mulatto

mulatto
mulatto (n.) 1590s, "offspring of a European and a black African," from Sp. or Port. mulato "of mixed breed," lit. "young mule," from mulo "mule," from L. mulus (fem. mula) "mule" (see MULE (Cf. mule) (1)); possibly in reference to hybrid origin of mules. As an adjective from 1670s. Fem. mulatta is attested from 1620s; mulattress from 1805.
American culture, even in its most rigidly segregated precincts, is patently and irrevocably composite. It is, regardless of all the hysterical protestations of those who would have it otherwise, incontestibly mulatto. Indeed, for all their traditional antagonisms and obvious differences, the so-called black and so-called white people of the United States resemble nobody else in the world so much as they resemble each other. [Albert Murray, "The Omni-Americans: Black Experience & American Culture," 1970]

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • mulatto — [mə lät′ō, məlat′ō; myo͞olat′ō] n. pl. mulattoes or mulattos [Sp & Port mulato, mulatto, of mixed breed, orig. young mule < mulo, mule < L mulus] 1. a person who has one black parent and one white parent 2. technically, any person with… …   English World dictionary

  • mulatto — [dallo sp. mulato, der. di mulo mulo , in quanto ibrido]. ■ agg. [che è nato dall incrocio di un uomo bianco con una donna nera o viceversa] ▶◀ meticcio, (spreg.) mezzosangue, (spreg.) sanguemisto. ‖ creolo. ■ s.m. (f. a ) [persona mulatta]… …   Enciclopedia Italiana

  • mulatto — ► NOUN (pl. mulattoes or mulattos) ▪ a person with one white and one black parent. ► ADJECTIVE ▪ relating to such a person. ORIGIN Spanish mulato young mule, mulatto …   English terms dictionary

  • Mulatto — Mu*lat to, n.; pl. {Mulattoes}. [Sp. & Pg. mulato, masc., mulata, fem., of a mixed breed, fr. mulo mule, L. mulus. See {Mule}.] The offspring of a negress by a white man, or of a white woman by a negro, usually of a brownish yellow complexion.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • mulatto — meaning ‘a person of mixed white and black parentage’, has the plural form mulattos. The word is no longer actively used but is found in the works of earlier writers such as Defoe, Thackeray, and Stevenson. Half caste still survives but is often… …   Modern English usage

  • Mulatto — Mulato redirects here. For other uses, see Mulato (disambiguation). Mulatos redirects here. For the river in Colombia, see Mulatos River. Mulatto Total population Official population numbers are unknown. Regions with significant populations Latin …   Wikipedia

  • mulatto — [m(j)u: latəʊ] noun (plural mulattoes or mulattos) offensive a person with one white and one black parent. adjective relating to or denoting a mulatto or mulattoes. Origin C16: from Sp. mulato young mule or mulatto , formed irregularly from mulo… …   English new terms dictionary

  • mulatto — UK [mjuːˈlætəʊ] / US [muˈlætoʊ] / US [muˈlɑtoʊ] noun [countable] Word forms mulatto : singular mulatto plural mulattos or mulattoes offensive an offensive word for someone who has one black parent and one white parent …   English dictionary

  • mulatto — See mulatto, quadroon, octoroon …   Dictionary of problem words and expressions

  • mulatto — /mjuˈlætoʊ / (say myooh latoh), /mə / (say muh ) noun (plural mulattos or mulattoes) 1. the offspring of parents of whom one is white and the other black. –adjective 2. having a light brown colour (similar to the skin of a mulatto). {Spanish and… …  

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