![[P]](http://cache.lexico.com/g/d/premium_mh.gif){kind=small}
Spanish Word of the Day Archive
Sunday February 3, 2008
náhuatl, noun:
the Nahuatl language
Náhuatl is the indigenous Mexican language which was spoken by the Aztecs. It is an important minority language in Mexico and certain areas of Central America today. From the náhuatl words ‘tomatl’, ‘aguacatl’, ‘chilli’, ‘xocoatl’ and ‘coyotl’ Spanish inherited the words listed below:
el tomate
tomato
el aguacate
avocado
el chile
chilli pepper
el chocolate
chocolate
el coyote
coyote
The very first book to be printed on the American continent was a catechism in Náhuatl edited by a Franciscan monk and published in 1539. Today the language is spoken by about a million people in the central plateau of Mexico, and has equal legal status with Spanish.
Content By
© HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 2006. All rights reserved.