Creolization

Creolization is the process in which Creole cultures emerge in the New World. As a result of colonization there was a mixture between people of indigenous, African, and European descent, which came to be understood as Creolization. Creolization is traditionally used to refer to the Caribbean; although not exclusive to the Caribbean it can be further extended to represent other diasporas. The mixing of people brought a cultural mixing which ultimately led to the formation of new identities. It is important to emphasize that Creolization also is the mixing of the "old" and "traditional," with the "new" and "modern." Furthermore, creolization occurs when participants actively select cultural elements that may become part of or inherited culture. Robin Cohen states that Creolization is a condition in which "the formation of new identities and inherited culture evolve to become different from those they possessed in the original cultures," and then creatively merge these to create new varieties that supersede the prior forms.