A peon is a term with various meanings, depending on the context and culture. Here are some of the most common definitions:
- Compulsory servitude: In Spanish America, a peon was a person held in servitude to work off debts or as a farm worker or unskilled laborer.
- Wage labor: In general, peonage refers to any form of wage labor, financial exploitation, coercive economic practice, or policy in which the victim or a laborer has little control over employment or economic conditions.
- Unskilled worker: In English, a peon may be defined as a person with little authority, often assigned unskilled tasks; an underling or any person subjected to capricious or unreasonable oversight.
- Office boy or attendant: In South Asian dialects of English, a peon is an office boy, an attendant, or an orderly, a person kept around for odd jobs (and, historically, a policeman or foot soldier) .
- Low social standing: In urban slang, a peon is someone with the lowest social standing, one social level below serfs, untouchables, and freshmen.
Overall, the term "peon" often carries a connotation of low status, servitude, or exploitation.
