I was recently asked by a reader (who had obviously done her homework!) why the word “Guanche” is used in reference to all Canarian aborigines, when it was her understanding that only the native inhabitants of Tenerife were true Guanches.

She is quite right although the generalised use of the word to describe the pre-Hispanic populations on all the islands dates back to the early colonists. Guanche is actually an abbreviation of “guanchinerfe” which means “man from Tenerife”, in turn derived from the two names by which the island was known, Achinech and Tener-Ife, meaning White Mountain or Snow Mountain in reference, of course, to the Teide or Echeyde as it was originally called.

If you are curious about the names given by the ancient Guanches to the other islands, here they are: Gran Canaria was Tamarán (meaning “Land of the Brave”), Lanzarote was Titeroygatra, La Palma was Benahoare (“My Land”), El Hierro was Ecerós (“Strong”) and Fuerteventura was Maxorata (in contemporary Spanish, the adjective is “Maxorero”). La Gomera is the only island that retains its original name, akin to the name of a Berber tribe known as Ghomerah.

La Gaceta Hotel