Maya
/ˈmaɪ.ə/noun
A member of a Mesoamerican people, or the family of languages they speak.
Did you know?In Sanskrit, māyā means “illusion” or “magic,” but the Mesoamerican Maya name has a completely separate origin, so the spooky overlap is real but accidental.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Mesoamerica
Maya
Maya
“A name used by the people and later applied by outsiders to the civilization and language family”
16th Century
Spanish
maya
“An ethnonym recorded by Spanish chroniclers for the people of Yucatán”
19th Century
English
Maya
“The established English name for the people, civilization, and languages”
Modern English
English
Maya
“A member of the Maya peoples; also the Maya civilization or its languages”