Pelado

About Pelado

In Mexican society, pelado is "a term said to have been invented to describe a certain class of urban 'bum' in Mexico in the 1920s." It was used, however, much earlier. American travel writer Lewis Garrard used it in his book, "Wah-to-yah and the Taos Trail," his first-hand account of crossing the Plains to Taos, published in 1850. He wrote: "This hos has feelin's hyar," slapping his breast, "for poor human natur in any fix, but for these palous (pelados) he doesn't care a cuss."