tatouay

English

Etymology

From a compound word in a Tupi-Guarani language (compare Guarani tatu-ai),[1][2] of which the first element is ultimately from Old Tupi tatu (“armadillo”). Compare Portuguese tatu, French tatou. The second element (ay or ai) may mean "wound" because of a belief that its fat was used on wounds,[1][2] or "colored",[3] or "worthless".[4]

Noun

tatouay (plural tatouays)

  1. An armadillo (Cabassous tatouay), native to tropical South America; the broad-banded armadillo.

Further reading
  • tatouay in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
  1. tatouay in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
  2. Webster's Secondary-School Dictionary (1913)
  3. Rubén Bareiro Saguier, León Cadogan, Literatura guaraní del Paraguay (1980, →ISBN), page 28
  4. The Chambers Dictionary (1998, →ISBN)
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