milonga

Borrowed from Spanish milonga, in turn from Brazilian Portuguese milonga (“chant”). Theories connect the word to the nineteenth century slave trade between South America and Africa. The ultimate source is unknown, but may relate to Kimbundu mulonga (“word”), or Kongo nlonga or Punu mulonga (“line, row”) in reference to dancers.

milonga (countable and uncountable, plural milongas)

1. A form of music originating in Argentina, Uruguay and Southern Brazil
   • 2007 January 26, Gia Kourlas, “Watching a History Lesson That’s Told Through Tango”, in New York Times‎:

     In “Gath & Chaves,” a section named after a department store, women pose as mannequins but come to life to dance a tango, a waltz, a milonga and, finally, a mystifying number called “Hound Dog.”

2. A dance which accompanies this music

• milonguero

• “milonga, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

• loaming

Borrowed from Spanish milonga.

• IPA^(key): /miˈlɔŋ.ɡaː/

milonga f (plural milonga's, diminutive milongaatje n)

1. milonga, style of dance related to tango
2. tango session
3. place for dancing tango

Perhaps of African origin and from Kimbundu milonga (“issue, argument”).^[1]

• Hyphenation: mi‧lon‧ga

milonga f (plural milongas)

1. milonga (music)
2. milonga (dance)

• milongueiro

Related to Portuguese milonga, perhaps both ultimately of African origin and from Kimbundu milonga (“issue, argument”).^[1]

milonga f (plural milongas)

1. milonga (music)
2. milonga (dance)
3. (colloquial) a lie or falsehood

• “milonga”, 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