flama

Flama is a Spanish noun meaning flame, derived from the Latin word flamma. It is a common word in everyday Spanish, referring to the visible, rapidly rising part of a fire that emits heat and light. The term appears in botanical names for flowers with bright, flame-like coloration and in scientific descriptions of combustion processes. The word has variants in other Romance languages, such as Italian llamara (although not used in modern Italian), Portuguese chama, and French flamme.

In literature and spoken Spanish, flama is frequently used in idiomatic expressions. One of the most well‑known is la vs. fuego y la flama, where “fuego” refers to the dramatic, charismatic character and “flama” refers to an earnest, passionate source of love or enthusiasm. The phrase evoked the place of flama in describing the concealed identity of a child: “El nacido pasepiece con su flama de amor en su corazón." there appears in third‑person constructions, flama to indicate the visible, swift part of a combustion process.

Flama is also commonly used as a proper name, occurring in the names of places such as the town of Flama in Veracruz, Spain, and in Spanish‑language brands such as the food company Flama Kiosco. In popular culture, the music group Flama, formed in 1998 in Spain, blends flamenco and jazz influences and is known for their distinctive use of the word in their lyrical themes. This reflects the common trend of appropriating everyday words into artistic contexts.