the rum soaked fist: internal martial arts forum

Steve James wrote:Chile doesn't have anything to do with chili, though. The word chili (chillee) is Mexican (Nauhuatl). Chile (cheelay) is a country name from a completely different language, and in none of them does it refer to a hot pepper. The confusion started because the Spaniards spelled the name for the county and the name of the pepper the same. Where you're right is that in different areas and countries the words are still spelled the same. I mean, in some places "chile" is how people spell the pepper and the nation. Originally, the Spaniards called the people fro that region the "chili" men. And, it doesn't help that the shape of the country resembles the shape of the pepper.

It's a homophone for many, fer sure. [Edit] But, in Chile, chili is "aji." In Brazil, it's "pimentao."