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Around 500 years ago the Spanish brought horses to the Americas and in the ensuing mêlée enough of those horses escaped captivity that they reestablished themselves as wild animals in the new world. Evidently more than 50 million years ago they evolved here but had become extinct.
Although the name for wild horses in North America only emerged into English as mustang in 1808 this name was actually in the works by those same Spanish speakers before they ever shipped the horses across from Europe.
Back in the 13th century King Alfonso X have his royal approval to a group called mesta. This is sometimes now explained as “an association of livestock owners” but the reason the king cared was because this association had the job of enforcing tax collection among the owners of livestock.
The reason the group was called mesta was because they took their name from Latin and a phrase animalia mixta. After all these centuries it’s still obvious that this meant “a mix of different animals.” The name mesta came from mixta.
In order to collect taxes for the king mesta kept track of the various herds of animals.
Not only did domestic animals sometimes run away and become wild, but sometimes wild animals came in and joined up with the domestic animals. Clearly this was a profitable happenstance for both the owners and the king.
Wild horses such as these began to be called mestengo due to their association with the mesta but the meaning of mestengo was “stray” or “having no master.” The Spanish who came to the Americas with their horses also brought this terminology and another similar, synonymous word mostrenco which was eventually picked up in English, as I said, first showing up in the written record in 1808.
In 1964 the Ford motor company came out with a car they called the mustang. I don’t suppose they spent much time looking into the etymology of mustang. With an etymology that boils down to “without an owner” one might think such a name would encourage car theft. I don’t suppose though that people stealing these mustangs for joy rides were too deeply versed in etymology either.
For five years Charles Hodgson has produced Podictionary – the podcast for word lovers. He’s also the author of several books including his latest History of Wine Words – An Intoxicating Dictionary of Etymology from the Vineyard, Glass, and Bottle. Add a Comment
Sweet! I had a Mustang. I miss that car. I drive a "family car" now.