Society and Customs
Cuenca's caste system
Many visitors may not notice it at first, but Cuencans are divided into castes based on their ancestry (blood and family names). On top are the white-colored people with exclusively European ancestry. With around 8,000 persons, they are a relatively small group in Cuenca. Although they are minority, they are the most powerful group of people in Cuenca. Directly below this group are the mestizos. The mestizos have a mix of European and indigenous blood. They are the largest group of people in Cuenca. Below the mestizos is the caste of indigenous people, which is also a large caste in Cuenca. They are usually called ‘indios’ by the people from castes above them. The lowest caste are the Afro-Ecuadorians (afro-ecuatorianos in Spanish), Ecuadorians with African blood.
People from all castes are expected to not have close friendships or marriages with people from other castes. However, there are people who do have close friendships and marriages with persons from different castes. They are not willing to comply with the informal caste rules. As a consequence they will usually receive a lot of critique.