Final answer:
The top of the Latin American colonial social hierarchy featured peninsulares, followed by criollos, mestizos, Indigenous peoples, and Africans and their descendants. Positioning was primarily influenced by one's ancestry and race, with peninsulares holding the highest authority and Africans, as well as their mixed-race descendants, forming the lower social strata.
Step-by-step explanation:
Social Hierarchy in Latin American Colonial Society
The Latin American colonial society was characterized by a rigid social hierarchy where one's social position was determined largely by ancestry and race. At the top of this hierarchy were the peninsular, Europeans born on the Iberian Peninsula, primarily in Spain. They held the most important administrative and clerical positions.
Just below the peninsular were the criollos (creoles), Europeans born in the Americas. They were often landowners and merchants and, despite being considered legally Spanish, were ineligible for the highest offices that were reserved for the peninsular. The mestizos, individuals of mixed European and Indigenous descent, occupied the next level, working as artisans and lower clergy, or farming lands.
Beneath the mestizos were Indigenous peoples, who managed their communities but were subject to labor and tribute obligations. The Africans brought as slaves, and their descendants including mulattos (mixed European and African heritage) and zambos (mixed African and Indigenous heritage), were placed at the lower ends of society, predominantly near sugar-growing regions where their labor was exploited.
As we approach the period of independence, varieties of mixed-race people, including mestizos and pardos (part-African descent), became more dominant in urban areas, often engaging in various trades and serving in colonial militias.