First Blacks in The Americas

The African Presence in The Dominican Republic

Home

About First Blacks ▼

Content and purpose
Structure
A silenced history
Credits
Thanks and acknowledgements
The archival manuscripts
The maps in this website
An almost total lack of iconography
Urgent need for more research

Arrival ▼

Introduction
Both free and enslaved blacks arrived since early on
Ladinos and bozales
"Legal" and "illegal" slave trade
The sugar business accelerated the arrival of blacks
Official slave trade diminished in La Española after the 1560s
A black majority in La Española by the end of 16th century

Demographics ▼

The growth of the black population in La Española in the 1500s

Economy ▼

The fundamental role of blacks in La Española's economy

Resistance ▼

A century between resistance and adaptation

Manumission ▼

Manumission as a tool of slavery

Women ▼

Black women, present in La Española as early as black men

Resources ▼

Archival sources
Glossary
Bibliography
Timeline
Maps
Image Gallery
Videos
Links
Spanish Paleography Digital Teaching and Learning Tool

Images

Palace of the local Royal Tribunal of Hispaniola

To contact the project’s team, please write, call, fax or email the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute,
The City College of New York, North Academic Center (NAC) 4/107, 160 Convent Avenue at 138th Street, New York, NY 10031
Tel: 212-650-7496, Fax: 212-650-7489, Email: dsi@ccny.cuny.edu, Website: www.ccny.cuny.edu/dsi