octoroon
5 dictionary results for: octoroon
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
oc·to·roon 
[ok-tuh-roon] Pronunciation Key
[ok-tuh-roon] Pronunciation Key –noun
| a person having one-eighth black ancestry; the offspring of a quadroon and a white. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| oc·to·roon
(ŏk'tə-rōōn') Pronunciation Key
n. A person whose ancestry is one-eighth Black. [octo- + (quad)roon.] Usage Note: The terms mulatto, quadroon, and octoroon originated with the racial policies of European colonizers in the Americas, especially the Spanish. Because civil rights and responsibilities were based directly on the degree of European blood that a person had, such classifications were highly elaborated, and minor distinctions in ancestry were carefully recorded. While these terms have highly precise definitions, in actual practice they were often used based on impressions of skin color rather than definite knowledge of ancestry. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
octoroon
octoroon
1861, irregular formation from L. octo "eight" (see eight) + suffix abstracted from quadroon (in which the suffix actually is -oon). Offspring of a quadroon and a white, so called in allusion to having one-eighth Negro blood.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| octoroon | |
noun | |
| an offspring of a quadroon and a white parent; a person who is one-eighth black |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Octoroon
Oc`to*roon"\, n. [L. octo eight + -roon, as in quadroon.] The offspring of a quadroon and a white person; a mestee.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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