arpillera
English
Etymology
From Spanish arpillera (literally “burlap”).
Noun
arpillera (plural arpilleras)
- A patchwork picture made predominantly by women in Chile, especially as a form of underground protest during the military dictatorship (1973–90) of Augusto Pinochet.
Related terms
Catalan
Etymology
From the same source as xarpellera.
Pronunciation
Noun
arpillera f (plural arpilleres)
- burlap, sackcloth
- Synonym: xarpellera
References
- “arpillera”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
- “arpillera” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Spanish
Etymology
Most likely from the same source as French serpillière and Aragonese sarpillera.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /aɾpiˈʝeɾa/ [aɾ.piˈʝe.ɾa] (Equatorial Guinea, most of Spain and Latin America)
- IPA(key): /aɾpiˈʎeɾa/ [aɾ.piˈʎe.ɾa] (rural northern Spain, Andes Mountains, Paraguay, Philippines)
- IPA(key): /aɾpiˈʃeɾa/ [aɾ.piˈʃe.ɾa] (Buenos Aires and environs)
- IPA(key): /aɾpiˈʒeɾa/ [aɾ.piˈʒe.ɾa] (elsewhere in Argentina and Uruguay)
- Rhymes: -eɾa
- Syllabification: ar‧pi‧lle‧ra
Noun
arpillera f (plural arpilleras)
Further reading
- “arpillera”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025