azcamolli

Classical Nahuatl

FWOTD – 8 July 2019

Etymology

From āzcatl (“ant”) +‎ mōlli (“stew”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [aːs.kaˈmoː.lːi]

Noun

āzcamōlli (inanimate)

1. The edible larvae of certain kinds of ants.
   • 16C: Bernardino de Sahagún, Florentine Codex, vol. 3. fol. 95v. col. 1.

     ¶ Ay otras hormjgas: que / se llaman Tlilazcatl, o tzi / catl : crianse entierras frias, / son pe quenuellas, son ne / gras, y muerden  y sus hue / vos son blancos: en algunas / partes las comen, y por eſso / las llaman azca molli .

     ¶ There is another type of ant called tlilazcatl or tzicatl: they breed in cold lands and are rather small, they are black and they bite, and their eggs are white, in certain parts they are eaten, and for this reason are called azca molli.

Descendants

• Spanish: escamole

References

• Bernardino de Sahagún (2013) Historia general de las cosas de Nueva España (16th c.), Editorial Porrúa