Marabou (ethnicity)
Marabou Haitian man | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 590,000+ | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Haiti, United States, Canada, France | |
| Languages | |
| French, Haitian Creole, French-based creole languages | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly Roman Catholic, but also Anglican, Protestant, Baptist, Seventh-day Adventist Church and Jehovah's Witness | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Afro-Caribbeans, Dougla, Affranchi |
Marabou (/ˈmærəbu/; French: marabout) is a term of Haitian origin denoting Haitians of Mixed race ancestry. The term comes originally from the African Marabouts. Marabous are mainly descended from intermingling between Africans, Europeans and indigenous Taino.
The Marabou label dates to the colonial period of Haiti's history, meaning the offspring of a mulatto and a griffe person. However, Médéric-Louis-Elie Moreau de Saint-Méry, in his three volume work on the colony, describes Marabous as the product of the union of an African/European and a Taino.