capanga

English

Etymology

From Brazilian Portuguese capanga.

Noun

capanga (plural capangas)

1. A thug or bodyguard in Brazil.
   • 1984, Mario Vargas Llosa, translated by Helen R. Lane, The War of the End of the World, Folio Society, published 2012, page 208:

     She saw six armed riders: she could tell, by the way they were dressed and by the clearly visible brand of the same hacienda on the flanks of all their horses, that they were capangas and not cangaceiros or Rural Police.

   • 1986, Errol Lincoln Uys, Brazil, page 730:

     He had never actually killed a man, though the peasants spoke of at least ten sent to their graves by Joazinho, a reputation the capanga did nothing to discourage.

   • 2010, Nikolas Kozloff, No Rain in the Amazon, page 163:

     Feared by the workers, the capangas intimidate laborers and driver off small farmers with bulldozers.

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Kimbundu kapanga (“armpit”), referencing individuals lazing about save occasional nixers.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈpɐ̃.ɡɐ/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈpɐ̃.ɡɐ/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /kaˈpɐ̃.ɡa/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /kɐˈpɐ̃.ɡɐ/

• Hyphenation: ca‧pan‧ga

Noun

capanga m (plural capangas)

1. (Brazil) thug (a criminal hired to treat others violently or roughly)
   • 2024 December 29, Jean Peixoto, “Esquartejado por ordem da namorada”, in Diário Gaúcho, Porto Alegre, page 11:

     A investigação aponta que o crimen teria ocorrido em uma casa do bairro, onde há um ponto de tráfico. Suspeita-se que o namorado de presa teria sido morto a tiros por capangas a mando dela, por ciúmes.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Further reading

• Nelson de Senna (1921) “Nótulas sobre a toponymia geographica brasilico-indigena em Minas Geraes”, in Revista do Arquivo Público Mineiro, volume 19, Bello Horizonte: Imprensa Official de Minas Geraes, page 306
• “capanga”, in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2025
• “capanga”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Brazilian Portuguese capanga.

Noun

capanga m (plural capangas)

1. (slang, Argentina) boss, foreman

Further reading

• “capanga”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10