The word rope means "rope, rope or string." This term comes from the Aztec language Nahualt, which was widely spoken in the pre-Columbian period.
Thus, terms such as "chocolate", "chili" or the "rope" among others emerged.
Etymology of the word mecate
Many of the words that end in -cate in Spanish come from nahualt. This is an Aztec language, specifically from the Nahua tribe, which was used in the Anahuac region in the pre-Columbian period and has been spoken since the 7th century BC.
The nahualt has survived in several Mexican states; however, the number of speakers has dropped to just over a million.
Despite this, Spanish has inherited many words from Nahualt, such as mecate, chocolate, chile, itacate and avocado.
Regarding the term mecate, it comes from the nahualt voice "mecatl", a word that comes from the mixture of two others: "metl", pita plant, and "catl", be; that is, “what is in the pita plant”.
Originally, the term was used to refer to a string made of pita fiber (a typical Mexican plant, with large, lanceolate leaves) or cabuya (plant of the genus Agave).
Likewise, rope was called the set of cords with which the ends of a hammock were tied (canvas that is stretched between two trees or posts to lie on it).
Formerly, in Mexico and specifically in Yucatán, the term had another meaning, that of a square unit of measurement that was equal to one-tenth of an acre, that is, about 400 square meters.
This meaning of the term is still used in certain rural areas of Mexico. Today, this word is used to speak of any type of rope.
The term began to be used in Spanish around the sixteenth century in the territory that today is Mexico and from there it expanded to other Spanish colonies.
In our days, the word "rope" is used in Central America, Venezuela and the Philippines (which was also a colony of Spain).
On the other hand, the word “rope” is found in Latin American idioms, such as:
1 - “It's all rope!”. Mexican expression that means "great" or "excellent".
2 - "My heart beats like a donkey without a rope." Expression of Mérida, Venezuela, which means that you are very excited or that you are in love.
3 - “Pull someone's rope”. Expression used in Latin America to express exaggerated insistence that, at times, is annoying (flattery) in order to obtain the favor of the person being flattered.
4 - "Walk like a donkey without a rope." Expression used in South America to say “without control”.
References
- Rope. Retrieved on May 18, 2017, from spanishdict.com.
- Rope. Retrieved on May 18, 2017, from ¡spanishcentral.com.
- Rope. Retrieved on May 18, 2017, from merriam-webster.com.
- What does rope mean? Retrieved on May 18, 2017, from definitions.net.
- Rope. Retrieved on May 18, 2017, from es.oxforddictionaries.com.
- Rope rein. Retrieved on May 18, 2017, from en.wikipedia.org.
- Hammock. Retrieved on May 18, 2017, from en.wikipedia.org.