Lascar,

Lascar, in the East Indies, signifies properly a camp-follower, but is generally applied to native sailors on board of British ships, as, for instance, the large steamers of the Peninsular and Oriental Company. The Lascars make good seamen, being both temperate and docile. They are mostly Mohammedans, and speak, besides their native dialects, a lingua franca based on Hindustani, with English, Arabic, and other words.