maíra

Old Tupi

Etymology

From Maíra.

Noun

maíra (unpossessable) (Late Tupi)

  1. white man
    Synonyms: aîuruîuba, karaíba
    Coordinate terms: see Thesaurus:abá
    • 1557, Hans Staden, chapter 37, in Warhaftige Hiſtoria [True History], volume 1 (overall work in German), Marburg: Andreas Kolbe, unnumbered page:
      Apo Meiren geuppaw y wittu wasu Jmmou.
      [A[î]pó mairangaîpab[a] ybytuûasu omoú.]
      That wicked white man made the gale come.
    • c. 1583, Joseph of Anchieta, “Na feſta de .ſ. Lço [At the Saint Lawrence Festival]” (chapter XLIV), in [livrinho de variaſ poeziaſ] [Booklet of various poems], Niterói, page 63v, lines 174–176; republished as Maria de Lourdes de Paula Martins, compiler, Poesias, São Paulo, 1956, page 118:
      Deputuẽ / naçatangatui Maira / coribe timocanhẽ.
      [Nde putuẽ / na satãngatuî maíra / kori bé t'i mokanhẽ.]
      Relax. The white man isn't very strong. We shall make him vanish this very day.
  2. (strictly) Frenchman (native or inhabitant of France)
    Synonym: aîuruîuba
    • [1578, Jean de Léry, chapter XIII, in Histoire d'un voyage fait en la terre du Bresil, autrement dite Amerique [History of a voyage to the land of Brazil, also called America] (in Middle French), La Rochelle: Antoine Chuppin, page 197:
      Que veut dire que vous autres Maïr & Peros (c'eſt à dire François et Portugais) veniez querir de ſi loin du bois pour vous chauffer?
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)]

Further reading

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