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I came across the following sentences using the loanword "mulata", describing the film "Mulatas" (Name in Portuguese "Mulatas! Um Tufão Nos Quadris"):

“People think that to be a mulata it’s enough to put on a g-string and samba away” (Ana Pérola, Escola Mocidade Independente de Padre Miguel). “Being a mulata is in the blood. You’re born with it.” (Rose Bombom, Escola Grande Rio)

The synopsis for the film mentions

Anonymous stars of our biggest party, mulatas are the supreme symbol of Carnaval.

I thought that it meant mixed race: Wikipedia redirects from mulata to mulatto, which talks about mixed race individuals. Can it also mean a kind of dancer at Rio de Janeiro’s Carnaval?

I also came across it in Yahoo! Answers

[What do brazilian samba dancers (women) eat and do for exercise?] ... First of all, the genetics help. If you are "mulata" (mixed race) it will be easier.

Did usage of it for a kind of dancer come from the term for mixed race?

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First, this is a Brazilian Portuguese term, and film; not English. Second, there is an archaic word mulatto in English, which was used to describe one or another of those tiresome grades of blackness that Southern USA white people cared so much about. Like quadroon and octoroon. Look'em up. Other than that, though, it's defunct in English. Brazilian culture, however, has quite different "racial" standards. – John Lawler Mar 9 at 2:58
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It's a Spanish or Portuguese word. For it to be English, it'd have to be spelled "mulatta" (the masculine form in English is "mullato", but it's still a Spanish word). So it's off topic here. – Bill Franke Mar 9 at 2:58
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As John Lawler's comment says, there's an English word "mulatto" that comes from Spanish. It means "mixed race: black and white". Because it's derived from Spanish, the proper form would be "mulatta" when referring to a female (Spanish uses the morphemes -/o/ and /-a/ for male and female gender, as in El Niño/La Niña). But this is not a currently politically correct term, so its use in English is not advised. How Brazilian Portuguese speakers use their language is off topic here. – Bill Franke Mar 9 at 3:15
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@AndrewGrimm There isn't an English word for "mulata". It's a concept rooted in Latin American culture. – Pitarou Mar 9 at 3:17
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A mulatto / An albino / A mosquito / My libido / Yeah —Smells like Teen Spirit, Nirvana. – coleopterist Mar 9 at 3:48
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closed as off topic by Bill Franke, FumbleFingers, kiamlaluno, Andrew Leach, coleopterist Mar 9 at 7:54

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