The first free Africans in America: HLA study in San Basilio de Palenque (Colombia)

Original San Basilio de Palenque population (North Colombia) fled from Spanish traders that carried them as slaves and they funded in nearby Maria Mountains a fortified town (Palenque). They started helping new Africans brought as slaves to flee and join them. Most of them spoke a Bantu-Congo language and nowadays they speak the only one extant Bantu-Spanish Creole language. Spanish Crown was forced to issue a decree declaring them free (1691 CE), more than 100 years before than Haiti Republic existed. HLA-A, -B, -DRB1 and -DQB1 alleles were studied and further computer procedures were performed with Arlequin 3.5 software. No Amerindian or Europeans gene flow to this population was found. However, three specific HLA extended haplotypes are found in this population, which may reflect an isolation from other Africans or Afro-Americans also. This may be due to the maintenance of their own African culture, and even their unique Creole language.