Where does “Mexican” come from?
Mexican comes from Spanish mexicano, formed with the Spanish suffix -ano (from Latin -anus, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European -ós), referring to a person or thing from Mexico.
Mexican (English): A Mexica; an Aztec; The Nahuatl language; A...
Definitions
- A Mexica; an Aztec; The Nahuatl language; A...
Ancestry of “Mexican”, step by step
Mexican traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Romanian Mexic
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Romanian | Mexic | — |
| 2 | French | Mexique | Mexico |
| 3 | Spanish | México | Mexico |
| 4 | Classical Nahuatl | Mēxihco | Mexico |
via Spanish mexicano
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spanish | mexicano | Mexican |
| 2 | Spanish | -año | Used to form form adjectives or nouns derived from Latin |
| 3 | Latin | -ānus | Of or pertaining to; -ian |
via Czech Mexiko
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Czech | Mexiko | — |