grilagem

Portuguese

Etymology

From grilo +‎ -agem, due to the fact that the false documents are made to look old by having crickets in a container with the land titles. The insects would eat parts of the deeds and produce feces, giving the paper a yellowish appearance.

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ɡɾiˈla.ʒẽj̃/ [ɡɾiˈla.ʒẽɪ̯̃]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ɡɾiˈla.ʒɐ̃j̃/

• Hyphenation: gri‧la‧gem

Noun

grilagem f (plural grilagens)

1. (Brazil) illicit land owning through false property titles
2. (Brazil) a group or behavior related to such activity

Usage notes

Not to be confused with grilhagem (“chain of metal rings”).

Related terms

• grileiro