Today, much of the contemporary Dominican population is largely Black and Mulatto. The Dominican Republic itself is 45% Mulatto, 40% Black, and 15% White. Studies have indicated that up to 15% of all Dominicans carry maternal Taino-Arawak lineage, figures which are higher in rural areas. Other studies often indicate that the average Dominican is 60% African , 35% European (Mostly Spanish) and 5% Taino-Arawak, but these figures also vary by region as the purest Blacks is lives mostly in the Coastal lowland regions of the country.