Allende was born on June 26, 1908 in the port city of Valparaiso, Chile to a well-to-do family. Like many Chileans, Allende had a mestizo (mixed) racial background (European and other races mixed with Native Americans). His father Salvador Allende (senior), a lawyer, was of Basque background and his mother Laura Gossens had a Belgian Jewish background (though converted to Catholicism).