Asentista

holder of a long-term contract granted by the Crown, to buy or sell products or services

Barracón

slaves' living quarters on the hacienda

Beaterio

institution resembling convent, administered by nuns, in which girls received education and divorcing women found refuge

Bozal

slave newly arrived from Africa, presumably without knowledge of the Spanish language, religion, or customs

Cabildo

municipal council

Carta de libertad

notarially recorded document in which an owner granted freedom to a slave or explained the conditions for obtaining freedom

Casta

person of European and African ancestry; individuals so labeled included any mixture of European and African ancestors

Chacra

small estate farm

Chino

person of undefined African and indigenous ancestry, a bit lighter than a mulato

Cholo

darker-skinned person without clearly defined racial, cultural, or economic features (usually a pejorative term)

Cofradía

mutual-aid society or sodality introduced by the Roman Catholic church and dedicated to the cult of a saint; depending on its specific location, it incorporated aspects of African or Andean culture

Conque

legal document that contained the conditions of a slave's sale and purchase

Criollo

Spaniard born in Latin America

Comadre/compadre

godmother/godfather; ritual kinship ties that expanded social relations beyond the immediate family

Cuartel

quarter or district

Defensor de Menores

the defender who represented legal minors

Gracias al sacar

both the name of a document and concept best translated as "whitening" by which persons of color requested to be considered as having skin lighter than its actual color

Hacendado

owner of a hacienda

Juzgado de menores

the court for litigation of cases involving legal minors (including slaves and Indians)

Liberto

freed slave who was required to stay with his or her master for a certain period of time (often up to the age of fifty) but had a right to demand wages

Limeño

resident of the city of Lima

Mayordomo

overseer or manager of an enterprise, usually a hacienda or estate

Mestizo

person of European and indigenous ancestry

Moreno

person whose appearance vaguely suggested African ancestry

Mulato

person of African and indigenous ancestry

Panadería

both a bakery and a place of punishment where slaves and other individuals were interned

Panadero

owner or manager of a panadería

Pardo

person of European and African ancestry (two-thirds to one-third, respectively)

Protomedicato

royally appointed medical body that made judgment for the court

Pulpería

small shop combining functions of grocery store and tavern (the colonial comer store)

Quarterón

person of one-fourth African ancestry, threefourths European

Quinterón

person of one-fifth African ancestry,, four-fifths European

Real Audiencia

highest court of justice and governing body under the viceroy

Sereno

night watchman

Síndico del Concurso

general attorney

Síndico Procurador

public attorney

Tambo

roadside inn for travelers and purveyor of various supplies

Zambo

person of African, indigenous, and European ancestry