chinampa

[chi-nam-puh]

noun

1. (in Mesoamerica) a long and narrow floating field on a shallow lake bed, artificially built up by layering soil, sediment, and decaying vegetation and used, especially by the Aztecs, to grow crops.

Word History and Origins

Origin of chinampa¹

1830–40; < Mexican Spanish < Nahuatl < chinamitl area enclosed by canes + pa on

Example Sentences

But archaeology has revealed that generations of sustainable chinampa management could be overturned almost overnight.

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Today, the future of chinampa agriculture hinges on a pocket of protected fields stewarded by local farmers in the marshy outskirts of Mexico City.

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These fields are now at risk as demand for housing drives informal settlements into the chinampa zone.

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So do the Mexican chinampa farmers working to restore local food to disenfranchised urban communities.

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We have the ring, we have the chinampa, we have everything,’” said the oldest brother, 25, who wrestles under the name “Ciclónico.”

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