I’m sure you’ve heard of “calhandreiras” or “calhandrar” and maybe they even remind you of your neighbors who are always at the window. But do you know where this term comes from?
You have to go back to the 17th or 18th centuries to discover its origins: scholars say it’s related to a kind of potty of the time, the “calhandro” (pots, amphorae or chamber pots), which were poured and washed in the Tagus by a group of servants, mostly black slaves, in the service of the city’s noblest and richest families.
Snooping
Once together by the river, these women would take the opportunity to chat (for a long time), telling and gossiping about everything that was going on in their masters’ houses.
The excitement took over the Tagus quay, the area of the New Bridge, Casa da Índia and Bica do Sapato beach (the main dumping grounds) and there was so much noise that they didn’t go unnoticed.
From then on, the term “calhandreira” became forever associated with those who meddle in other people’s lives.
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