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Where does the word "yerba mate" come from? It comes from Spanish yerba, and was adopted directly into English (1900s).
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Where does the word "yerba mate" come from? It comes from Spanish yerba, and was adopted directly into English (1900s).
Yerba mate’s story begins in Spanish: yerba meant “herb, or a cup.” Herb, combined with Quechua mati (a cup or gourd), naming both the plant and vessel. It reached English by 1900s as yerba mate. Spanish 'herb' plus Quechua 'mati', gourd; drunk through a metal straw, the bombilla. Today, yerba mate means a caffeinated herbal tea traditionally brewed from the yerba mate plant in South America.
- Stage 1 · Spanish · 1500s yerba "herb, or a cup", herb, combined with Quechua mati (a cup or gourd), naming both the plant and vessel.
- Stage 2 · English · 1900s yerba mate "a caffeinated South American herbal tea", Spanish 'herb' plus Quechua 'mati', gourd; drunk through a metal straw, the bombilla.