How the Chile Pepper Got Its Name

Our great American history finds Christopher Columbus on a long and arduous quest for spices. Food has long been a traditional and powerful reason to traverse the expanses of our world and different cultures. One of the great foods Columbus returned with was “aji”, or “child” as it is translated.

On his return to Europe, the “aji” was renamed the “Calcutta Pepper” by Leonard Fuchs, a German botanist who believe that Columbus had found India. And thus it began.

Also, interestingly enough, the original word for chile peppers in the Mexican Indian language, Nahuatl, is “chilli.”

More About the Jalapeno Pepper

• What is a Jalapeno Pepper?
• How the Chile Pepper Got Its Name
• America’s Favorite Chile Pepper
• What makes Peppers Hot?
• Trying to Beat the Heat
• How Do You Measure Jalapeno Heat?
• Taking Advantage of that Chile Pepper Heat
• Jalapeno Pepper Nutritional Information
• A List of Peppers from Mildest to Hottest
• The Pepper We All Know and Love
• Hot Peppers and Nobel Prizes - An Interesting Combination
• How to Roast Dried Peppers
• How to Roast Fresh Jalapeno Peppers
• The Roots of the Chile Pepper
• The Health Benefits of Jalapeno Peppers and other Chili Peppers
• Anatomy of a Jalapeno Pepper