Culture of the Dominican Republic

The population of the Dominican Republic is about 8.4 million, and it increases at a rate of approximately 1.6 percent per year. Seventy-three percent of the population is a mixed race ombinations of descendants of Spaniards and other Europeans, West African slaves, and natives. Sixteen percent is Caucasian and 11 percent is black, which includes a Haitian minority

Racial and economic issues are the biggest influence in the social stratification of the Dominican Republic. The upper class is historically descended from European ancestry and is light skinned. The lower class is most often black, descendants of the African slave population or Haitians. The mulattoes are people of mixed African and European ancestry and make up the majority of the population; they have created a growing middle class. This middle class is divided into indio claro, who have lighter skin, and indio obscuro, who are darker skinned.

Spanish is the official language and is universally spoken. Dominicans pride themselves on the purity of their Spanish and it is considered by some to be the most classical Castilian spoken in Latin America. Nevertheless, Dominican Spanish has a distinctive accent and incorporates numerous African and Taino (native) expressions Some English is spoken in Santo Domingo, particularly within the tourist industry. Some Creole is spoken near the Haitian border and in the sugarcane villages, where many Haitian workers live.

Education There is a dual system of private and public education, with an enrollment of approximately two million children. The public education system includes grades from first through 12th grade at no cost except for school uniforms and books. 90% of Dominican children are enrolled in grade school. Private schools offer classes from K-12th grade. Nonetheless, there is still and approximate 17% of the population that remains illiterate.

Higher Education. The Spanish built the oldest public university in the New World in 1588, and the Universidad Aut?noma de Santo Domingo is its descendant. The Universidad Aut?noma de Santo Domingo, is a public university,?which allows students to study at an affordable price.?Most of the twenty-eight Dominican universities are privately owned and offer student loans. Total enrollment for all colleges and universities in 1998 topped 100,000. In recent years there has been an increase in the number of students that go abroad to attend schools and universities.

Religion Catholicism is the official religion of the country, however, the Dominican Constitution provides for freedom of creed. Other religions actively worshiped are the Protestant, Seventh Day Adventist, Baptist, and Mormon.

For most people religious practice is limited and formalistic. Popular religious practices are far removed from Roman Catholic orthodoxy. People respect the advice of their local priest, or their bishop, with regard to religious matters; however, they often reject the advice of clergy on other matters on the assumption that priests had little understanding of secular affairs.

Entertainment

The merengue is unique to the Dominican Republic. The earliest form of merengue, perico ripiao, originated in the countryside as three-person re-interpretations of folk songs. Bachata is also a Dominican invention, one that has become increasingly popular worldwide. The instruments that are used to play most of these rythms are dated back to the Taino indians. The Tainos native to the island made g?iros, hollowed out gourds with notches, which players grated with a fork. The g?ira evolved similarly, a metal cylinder with holes, scraped to make a percussive beat. Just as important is the tambora, a two-sided drum. Traditionally, one side of the drum was made of a male goat's skin soaked in rum, while the skin on other side came from a female goat who had never borne offspring.

The national game is either dominos or baseball. The Dominican Republic has its own baseball league which runs from October to January. Many MLB players and minor leaguers play in this six-team league during off-season. The winner of the Dominican winter league goes on to represent the country at the Caribbean World Series against Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Venezuela.