marijuana (English)

Where does "marijuana" come from?

The English word 'marijuana' was borrowed from the Mexican Spanish 'marihuana'[1]. While first appearing in print around 1874[1], the ultimate origin of the term remains unknown[2]. Its spelling in Spanish was eventually altered by a popular folk etymology that linked the term to the proper name 'María Juana', or 'Mary Jane'[1]. Some linguists have proposed possible roots in Nahuatl or Chinese, though these theories are widely considered to be cases of accidental homophony rather than genuine etymological connections[2].

Open questions

• The proposed connection to the Nahuatl word 'mallihuan' is linguistically impossible and lacks a semantic basis. [2]
• The suggested Chinese origin is likely an instance of accidental phonetic similarity. [2]

Full etymology tree

• marijuana (English), 'The inflorescence of the Cannabis sativa plant, smoked or ingested for euphoric effect.'
  • borrowed marihuana (Mexican Spanish)
    • derived mariguana (Mexican Spanish)
  • influence María Juana (Spanish), 'a female given name, equivalent to English Mary Jane'

Ancestors

• marihuana (Spanish)

Descendants and derived words

• antimarijuana (English)
• marijuanalike (English)
• medible (English)
• medical marijuana (English)
• nonmarijuana (English)
• promarijuana (English)
• marijuana (Italian)

Sources

1. marijuana (English) - Wiktionary
2. marihuana (Spanish) - Wiktionary

Updated August 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris