Charm Fowled age 12  of Wichita. Kansas

Why do we spell Brazil with a z?

The French people call America Les Estats Unis. The Germans call their country Deuchland. Our neighbors. it seems call us what they choose. The people of Brazil call their country Estados Unidos do Brasil. The reason why we spell Brazil with a z goes way back into history.

Long. long before Columbus. a hard red wood was known in Europe. It was used to make dyes. It was cherished because its color reminded people of the glowing coals of a brazier. The English and some others called the hard red wood brazilwood. The Spanish and Portuguese spelled it with an s. All dreamed of finding forests of precious brazilwood on islands in the North Atlantic. A lot of time was spent making maps of these imaginary isles. In 1325. somebody made such a map showing a North Atlantis` Island called Brazil. Then Columbus discovered the Antillies.

Much, much later. Brazil was used to name a stretch of land in South America. It was colonized by the Portuguese. Then Brazil broke away from Portuguese rule. The language was of course still Portuguese, the language of the original settlers.  Along with other rights. they had the right to name their country what they wanted.  They named it. in Portuguese. the United States of Brazil. Naturally they spelled Brazil with an s. And naturally we continue to spell it with a z ‑ because that is what the English speaking people have been doing for centuries.