Help to identify a machete-falchion-billhook thing

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Madnumforce

...I can't be absolutely certain the word "machete" derives from "machaira"/"machaera", but it's the best contestant so far... (I had looked in a Spanish etymology dictionary, and it was bullcrap: they claimed it was the contraction of "macho" (man/macho) and "hacheta" (hatchet))...

It seems as, in a more serious Spanish theory (Corominas) a different acceptation of the term "macho" is given, as not being "male" (not man), but a large "mazzo" (mallet), thus with a distinct approach. If you find the time or disposition to have this article translated, you will most probably find it interesting:
http://armasyarmadurasenespaa.blogsp...l-machete.html

Originally Posted by Madnumforce

... In Portuguese, the word for billhook is foice...

Well it depends from which end you pick it from; a foice is at first the highly curved one to cut grass and wheat; a billhook is more like a hafted hook version for pruning, usually called podão or podoa.

Originally Posted by Madnumforce

...There is also faca that you mention, and fação just came to mean "(large) knife", and thus is used to refer to machetes...

The large knife is facão, not fação; a hell of a difference .

Originally Posted by Madnumforce

... So in Brazil today, machetes are called falchions...

Is that so ?