quadroon
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of quadroon
First recorded in 1640–50; alteration of Spanish cuarterón, derivative of cuarto “a fourth,” from Latin quartus; see -oon
Explanation
In the 19th century, the term quadroon was used to describe a person who was one-quarter black and three-quarters white. In other words, a quadroon had one grandparent of African descent. The word quadroon is seen today as being deeply offensive and completely obsolete. In the southern states of the US, particularly before the Civil War, a white person might have used the term to describe someone of mixed race, particularly if the person had one white and one racially mixed parent. The word comes from the Spanish cuarteron, "one who has a fourth," from cuarto, "fourth."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In Europe, after living at the seashore with the red-haired Swinburne, she took refuge in Paris at the house of that famed, fatherly quadroon, Alexandre Dumas Sr. Her poems, edited by Swinburne, were published, praised.
From Time Magazine Archive
She is the illegitimate daughter of a son of the late Judge Beaucaire, and a slave mother known as Delia, a quadroon woman.
From The Devil's Own A Romance of the Black Hawk War by Randall Parrish
This was all plain enough, but what had become of Kirby, of the two women—Eloise, and the quadroon mother?
From The Devil's Own A Romance of the Black Hawk War by Randall Parrish
Mary smiled again, looked up at the standing quadroon, and replied in a low voice:— “Madame Zénobie is for the Union herself.”
From Dr. Sevier by George Washington Cable
In his labored way the quadroon stated his knowledge that Frowenfeld had been three times to the dwelling of Palmyre Philosophe.
From The Grandissimes by George Washington Cable
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