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INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY — PUBLICATION NO. 1 2 



Comadre, literally, co-mother; the godmother of one's 

 child, or the mother of one's godchild. 



Compadre, literally, co-father; the godfather of one's 

 child, or the father of one's godchild. 



Compadrio, a system of relationships involving godchil- 

 dren, godparents, and the natural parents of the god- 

 children. 



Couve, a species of cabbage. 



Credo!, an exclamation, consisting of a shortened form 

 of the Apostle's Creed, used when one speaks or thinks 

 of that which might harm him and against which he 

 desires protection. 



Cruzeiro, the unit of exchange in Brazil, equivalent, at 

 the present official rate of exchange, to 5.45 cents (U. S.). 



Curandeiro, a healer who employs herbs, magical formu- 

 las, and (sometimes) patent medicine. 



De cocoras, a term used to refer to the local manner of 

 squatting when resting, or when working at some task 

 on the ground (pi. 20, a). 



Delegado, law-enforcement officer of the municipio. 



Desconflado, a term used to describe an attitude of re- 

 serve, especially toward strangers, which reflects a 

 lack of esi)€rience and of self-confidence, and apprehen- 

 sion regarding possible slights or harm. 



Distrito (de paz), the administrative subdivision of a 

 municipio, consisting of a vila (a population nucleus 

 smaller than the seat of the municipio) and its sur- 

 rounding territory. There are as many distritos in a 

 municipio as there are vilas, each named for the re- 

 spective Vila. 



Encomenda, (1) a request to deliver, or bring, to the 

 person asking, a message, letter or parcel; (2) an 

 object so requested. 



Engenho, (1) a simple press for squeezing out cane juice, 

 with either iron or wooden cogs (pi. 15, a, 6) ; (2) a 

 larger mill for crushing cane to make pinga. 



Ensadao, a tool similar to the hoe, except that the blade 

 is narrower and longer (fig. 8, d). 



Escrivao, an official of the distrito who records deeds and 

 vital statistics and also assists with the civil marriage 

 ceremony. 



Evangelista, a term employed by local inhabitants to 

 refer to a member of any Protestant sect. 



Faca de bainha, a knife, with a slender blade, carried in a 

 sheath. 



Facao, local type of machete (fig. 11). 



Farofa, toasted maize or manioc meal, stirred into melted 

 fat. 



Fazenda, a large farm which may be supervised, but is 

 not worked by the owner himself. 



Fazendeiro, the owner of a fazenda. 



Festeiro, a person who helps prepare, and assumes part 

 of the financial obligations for, a festival. 



Fiscal (da prefeitura), an official who collects fees and 

 similar levies. 



Foice, a tool, with a curved blade and long handle, used 

 for cutting brush and trimming trees (fig. 8, e). 



Fuba, coarse maize meal. 



Garapa, the juice of freshly crushed sugarcane. 



Garrucha, a breech-loading, double-barreled pistol. 



Guarana, a soft drink, made from carbonated water and 

 the seeds of the guarand, a native plant, PauUinia 

 cupana. 



15a, the female of the sauva ant at the flying stage of 

 development, when the abdomen is heavy with eggs ; 

 used locally for food. 



Jaca, a large, rectangular basket, with rounded corners, 

 made of taquara, and used to transport articles on the 

 back of a horse, mule or burro and, sometimes, a man. 



Jaboticaba, a fruit, from the tree, Myrciaria sp. 



Jantar, the evening meal, usually taken sometime between 

 4 : 30 and 6 : 30 p. m. 



Juiz de paz, justice of the peace, an official of the distrito 

 wlio i-esolves small disputes and presides at the civil 

 marriage ceremony. 



Lambari, a species of fish (Tetragonoptems) . 



Lamparina, a crude lamp, made of a small bottle, or tin 

 receptacle, and supplied with kerosene, a metal cap 

 and a wick. 



Leiloeiro (de prendas), an auctioneer who auctions 

 prendas. 



Lenha, firewood. 



Lima, a fruit, from the tree. Citrus medica; not the lime. 



Madrinha, godmother. 



Mameluco (fem., mameluca), a mixed-blood of Indian and 

 European descent. 



Mancebia, a system of conjugal unions outside marriage 

 in which there is some degree of permanence. 



Massape, a dark, rich, porous soil of considerable depth. 



Mastro, a long pole, set upright in the ground, sometimes 

 painted in vivid colors, to the upper end of which is 

 attached a bandeira (flag) to honor a given santo (pi. 

 IC, a). 



Mata, a forested area, heavily covered with vines and 

 underbrush so that passage is extremely difficult. 



Mate, (1) woods; (2) a wild, uninhabited area; (3) a 

 rural region; (4) weeds. 



Mece (plural, meces), a simplification of vosmecS, which 

 in turn is a simplification of vossemecS and Yossa 

 Merce (Your Grace). 



Milreis, the former medium of exchange in Brazil which, 

 in 1942, was substituted by the cruzeiro, with the 

 same value. As implied by the name, it was 1,000 reis. 



Monjolo, a large mortar and pestle, operated by water 

 power (fig. 12). 



Municipio, an administrative subdivision of the state, 

 consisting of a cidade (a town, of varying size), to- 

 gether with the immediately surrounding territory. 

 The cidade has no corporate existence apart from the 

 municipio. 



Mutirao, the custom of neighboring farmers getting to- 

 gether to help one another with some activity, such as 

 the planting, hoeing, or harvesting of a field, or the 

 building of a house or other shelter. 



Nho (fem., Nha), a term of respect, used with the given 

 name of a person ; a heritage of the slave epoch when 

 the master was known as SinhO (from Senhor, master) 

 and the mistress as Sinhd (from Senhora, mistress). 



Olaria, a small establishment for making brick (pi. 8, d). 



Onga, a species of wild animal, Panthera on(a. 



