Creole peoples Creole peoples Creole people are ethnic groups which originated during the colonial-era from racial mixing between Europeans and non-European peoples, known as creolisation. These groups are typically descended from White Western European colonial settlers, West African slaves, Haitians and indigenous peoples of the Americas, Africa, and Asia. Creole peoples vary widely in ethnic background and mixture, and many have since developed distinct ethnic identities. The development of creole languages is attributed to, but independent of, the emergence of creole ethnic identities. The English word "creole" derives from the French "créole", which in turn came from Portuguese "crioulo", a diminutive of
Houtman Abrolhos eyes open"), but this has been shown to be a false etymology. In the Portuguese language of the time, "abrolhos" meant "spiked obstructions", and served not only as a word for offshore reefs, but also as their word for caltrops and chevaux de frise. To Spanish ears, however, the word sounded like "abre ojos" ("open your eyes"), so they imputed this meaning, and this false etymology was later borrowed by English, Dutch and French writers. See abrojo wiktionary entry. Why Houtman named the islands using a Portuguese word remains a subject of debate. John Forsyth states that the islands are