"Hierba" or "Yerba" - which is the correct spelling?

Question

I've seen it spelled "Hierba" most of the time; occasionally spelled "Yerba".

Grammar is not concerned with the spelling of individual words (beyond that spelling reflecting the correct conjugation or inflection of a word). — chepner, Mar 13 '23 at 13:47

Gustavson · Accepted Answer · 2023-03-14T20:15:53.663

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I don't agree with the other answers. "Yerba" is not an alternative spelling for "hierba." In the Southern cone of South America we use "hierba" to mean "fine grass" and reserve the term "yerba" to refer to a special plant (yerba mate) whose leaves we use to prepare a special, typical tea.

The etymological origin may be the same and "hierba" is certainly a hyperonym, but "yerba" is a distinctly differentiated hyponym.

To endorse my point that, at least in the Southern cone of South America, "yerba" is NOT another spelling for "hierba", in ASALE's Diccionario de Americanismos we can read that "yerba" is a specific plant, not just a variant of "hierba":

yerba.

I. 1. f. Ch, Py, Ar, Ur. Hojas deshidratadas y trituradas del árbol yerba mate que se utilizan para preparar el mate, infusión.

Py, Ar. yerba mate.

I found Gorpik's answer particularly interesting in that it mentions the famous song by Serrat (those of us who love "mate" would not object to the metaphor of the loved one's name tasting like "yerba mate"). My impression is that the spelling of "hierba" with "y" is infrequent (and nonexistent in these countries). Here's a RAE tweet I found which refers to its minority usage:

edited Mar 14 '23 at 20:15

answered Mar 13 '23 at 10:56

Gustavson

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Maybe the term "South America" is too wide: I am not sure if this is the only meaning in Colombia or Venezuela (for instance), where mate infusion is not so common. – Pablo Lozano Mar 13 '23 at 13:54
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What is wrong to me is this assertion, even if taken from a dictionary: La palabra hierba, escrita "yerba" en los países de Sur América (Argentina, Chile, Paraguay y Uruguay), viene del latín herba. We don't write "yerba" to mean "hierba." – Gustavson Mar 13 '23 at 14:48
As another inhabitant of the Southern Cone, on the Chilean side, I confirm that this is, indeed, the common use here; although I always thought that the "Y" spelling is simply a variation on the "Hi-" spelling. – Conrado Mar 14 '23 at 14:25
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I don't know if "I don't agree with the other answers" is the way to go unless you have reliable sources outside your anecdotal evidence. The actual RAE dictionary shows "yerba" as an alternate spelling of "hierba", the "diccionario breve de mexicanismos" shows yerba as an alternate term for marujiana or used for cooking herbs, etc. This means that different countries MAY have different ADDITIONAL uses for "yerba" but, in general, it's an alternate spelling of hierba. – kirgod Mar 14 '23 at 14:50
@terdon I edited my answer to reply to the comments above. – Gustavson Mar 14 '23 at 17:46
@kirgod Idem above. – Gustavson Mar 14 '23 at 17:47
Thank you! OK, so at least in those four countries, that seems clear. It is a little misleading that you're only quoting the first two definitions though. The rest of the entries make it quite clear that the use varies a lot by country and some, including some South American countries, use it in common terms like yerba mala. So it is an alternative spelling, it just isn't one in the specific dialects of Ar, Ur, Py and Ch. – terdon Mar 14 '23 at 18:55
@terdon I only quoted the two acceptations of "yerba" when used alone (and obviously left out one that referred to a spider!). As for the combinations, the spelling does in fact vary, but we will never say something like, Estoy sentado sobre la yerba (to mean, I'm sitting on the grass). The famous book by Walt Whitman will never be found to be entitled "Hojas de yerba" but "Hojas de hierba". In my experience, "yerba" may only be used in some compound words. – Gustavson Mar 14 '23 at 19:44
And the famous movie with Warren Beatty and Nathalie Wood is "Esplendor en la hierba" (NOT Esplendor en la yerba, which would make me laugh out loud). – Gustavson Mar 14 '23 at 19:50
The specific plant used to make the beverage seems to be Ilex paraguariensis https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilex_paraguariensis – mdewey Mar 15 '23 at 16:18
That is the scientific name. – Gustavson Mar 15 '23 at 16:44

Diego · Answer 2 · 2023-03-13T07:11:53.233

Ambas son validas / Both are valid

Algunas respuestas generales;

La grafía hierba es la más generalizada en la lengua culta; pero también es válida la variante yerba: «Descalzos sus pies para recibir el rocío que todavía impregnaba la yerba»

Diccionario panhispánico de dudas

https://www.rae.es/dpd/hierba

¿Por qué entonces se escribe yerba? La palabra hierba, escrita "yerba" en los países de Sur América (Argentina, Chile, Paraguay y Uruguay), viene del latín herba. Muchas palabras latinas que tienen una e en la primera sílaba, transforman esa e en ie cuando pasan al español.

Por ejemplo;

ferrum -> hierro // servus -> siervo // tempus -> tiempo.

Etimología de yerba

http://etimologias.dechile.net/?yerba

the e > ie shift isn't to do with the first syllable, but to do with the stressed syllable — Tristan, Mar 14 '23 at 09:13

score 3 · Answer 3 · answered Mar 14 '23 at 08:44

The current entry in the DLE spells the difference: yerba is an alternate spelling for hierba and, additionally, the name of the yerba mate.

We can find an example for the alternate spelling in Tu nombre me sabe a yerba, a well known song by Joan Manuel Serrat. But, even if that is the original title, it is so unusual that many people write Tu nombre me sabe a hierba and there are several covers of the song which use that spelling.

In summary: the yerba mate is almost always written yerba, and yerba can also be used as an alternate spelling for hierba, even though it is not so usual.

score 1 · Answer 4 · answered Mar 13 '23 at 17:01

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Se nota que no hay una página separada en Spanishdict para ''yerba'', pero dice que se puede escribir ''yerba'' en lugar de ''hierba''.

Mi impresión es que la hierba es la que crece en un césped o un prado mientras que la yerba es ''herb'', pero podría depender de la región.

answered Mar 13 '23 at 17:01

Hollis Williams

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El lenguaje español tiene 23 academias reguladoras del lenguaje. Spanishdict no es una de ellas. Es más confiable utilizar diccionarios de estas academias (el más conocido siendo el de la RAE) para ver sobre ortografías alternas y regionalismos. – kirgod Mar 14 '23 at 14:52

score 1 · Answer 5 · edited Mar 14 '23 at 20:17

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hierba= grass, plant, pasture.

yerba= a specific tea from South America

edited Mar 14 '23 at 20:17

Lambie

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answered Mar 14 '23 at 00:57

lykkos

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That seems to duplicate information already in other answers. Can you edit and expand it to give sources? – mdewey Mar 14 '23 at 13:26

score 0 · Answer 6 · answered Mar 15 '23 at 22:39

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Hierba is a vegetal phytogeny (not herbs but exactly weeds) while Yerba is the processed product of the Mate plant which are actually bushes not a tree or weeds.

answered Mar 15 '23 at 22:39

ogeid

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It is quite hard to understand this. I do not think phytogeny is the right word at all. Why do you think grass is a weed (=plant in the place where the gardener did not want it.) And finally the yerba plant is technically a tree although its growth starts of rather shrub-like. – mdewey Mar 17 '23 at 13:34

"Hierba" or "Yerba" - which is the correct spelling?

6 Answers6