Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
mestiza

mestiza

1 9.9
A woman with both European and Indigenous ancestry in Latin America
  • noun
  • /mɛsˈtiːzə/
translation icon : mestiza
  • In the painting, the artist beautifully captures the essence of a mestiza with her rich, diverse features.
  • dressed like a mestiza

Examples

  • The mestiza woman gracefully blended elements of both her European and Native American heritage.

  • The housemaid would not refer to herself as Mestiza, but simply thought of herself as not Indian.

    Academic text (1997)

  • Some of the youth participants speculated that the main reason why Miss Honduras did not win was because of her mestiza background.

    Academic text (2005)

  • Her lack of kin connections is underlined by the fact that she is a mestiza.

    Academic text (1994)

  • A mestiza, she is related by blood to the Luzardos and is more readily assimilated into their class.

    Academic text (1993)

  • Her facial features are unmistakably mestiza, and her shoulder-length brown hair is slightly wavy.

    Academic text (2005)

  • Through her literary testimonial, Elena Poniatowska introduces a poor mestiza woman's voice into a vital moment in Mexico's history.

    Academic text (1998)

  • Elena is a proud mestiza, celebrating her unique cultural background at the festival.

Synonyms

mestizo
vsmestiza
3 8.2

A person with both European and Native American family background

indicates the same ancestry but specifically female

Surface Forms

mestiza singular
mestizas plural

Etymology

The word mestiza comes from Spanish mestizo, which comes from a Latin root that means 'mixed', just like the English words mix and mixture. So a mestiza is a woman of 'mixed' ancestry, especially of European and Native American background in Latin America.