You’ll never look at an avocado the same way again.
What Does Avocado Mean?
If literally translated, avocado means testicles!
Yes, that’s right! The most trending, tasty and healthy superfood is actually named after the male reproductive organ! Indigenous people of Mexico and Central America discovered avocados in 500 BC, around the time when the place was filled with Nahuatl-speaking Aztecs. After discovering this fruit, the Aztecs named it āhuacatl, which means both “testicles” and “avocado.”
Seems very obvious now that you think of it, right? It is likely that the texture, shape, and size of the fruit, and the way they hang in pairs from the tree were the inspiration behind the name.
The name evolved shortly after Spanish conquerors arrived and began to adapt to Mesoamerican culture. A lot of words were revised and simplified during this time. This is when āhuacatl became “aguacate,” which is the present-day Spanish loanword for avocado, so the association with testicles went away with the name change.
Good thing they changed it, right? Now you won’t think about testicles every time you buy avocados.
We don’t want to ruin your favourite snack…. but people have speculated that guacamole translates to “testicle sauce.” That’s not it… the Nahuatl word, mōlli, means “sauce.” Mesoamerican language specialists have debunked this myth already but it has to be a crazy coincidence, right?
All that matters is that our favourite avocado smoothie is not actually a testicle smoothie!
