Cholo
Cholo (female chola or cholita ) is a derogatory expression from the Spanish- speaking area , which has also found its way into other language areas , especially into the English-speaking area.
The term is used differently in different regions. The expression mainly serves as a name for a person of predominantly indigenous descent who still cultivates many customs of indigenous culture, but at the same time also belongs to an urban society. Mostly in North America, the term is used for all people who have both Indian and Spanish ancestors. In Ecuador , cholo means exactly the opposite, an indigenous looking person who does not maintain indigenous traditions. In addition, it is also the name of an ethnic group native to the coast of Ecuador.
The Inca Garcilaso de la Vega defines a cholo as follows:
- “The child of a black woman with an Indian woman or an Indian with a black woman is called a mulatto or mulatto. Their children are called Cholos, a word from the island of Barlovento, which means dog, it is not used for mixed race Hispanic people, but for 'rogue barkers'; the Spaniards use the word for defamation and insult. "
Cholo was mostly used derogatory in the past. On the other hand, the Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo had his supporters call himself Cholo. The former Argentine soccer player and current coach of Atlético Madrid Diego Simeone is also nicknamed El Cholo.
For a long time, and until 2006, it would have been inconceivable that indigenous women with traditional clothing, to which the term chola was applied, could pursue a career outside the informal sector . The presidency of the first indigenous president Evo Morales in 2006 gave the indigenous people in Bolivia regarded as second-class citizens the first opportunity to participate in the public or economic sector.
The song of the Peruvian singer Luis Abanto Morales Cholo Soy deals with the life of a cholos.
Due to the increased appearance of cholos on Peruvian television in recent years, the Peruvian journalist and presenter Magaly Medina created the name El Chollywood Peruano .
In Ecuador, cholo can also denote someone with bad taste or simple manners. Accordingly, objects that are tasteless to the person making the designation can also be called cholo .
In the US , cholo is a derogatory term for a criminal or gangster of Latin American descent, or derived from it for members of the social lower class with Latin American descent. Men are characterized by bald head , bandana (forehead), wide khaki pants ( chinos ), white undershirt , oversized flannel shirt that is only buttoned at the top and large, monochrome tattoos; For women ( cholas ) there are also eye-catching creoles , peg hairstyles and thick make-up that emphasizes the eyebrows and lip contours.
Remarks
- ↑ Al hijo de negro y de india, o de indio y de negra, dicen mulato y mulata. A los hijos de éstos llaman cholo; es vocablo de la isla de Barlovento; quiere decir perro, no de los castizos, sino de los muy bellacos gozcones; y los españoles usan de él por infamia y vituperio. Source: Comentarios Reales de los Incas
- ↑ How Bolivia's Cholas came to power , NZZ, October 17, 2019