Emiliano Zapata

1 6.8

A Mexican leader who fought for land rights for farmers during the Mexican Revolution

proper noun
/ˌeɪmiˈljɑːnoʊ zɑˈpɑːtə/

: Emiliano Zapata

Many people respect Emiliano Zapata for fighting for land and farmers' rights.

Examples

The influence of Emiliano Zapata can still be seen in Mexican social movements today.
The legacy of Emiliano Zapata continues to inspire activists today.
A statue of Emiliano Zapata stands proudly in the center of Cuernavaca.
Did Emiliano Zapata really believe in land reform?
Many people respect Emiliano Zapata for fighting for land and farmers' rights.
A statue of Emiliano Zapata stands proudly in the center of Cuernavaca.
The influence of Emiliano Zapata can still be seen in Mexican social movements today.

Surface Forms

Emiliano Zapata main

Morphology

Emiliano + Zapata

This is a proper name referring to a specific historical person; the constituent tokens 'Emiliano' and 'Zapata' are personal name forms with no compositional lexical meaning. Knowing those name parts does not allow a B1 learner to infer the biographical meaning ('Mexican revolutionary leader'), so the expression is non-compositional and unpredictable from its parts.

Etymology

Emiliano Zapata was a Mexican leader in the early 1900s who often rode on horseback with farmers and fought so they could keep their land. Today his name stands for 'land reform' and support for rural people, so saying Emiliano Zapata often means his ideas and struggle, not just the man.