Chilla

/ˈtʃɪlə/ noun

Definition

A small wild cat native to South America, particularly the Andes region, with thick soft fur, or a variation of the word 'chinchilla.'

Etymology

Spanish word from South American indigenous languages, used by colonial settlers to describe the wild feline. The term may be related to or confused with 'chinchilla,' another small South American mammal.

Kelly Says

The chilla is sometimes mistaken for a chinchilla, but they're totally different—one's a cat, one's a rodent! Language gets fuzzy when Europeans encountered tons of new animals they'd never seen before.

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