Today, I learned an interesting fact about the origin of the word alligator. Contrary to popular belief, it does not come from the Latin word alligare meaning “to bind”. In fact, the real story behind the name is much more fascinating. It actually stems from the Spanish phrase el lagarto del Indias, which translates to “the lizard of the indies”. Over time, the initial “el” was altered to “a-” and a colloquial “-r” was added at the end, similar to how words like “feller” and “tater” were derived from “fella” and “potato”. The Spanish word lagarto itself is derived from the Latin word lacertus, which also meant “lizard” and is the root of the word “lizard”. The etymology of lacertus is uncertain, but some theories suggest a possible connection to the word for “upper arm”, larcertum, due to a perceived similarity in movement.
