buró

Buró is a term used in Spanish and Portuguese to refer to a bureau, office, or desk. In everyday language, buró most often denotes a piece of furniture—a writing desk or a small cabinet with drawers commonly found in bedrooms or offices. In institutional contexts, the word can designate an office or department within a government or organization, as in buró de estadísticas.

Etymology and spelling: The word comes from the French bureau, meaning desk or office, and was borrowed into Iberian languages through contact with French. In Spanish, the spelling buró carries an accent on the final syllable to indicate stress.

Usage and examples: The term is widely used across Spanish-speaking countries to describe both furniture and administrative offices. A well-known example is Buró de Crédito, the Mexican credit bureau that collects and reports credit information about individuals and companies. In general, buró can denote an official office or agency within a larger structure, such as a cultural or statistics bureau.

See also: Bureau; Escritorio; Gabinete.