Batata
/bəˈtɑː.tə/noun
A starchy tuber, especially the sweet potato.
Did you know?Batata comes from a Taíno word for sweet potato, and it later influenced European words like Spanish patata and even English potato through a tangled colonial mix-up.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-Columbian
Taíno
batata
“Sweet potato”
16th Century
Spanish
batata
“Sweet potato, borrowed from Taíno”
16th Century
Spanish
patata
“Potato, formed by blending batata with papa”
16th Century
English
potato
“The potato, borrowed from Spanish patata”
Modern English
English
batata
“Sweet potato, especially in botanical or regional use”