page_title: Ethnic groups in Central America
section_title: El Salvador
hierarchical_section_title: Ethnic groups in Central America / Amerindians / El Salvador
caption_attribution_description: Tournament of Roses, Nuestros Angeles de El Salvador dancers from San Salvador, El SalvadorThe dancers followed the marching bandNuestros Angeles de El Salvador dancers
context_page_description: Central America is a subregion of the Americas formed by six Latin American countries and one Anglo-American country, Belize. As an isthmus it connects South America with the remainder of mainland North America, and comprises the following countries: Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama.
  The inhabitants of Central America represent a variety of ancestries, ethnic groups, and races, making the region one of the most diverse in the world. Several of the countries have a predominance of mixed Amerindian–European, or mestizo, population, while a minority are more ininhabited by those of greater European ancestry. Black, Asian, and Afro-Amerindian minorities are also identified regularly. People with mestizo ancestry are the largest single group, and along with people of greater European ancestry, comprise approximately 80% of the population, or even more.
  In 2007, Central America had a population of approximately 40 million persons within an area of 523,780 km², yielding an overall density of 77.3 inhabitants/km² that is not distributed evenly.
context_section_description: Only 1% of the Salvadoran population is purely indigenous, mostly Pipil, Lenca and Kakawira (Cacaopera). The current low numbers of indigenous people may be partly explained by mass murders by European colonizers. They wanted to exterminate the indigenous race and it’s other tribes in Central America. Today many Pipil and other Indigenous populations live in small towns of El Salvador like Izalco, Panchimalco, Sacacoyo, and Nahuizalco.
caption: Indigenous Salvadoran women dancing in the traditional "Procession of Palms" a custom celebrated in the town of Panchimalco in El Salvador.
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