"I just saw in a book about Aragon, Spain, that villagers used the
word "amo" there for a landowner who hired workers for the
cultivation of market crops. In the Philippines, hacienda/plantation
workers also refer to their planter-employer as "amo," and it's very
likely that it has been introduced there by the Spanish. The term
has also a much wider application, and is used to refer to an
employer to whom one is linked through personalized ties. My question
is: do you know if the term "amo" is widely used in the
Spanish-speaking world, to denote employer or landowner? Is it used
in Argentina? Does it have the connotation of a "feudal"
relationship?"
My not very well-informed opinion is that it is widely used and
specifically connotes "master," i.e., the employer in a coerced-labor
situation (which of course may or may not be "feudal" in the strict
sense - plantations being a case in point); I don't believe it has
ever been used much in Argentina, where the usual term is "patro'n".
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Fred Murphy Center for Studies of Social
Change Ph.D. candidate in 64 University Place, 4th Floor
political science and New York, New York 10003-4520
historical studies Tel. (212) 677-6317 or 229-5312
New School for Fax: (212) 477-5409 or 304-9106
Social Research Internet: murphy@cssc.newschool.edu
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