Avocados originated in Mexico, or Central and South America, and were cultivated there by pre-Incan races of Peru, and the Mayas of Yucatan and Guatemala. The Aztecs called it aoacatl before the Spaniards changed it to ahuacate and aguacate, and it eventually became avocado in English. Aguacate and palta are names used today for avocado in Latin American countries.