Mirim
/ˈmɪrɪm/noun
A small Brazilian stingless bee, or a name used in Brazilian geography and Indigenous-derived place names.
Did you know?Mirim comes from Tupi-Guarani linguistic traditions, where forms such as *mirĩ* mean “small” or “little,” and it appears in Brazilian place names including Lagoa Mirim.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-colonial period
Tupi-Guarani
mirĩ
“Small, little”
16th Century
Old Tupi
mirĩ
“Small or young; a descriptive term recorded by Portuguese missionaries”
Colonial Brazilian Portuguese
Portuguese
mirim
“Small or little, especially in Indigenous-derived names”
19th Century
Brazilian Portuguese
Mirim
“Used in geographic names, including Lagoa Mirim”
Modern English
English
mirim
“A small Brazilian stingless bee; also encountered in proper names borrowed from Brazil”