enchilada

Forms

enchilada f (plural enchiladas)^[1]

Etymology

It is from Spanish enchilar (“to season with chilli”): the verb's feminine past participle, used as a noun.^[2][3][4] The verb is formed on the noun chile “chilli pepper” with en- and -ar.^[5] The noun is recorded from 1521 and comes from Classical Nahuatl chīlli (“chilli pepper”).^[6][7]

The English enchilada was taken from Mexican Spanish and is recorded in 1876, and in a longer phrase, naming tortillas, by 1861.^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record in the CDH is in José Tomás de Cuéllar's Historia de Chucho el Ninfo (Mexico, 1871), which names las incitantes enchiladas “the tempting enchiladas” among the traditional foods of a feast.^[9] In 1880 a Mexican text has almorzaba unas enchiladas y unos frijoles fritos “he lunched on some enchiladas and fried beans”.^[10]

Semantic evolution

The Academy's dictionary took the word in 1884, as a tortilla or maize bread of Mexico seasoned with chilli or pepper.^[11] Twentieth-century dictionaries of Americanisms describe a tortilla dipped in chilli and rolled around cheese, potato, onion, sausage or pork, in Mexico and Guatemala, and Santamaría calls it a food of the common people in Mexico.^[12][13] García Icazbalceta noted that the Guatemalan enchiladas Batres describes were closer to the Mexican envueltos.^[14]

In Costa Rica the word names a savoury pastry of wheat flour filled with meat or potatoes.^[2][15] From the verb's sense “to irritate”, enchilada also means anger or irritation in Mexico, and in Guatemala and Costa Rica the burning feeling in the mouth or eyes caused by chilli, onion or garlic.^[15][16]

Timeline

• 1861 – English records tortillas enchiladas.^[8]
• 1871 – first Spanish record, in Cuéllar's Historia de Chucho el Ninfo.^[9]
• 1876 – first record of enchilada in English.^[8]
• 1880 – a Mexican text mentions enchiladas and fried beans for lunch.^[10]
• 1884 – the Academy's dictionary records it as a Mexican tortilla seasoned with chilli.^[11]
• 1904 – Robelo derives it from enchilar.^[3]
• 1917 – Alemany also records the stake in the card game tresillo.^[17]

Meanings

Noun

1. (Mexico, Central America) An enchilada: a rolled tortilla of maize filled with meat and covered with a tomato and chile sauce: Pidió unas enchiladas verdes con pollo.^[2][15][1]
2. (Mexico, Central America) A fried maize tortilla topped with minced meat, egg, cheese, chilli and vegetables.^[15]
3. (Costa Rica) A savoury pastry (pastel) of wheat flour filled with meat or potatoes, usually spiced with chilli.^[2][15][1]
4. (Mexico, Central America) Anger, irritation; the act of irritating someone (enchilar).^[2][15]
5. (Guatemala, Costa Rica) A burning or stinging feeling in the mouth or eyes, caused by chilli, onion or garlic.^[15]

Related words

• chile
• enchilar
• tortilla
• English enchilada

Usage notes

The DLE also has a separate enchilada, with no etymology given: a stake that each player puts into the pool in the card game tresillo, won by whoever wins the solo or another agreed play.^[2][18][17]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. enchilada
3. ^ a b Robelo, Cecilio A. (1904), Diccionario de aztequismos, o sea catálogo de las palabras del idioma náhuatl, azteca o mexicano, introducidas al idioma castellano bajo diversas formas, Cuernavaca: Imprenta del autor, p. s.v. enchilada
4. ^ Wikcionario (Spanish Wiktionary), es.wiktionary.org
5. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. enchilar
6. ^ Corominas, Joan (1973), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. chile
7. ^ Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. chile
8. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
9. ^ a b Real Academia Española (2013–), Corpus del Diccionario histórico de la lengua española (CDH), version 3.1, https://apps.rae.es/CNDHE, p. s.v. enchilada
10. ^ a b Boyd-Bowman, Peter (2003), Léxico hispanoamericano 1493–1993, ed. Ray Harris-Northall and John J. Nitti, New York: Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, p. s.v. enchilada
11. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1884), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 12th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de D. Gregorio Hernando (the first Academy edition with etymologies), p. 425
12. ^ Malaret, Augusto (1946), Diccionario de americanismos, 3rd ed., Buenos Aires: Emecé, p. 388
13. ^ Santamaría, Francisco J. (1942), Diccionario general de americanismos, 3 vols., México: Pedro Robredo, p. 602
14. ^ García Icazbalceta, Joaquín (1899), Vocabulario de mexicanismos comprobado con ejemplos y comparado con los de otros países hispano-americanos, México: La Europea, p. s.v. enchilada
15. ^ a b c d e f g Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2010), Diccionario de americanismos, Lima: Santillana; online at https://www.asale.org/damer, p. s.v. enchilada
16. ^ Ramos y Duarte, Félix (1895), Diccionario de mejicanismos, México: Imprenta de Eduardo Dublán, p. 231
17. ^ a b Alemany y Bolufer, José (1917), Diccionario de la lengua española, Barcelona: Ramón Sopena, p. 657
18. ^ Moliner, María (2007), Diccionario de uso del español, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. enchilada