Glossary
05 Mar, 2013 | Bolivian Express
In this section you will find English translations to some of the Spanish, Aymara and Quechua terms used in our articles.
Feel free to contribute to this page with your own definitions in the comments section.
Aguas vertientes: Spring Waters
Ajayu: Soul, Spirits
Altéños: Citizens of El Alto
Altiplano: The Andean high plateau extending through the western region of Bolivia
Ají: Local term for combination of spices and hot peppers from the Capsicum family. Can be ground dry or prepared in a paste
Anticuchos: Sliced and skewered beef hearts, a traditional late-night meal in the Andes, typically served with potatoes and a spicy peanut aji
Anticuchera: Seller of skewered and thinly-sliced cow hearts
Aptaphi: Andean buffet. It is a meal collected and shared in community, being it a group of friends, family or a larger organization
Aruskipasipxañanaka: ‘It is my personal knowledge that it is necessary for all of us, including you, to make the effort to communicate’
Ayllu: Political, social, economic, and administrative unit of the Andes
Bolsita: ‘little bag’, a common term to denote the soft plastic bags in which drinks are sold across the city.
Bulto: Bundle
Camba: Colloquial term for someone from the eastern lowlands of Bolivia, more specifically from Santa Cruz
Campesino: Working native of a rural area
Campo: Countryside
Centavo: Cent
Ch’alla: Traditional ritual to bless a place
Chicha: A drink made out of corn
Chifa: Chines restauran
Chiflera: Women who sell medicinal herbs
Chiwiña: Aymara word for ‘meeting place’
Chola: Indigenous woman in traditional dress and bowler hat
Cholita: Affectionate diminutive for chola
Chuño: Freeze-dried product obtained by exposing a variety of potatoes to very low night tempera- tures, freezing them, and subsequently expos- ing them to the intense sunlight of the day
Chuyma: Aymara word for heart
Copa América: A football tournament held every four years in which 12 national teams from across South America come head to head
Comida rápida: Fast food
Crema de leche: Cream skimmed from milk
Criollo: Used in Colonial times to denote a person born in South America from European parents
Dinero: Money
Estatua viviente: Living statue
Extranjero/a: Foreigner
Extraño/a: Strange
Fácil: Easy
Farmacia: Pharmacy
Feria 16 de julio: El Alto Market, said to be the largest fleamarket in South America
Fiesta: Celebration
Gota de leche: Drop of milk
Guapa: Term used to refer to an attractive woman
Guato/huato/wato: Colloquial term for shoelace
Hermana: Sister
Hogares de niños: Orphanage
Huayño: Melancholy rhythm played using wind instruments, popular across the the Andean
Huevitos: Small eggs
Indigenista catarista: An activist for indigenous culture
Indio: Pejorative term to refer to socio-ethnic indigenous people, sometimes appropriated by indigenistas
Institutos: Educational institutes (in the context of the piece)
Islas flotantes: Floating islands
Joven: Young men
Kallawaya: Traditional healer
K’ehua: Aymara word describing neither man nor woman
Kullawada: An Aymara traditional dance
Lancha: Motor boat
Llajwa: Spicy Bolivian sauce
Loco: Crazy
Lunes: Monday
Lustrabotas: Shoeshine boy or girl
Mallku: Meaning condor, it is the name given to community leaders in Aymara societies
Mate de coca: Coca tea
Matrimonio: Wedding
Mesero: Waiter
Micro: Bus
Morenada: Afro-Bolivian music from the Andes
Munaña (Querer), Waylluña (Amar): Love. In Spanish, there is a difference between Querer which is ‘To want’ and the stronger term Amar ‘To love’
Paceño/a: Of or relating to the city of La Paz
Pachakuti: Time/space upheaval
Pajpakus: Derived from the quechua word for owl, it is the name given to wandering salesmen renowned for their oratory skills
Parche natural: A natural herb paste
Personaje: Character
Pesq'e con leche y ahogado: Quinoa based dish with milk and a rich and spicy sauce
Pijcheo: The ceremonial chewing of coca leaves
Pollera: Long, flowing one-piece skirts, sometimes embroidered, worn by cholitas
Pongo: Indigenous domestic servant
Preste: Big party offered normally by a wealthy member of a community, most of the time it is part of a larger celebration such as Gran Poder festival
Productores: Reproducers
Puertita: Small door
Rebaja: Discount
Salto: Jump
Servir: Servirse is a colloquial expression in Spanish which refers to the act of someone helping themselves to something
Sonrisa: Smile
Sirwiñaku: Probation period before marriage in which the bride-to-be lives for some time in the house of her in-laws
Talleres: Workshop
Tarijeños: From the city of Tarija
Taxista: Taxi driver
Toma: Take
Totora: A reed found in Lake Titicaca, used to build the floating islands
Uña de gato: Woody vine found in the jungle used to cure diseases such as cancer
Valle: Valley
Wawa: Aymara term for baby or small child
Willakuti: 'Return of the sun,' in Aymara
Yapa: Bonus goods obtained from a seller a part of the haggling process
Yatiri: Traditional healer
