Mameluco is aPortuguese word that denotes the first generation child of aEuropean and anAmerindian. It corresponds to the Spanish wordmestizo.
In the 17th and 18th centuries,mameluco was also used to refer to organized bands of explorers fromColonial Brazil known asbandeirantes, who roamed the interior ofSouth America departing fromSão Paulo near theAtlantic Ocean to the interior of Brazil andParaguay, invadingGuarani settlements in search of slaves and gold.
The word may have become common in Portugal in theMiddle Ages, deriving from theArabic, "Mamluk", "slave", commonly referring to soldiers and rulers of slave origin, especially inEgypt.
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