Maté: Difference between revisions

'''Maté''' ({{IPAc-en|'|m|ɑː|t|eɪ}} {{respell|MAH-tay}}; Spanish: {{lang|es|mate}} {{IPA|es|ˈmate|}}, Portuguese: {{IPA|pt|ˈmatʃi|}}) is a traditional South American [[caffeine]]-rich infused [[herbal drink]]. It is also known as '''{{lang|pt|chimarrão}}'''{{efn|Portuguese: {{IPA|pt|ʃimɐˈʁɐ̃w|}}}} in Portuguese, '''{{lang|es|cimarrón}}'''{{efn|Spanish: {{IPA|es|simaˈron|}}}} in Spanish, and '''''kaʼay''''' in [[Guarani language|Guarani]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3tYkDwAAQBAJ&dq=ka'ay+mate&pg=PA183 |title=Guarani Linguistics in the 21st Century |date=2017-05-15 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-32257-8 |language=en}}</ref> It is made by soaking dried [[yerba-maté]] (''Ilex paraguariensis'') leaves in hot water and is traditionally served with a metal straw ({{lang|es|[[bombilla]]}}) in a container typically made from a [[calabash gourd]] (also called the {{lang|es|mate}}), but also made from a cattle horn ({{lang|es|guampa}}) in some areas. A very similar preparation, known as {{lang|es|[[mate cocido]]}}, removes some of the plant material and sometimes comes in tea bags. Today, maté is sold commercially in tea bags and as bottled [[iced tea]].

The English word comes from the French {{lang|fr|maté}} and the American Spanish {{lang|es|mate}}, which means both maté and the vessel for drinking it, from the [[Quechuan languages|Quechua]] word {{lang|qu|mati}} for the calabash gourd used to make it.<ref>{{MW|maté}}</ref><ref>[https://www.cnrtl.fr/etymologie/mat%C3%A9/0 Etymology of ''maté''] in the ''[[Trésor de la langue française informatisé]].''</ref>

Both the spellings "maté" and "mate" are used in English. The acute accent indicates that the word is pronounced with two syllables, like [[café]], rather than like the one-syllable English word "[[wikt:mate|mate]]".<ref>Although the order of spelling variants in dictionaries is not necessarily meaningful in any particular case, ''Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged'', the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', ''Collins English Dictionary'', the ''Random House Dictionary of the English Language'' and Lexico.com all give the accented form "maté" before the unaccented form "mate", or refer the reader to see "maté" if they look up "mate".</ref> An [[acute accent]] is not used in the Spanish spelling, because the first syllable is [[Stress in Spanish|stressed]]; "{{lang|es|maté}}" with the stress on the second syllable means "I killed".<ref name=EB/>

Maté is traditionally drunk in a particular social setting, such as family gatherings or with friends. The same gourd ({{lang|es|[[wikt:cuia|cuia]]}}''/mate'') and straw ({{lang|es|[[wikt:bomba|bomba]]/[[wikt:bombilla|bombilla]]}}) are used by everyone drinking. One person (known in Portuguese as the {{lang|es|[[wikt:preparador|preparador]]}}, {{lang|es|[[wikt:cevador|cevador]]}}, or {{lang|es|[[wikt:patrão|patrão]]}}, and in Spanish as the {{lang|es|[[wikt:cebador|cebador]]}}) assumes the task of server, which most of the time is the house owner in family gatherings. Typically, the {{lang|es|cebador}} fills the gourd and drinks the maté completely to ensure that it is free of particulate matter and of good quality. In some places, passing the first brew of maté to another drinker is considered bad manners, as it may be too cold or too strong; for this reason, the first brew is often called {{lang|es|[[wikt:mate del zonzo|mate del zonzo]]}} ({{lang|es|fool´s maté}}). The {{lang|es|cebador}} possibly drinks the second filling as well, if they deem it too cold or bitter. The {{lang|es|cebador}} subsequently refills the gourd and passes it to the drinker to their right, who likewise drinks it all (there is not much; the {{lang|es|mate}} is full of {{lang|es|yerba}}, with room for little water), and returns it without thanking the server; a final {{lang|es|gracias}} or {{lang|pt|obrigado}} (thank you) implies that the drinker has had enough.<ref>[http://www.lanacion.com.ar/1156709-se-toma-un-mate-segunda-parte La Nación newspaper: ¿Se toma un mate? (Segunda parte)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180805112620/https://www.lanacion.com.ar/1156709-se-toma-un-mate-segunda-parte |date=5 August 2018 }} {{in lang|es}}.</ref> The only exception to this order is if a new guest joins the group; in this case the new arrival receives the next maté, and then the {{lang|es|cebador}} resumes the order of serving, and the new arrival will receive theirs depending on their placement in the group. When no more tea remains, the straw makes a loud sucking noise, which is not considered rude. The ritual proceeds around the circle in this way until the maté becomes {{lang|es|[[wikt:lavado|lavado]]}} (washed out), typically after the gourd has been filled about 10 times or more depending on the {{lang|es|yerba}} used (well-aged yerba-maté is typically more potent, so provides a greater number of refills) and the ability of the {{lang|es|cebador}}. When one has had one's fill of maté, they politely thank the {{lang|es|cebador}}, passing the {{lang|es|mate}} back at the same time. It is impolite for anyone but the {{lang|es|cebador}} to move the {{lang|es|bombilla}} or otherwise mess with the {{lang|es|mate}}; the {{lang|es|cebador}} may take offense to this and not offer it to the offender again. When someone takes too long, others in the round ({{lang|es|[[wikt:roda|roda]]}} in Portuguese, {{lang|es|[[wikt:ronda|ronda]]}} in Spanish) will likely politely warn them by saying "bring the talking gourd" ({{lang|es|cuia de conversar}}); an Argentine equivalent, especially among young people, being {{lang|es|no es un micrófono}} ("it's not a microphone"), an allusion to the drinker holding the {{lang|es|mate}} for too long, as if they were using it as a microphone to deliver a lecture.