A Mesa Is a Table, Geologically Speaking
A mesa is a flat-topped hill with steep sides. Its name is simply the Spanish word for table.
A mesa is an isolated hill with a flat top and steep sides, common in the dry American Southwest. The word is Spanish for table, from Latin *mensa*, and the shape comes from erosion: a hard cap rock resists weathering while the softer layers around it wash away, leaving a level platform standing above the plain. A small mesa is a *butte*; a very large one is a plateau.
- A flat-topped hill. *A desert mesa.*
- Butte — a small one. *A butte.*
- Plateau — a large one. *A plateau.*
- Spanish — *mesa*, a table. *The source.*
- Cap rock — the hard top layer. *Cap rock.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | mesa | A mesa. |
| Plural | mesas | Mesas. |
| Related | butte | A butte. |
| Spanish | mesa | A table. |
| Latin | mensa | A table. |
- The mesa rose above the desert.Landform.
- Mesa means table.Etymology.
- Hard cap rock protects the top.Geology.
Mesa, butte, plateau
- Plateau — a broad elevated flat area, often vast
- Mesa — wider than it is tall, an isolated table
- Butte — taller than it is wide, a narrow tower
- All three share the same cap-rock mechanism
- Erosion turns a plateau into mesas, then buttes
Spanish *mesa*, a table, from Latin *mensa*, a table, adopted in American English in the 1700s.
What is the difference between a mesa and a butte?
Size and proportion. A mesa is wider than it is tall; a butte is a narrower tower, usually what remains after a mesa erodes further.
Why is the top flat?
A hard layer of cap rock resists erosion while the softer rock around it wears away, leaving a level surface.