Hi Erlinda--
If you have access to Ranchos 2, look in this folder:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ranchos2/files/Racial%20Classification/ . The varying names indicated the "amount" of indigenous, African, or Spanish blood a person had, although by no means should the priest's words be taken as accurate. I think sometimes the priest would base his judgment on what he saw. The Spanish had quite a complicated process. The specific name was supposed to indicate the racial measure of each person-- so if you had x amount of Spanish blood and y amount of indigenous blood, there was a specific name to indicate that. Also, look in the Ranchos archives, since I think there was a discussion on this topic not too long ago.
Last year the Los Angeles County Museum of Art had an exhibition of paintings that depicted the blending of the different races, and it was a fascinating experience. Looking at the exhibit reminds me how much race is still an issue, then (300-400 years ago), and now.