Login or register (free and only takes a few minutes) to participate in this question.
You will also have access to many other tools and opportunities designed for those who have language-related jobs (or are passionate about them). Participation is free and the site has a strict confidentiality policy.
Spanish to English translations [PRO] Art/Literary - Anthropology
Spanish term or phrase:cholo
This is from a biography of a Panamanian boxer. In the text, he's in jail and having a hard time with one of the guards:
...era un cholo santeño de tez colorada, agarrado y fuerte, grosero y patán...Yo manifestaba que los cholos eran brutos, ignorantes, solo sabían usar el machete y corretear ganado. No sabían vestir ni hablar, lo único que tenían en la cabeza eran piojos.
I find reference to "cholo" as a kind of gang member or petty thug, but I don't think that's right for this context. I have the feeling that it's a regionalism...
" ... he was a red-skinned cholo from Los Santos (footnote)... I expressed/said cholos were coarse, ignorant, they only knew how to use the machete... "
Considering the many articles, papers, and studies covering "cholos", I would leave it as is and include an explanatory footnote:
Please look at the examples, (not all referring to Panama, but I think what's important is the "namecalling", it's a love-hate situation:
["Cholos de Coclé": determination of their racial ...[Rev Med ...
["Cholos de Coclé": determination of their racial mixture and genetic origins] ... 1993]; [Racial mix of the panamanian population] [Rev Med Panama. ... http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1439003
NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Cholo
Cholo, broadly, is a term applied to persons of mixed Amerindian and Spanish ... the Choco language family in northwestern Colombia and southeastern Panama. ... www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Cholo
I think for a modern audience 'half breed' might be just a bit too offensive or even racist. If you really want to translate the term then Indian is probably the closest fit, but I don't think it's necessary (see Juliana's comment in the reference I provided)
Any opinions on the use of "half breed" here? The author is really trying to insult the guy and start a fight with him, and it kind of reminds me of old Westerns where the local white folks would call someone "half breed" and spit on the ground in order to pick a fight. This is for an American audience.
It's a person of indigenous heritage. It's often used in a derogatory way, but can also be used affectionately. I would leave it as is and include a translator's note.
Automatic update in 00:
Answers
6 mins confidence:
Mestizo
Explanation: según el DRAE:
cholo, la.
1. adj. Am. Mestizo de sangre europea e indígena. U. t. c. s.
2. adj. Am. Dicho de un indio: Que adopta los usos occidentales.
Fabio Descalzi Uruguay Local time: 15:01 Native speaker of: Spanish
He clearly does not have a very high opinion of this character. From the tone, I don't think this is intended so much as racial slur but focused around the 'bumpkin' angle.
" ... he was a red-skinned cholo from Los Santos (footnote)... I expressed/said cholos were coarse, ignorant, they only knew how to use the machete... "
Considering the many articles, papers, and studies covering "cholos", I would leave it as is and include an explanatory footnote:
Please look at the examples, (not all referring to Panama, but I think what's important is the "namecalling", it's a love-hate situation:
["Cholos de Coclé": determination of their racial ...[Rev Med ...
["Cholos de Coclé": determination of their racial mixture and genetic origins] ... 1993]; [Racial mix of the panamanian population] [Rev Med Panama. ... http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1439003
NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Cholo
Cholo, broadly, is a term applied to persons of mixed Amerindian and Spanish ... the Choco language family in northwestern Colombia and southeastern Panama. ... www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Cholo
etc.
kironne Chile Local time: 14:01 Native speaker of: English, Spanish PRO pts in category: 4
The translation workplace 
