Piñon
/ˈpiːn.jən/noun
The edible seed of certain pine trees, especially those native to the southwestern United States and Mexico.
Did you know?The ñ in piñón developed from the medieval Spanish spelling nn, preserving a sound that evolved from Latin through palatalization.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*pī-nu-
“A resinous or pine-like tree; the reconstructed ancestor associated with later pine words.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
πίτυς (pítus)
“Pine tree; an early Indo-European relative of the Latin pine-word family.”
Classical Latin
Latin
pīnus
“Pine tree.”
Late Latin
Latin
pīniō, pīniōnem
“Pine cone or pine seed, formed from the Latin pine-word family.”
Medieval Spanish
Old Spanish
pinyón
“Pine nut or pine cone; the sequence nn later developed into ñ.”
Modern English
English
piñon
“The edible seed of a pine tree, borrowed from Spanish, especially referring to Southwestern North American varieties.”