the top, giving them the most privileges and power.

Casta: A term denoting lineage, used in the Spanish Empire to classify individuals within a hierarchical racial and social system.
Españoles: The term for people of Spanish descent, considered at the top of the Casta hierarchy.
Indios: The term for Indigenous peoples of the Americas, a primary group within the Casta system.
Negros: The term for people of African descent, a primary group within the Casta system.