mulatto

American  

[muh-lat-oh, -lah-toh, myoo-] / məˈlæt oʊ, -ˈlɑ toʊ, myu- /

noun

plural

mulattoes, mulattos

1. Anthropology. (not in technical use) the offspring of one white parent and one Black parent.

2. Older Use: Offensive. a person who has both Black and white ancestors.

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adjective

1. of a light-brown color.

mulatto British  

/ mjuːˈlætəʊ /

noun

1. a person having one Black and one White parent

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adjective

1. of a light brown colour

Etymology

Origin of mulatto

First recorded in 1585–95; from Spanish mulato “young mule,” equivalent to mul(o) mule ¹ + -ato of unclear origin

Compare meaning

How does mulatto compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• mestizo vs. mulatto
• octoroon vs. mulatto

Explanation

The noun mulatto is an outdated term for someone with one black parent and one white parent. This word is now considered to be offensive. It was common to describe a person with both black and white ancestry as a mulatto during the period of slavery in the United States. Because of its dehumanizing roots and usage, this word has fallen out of favor. Today, people are more likely to use terms like multiracial or mixed race — or simply to identify their specific cultural and ethnic heritage.

Example Sentences

Ms. Noble founded a youth riding organization named Mulatto Meadows, which provides horseback riding lessons for young people of color.

From New York Times • Jun. 9, 2020

Mulatto Math Writer-performer Monique DeBose explores race, family and identity in this solo show with music.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 18, 2018

“The White Boy Shuffle” was published at the high point of nineteen-nineties multiculturalism—Gunnar, the ultimate “cultural mulatto,” attends a P.C.-obsessed school called Mestizo Mulatto Mongrel Elementary—and the novel was knowingly inauthentic.

From The New Yorker • Mar. 31, 2015

The Cosby-owned Colescott on view, “Death of a Mulatto Woman,” is one of the few pieces from their collection that stakes out a strong political view of the world.

From Washington Post

But the great influx of Negro and Mulatto races into Egypt as captives dated from the twelfth dynasty; when, about the twenty-second century, B.C.,

From History of the Negro Race in America From 1619 to 1880. Vol 1 Negroes as Slaves, as Soldiers, and as Citizens by Williams, George Washington