Having blogged samples of my books on English place names and also examined the etymologies of the nations of the world and their respective capitals I thought it time I cast my net a little wider. As English place names share some links to other tongues it would be interesting to see if any of the elements contributing to our place names could be found elsewhere. Continuing an alphabetical tour of the world and a look at the largest Sri Lankan towns and cities.
Colombo has a couple of theories as to the origins of its name. As it was first recorded as such by the Portuguese, it could be they have taken it from the classic Sinhala Kolon thota or 'port on the river Kelani'. Alternatively this could be Sinhalese kola amba thota or 'harbour with green mango trees'.
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia has a number of tales told about it. One speaks of Diya Wala, which translates as 'depression filled with water', while another says it refers to a forest of lime trees.
Sri Jayawardhanapura translates as 'resplendent city of growing victory' following its conquest by the Jaffna kingdom in 1391.
Negombo is a Tamil name, where Neerkolombu was corrupted by the Portuguese. The Sinhalese name for this place is Migamuva or 'village of the honeycomb'. Both names refer to the legend of King Kavantissa's army finding honey bees in a canoe on the shore.
Kandy is an Anglicised version of Sinhalese Kanda Uda Rata or 'the land on the mountain'.
Galle was known as Gimhathitha in early records, this probably from classical Sinhalese meaning 'port near the river Gin'. The present name likely comes from gaala or 'where cattle are herded'. While herds of cattle do not grace the city, bullock carts are a common sight in the area.
Trincomalee is an Anglicised version of the Tamil Thiru-kona-malai or 'lord of the sacred hill'. Other translations suggest 'sacred peaked hill' or 'three peaked hill'.
Batticaloa is from Portuguese, a translation of the original Tamil name of Matakkalappu or 'muddy swamp' - it would be difficult to find a swamp which wasn't muddy.
Jaffna is a corrupted form of Yalpanam, itself from a legend. A king is said to have visited a blind musician, a Panan, who was skilled in playing the Yal. So delighted was the kind he gifted a sandy plain to the man who went to his home and brought all his people to live here.
Ratnapura translates, in both Tamil and Sinhala, as 'city of gems' and remains the traditional centre for trading gems in Sri Lanka.
Sri Pada or Adam's Peak is a mountain which is held sacred by Buddhists as it is said to have a rock formation known as Sri Pada, the Sanskrit for 'sacred footprint'. Clearly it is the footprint of Adam when referring to Christian or Islamic tradition.
Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.
Showing posts with label Gems. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gems. Show all posts
Sunday, 5 April 2020
Sunday, 30 January 2011
Etymological Gems
Following on from previous weeks when I have reproduced the research behind various articles on etymology, I came across the following snippets of information. I have made no notes regarding publication, nor do I remember being asked to write anything or submitting a single paragraph on the subject. I'm now wondering if I have upset an editor by failing to submit anything - in which case I shall probably regret this post!
agate - the English word is from the Latin achates or Greek akhates, both understood as 'the diminutive one'.
amethyst - is from Latin amethystus itself from the Greek amethustos which translates as 'anti-intoxicant', for amethyst was once thought to be a remedy for intoxication.
beryl - can be traced back to Greek beyllos and Sanskrit vaidurya, which is thought to be ultimately from the city of Velur in southern India. The word is also used in Middle Latin berillus, Middle High German berille and French besicles all referring to 'spectacles', all adding support to the idea that beryl was first used for the lens in eyeglasses.
coral - is derived from a Semitic word, seen in Hebrew goral, meaning simply 'pebble'.
cornelian - a variety of chalcedony, derived from Old French cornelle 'cherry' and thus 'cherry-coloured'.
diamond - it may seem strange to suggest this most desirable of gemstones has an idetical etymology to the word 'adamant' yet this is just the case. Diamond came to English from Old French diamant, itself from Latin diamas and Greek adamas meaning 'unbreakable, unyielding'.
garnet - can be traced back to the Old French gernat meaning 'dark red', although it may be even older and share an origin with pomegranate and refer to the shape and colour of the seeds and pulp as being similar.
jade - comes to English from the Spanish (piedra de) ijada meaning '(stone of the) flank', this refers to it being held to be a cure for renal colic.
jet - came to English from Old French jaiet, Latin gagates, and Greek gagates lithos meaning 'the stone of Gages', the name of a town and river in Lycia associated with the stone. It is not used a colour until the fifteenth century.
onyx - is a Latin word derived from the Greek onux 'claw, fingernail'. Hence there is a similarity drawn between the white vein on a pink background found in onyx and the similar marking on a fingernail.
opal - a word which can be traced through Latin opalus and Greek opallios to Sanskrit upala which simply means 'gem, precious stone'.
pearl - there are two equally possible origins for this word, depending upon if this referred to the pearl or to the oyster. If it comes from the pearl, then this would be Vulgar Latin pernula 'sea-mussel' and also used for 'ham' to refer to the shape of the shell. Alternatively it comes from the same source as 'pear', referring to the shape of the pearl.
rhinestone - is literally 'the stone of the Rhine', a literal translation of the French caillou du Rhin and referring to where this artificial gem was first produced near Strasbourg.
ruby - is from Latin rubeus 'red'.
sapphire - another which can be traced back to Sanskrit, here sanipriya meant 'sacred to the planet Saturn'.
topaz - was claimed by Pliny to be named from an island off the coast of Arabia, where it was said to be mined. However most linguists point to Sanskrit tapas meaning 'heat, fire'.
agate - the English word is from the Latin achates or Greek akhates, both understood as 'the diminutive one'.
amethyst - is from Latin amethystus itself from the Greek amethustos which translates as 'anti-intoxicant', for amethyst was once thought to be a remedy for intoxication.
beryl - can be traced back to Greek beyllos and Sanskrit vaidurya, which is thought to be ultimately from the city of Velur in southern India. The word is also used in Middle Latin berillus, Middle High German berille and French besicles all referring to 'spectacles', all adding support to the idea that beryl was first used for the lens in eyeglasses.
coral - is derived from a Semitic word, seen in Hebrew goral, meaning simply 'pebble'.
cornelian - a variety of chalcedony, derived from Old French cornelle 'cherry' and thus 'cherry-coloured'.
diamond - it may seem strange to suggest this most desirable of gemstones has an idetical etymology to the word 'adamant' yet this is just the case. Diamond came to English from Old French diamant, itself from Latin diamas and Greek adamas meaning 'unbreakable, unyielding'.
garnet - can be traced back to the Old French gernat meaning 'dark red', although it may be even older and share an origin with pomegranate and refer to the shape and colour of the seeds and pulp as being similar.
jade - comes to English from the Spanish (piedra de) ijada meaning '(stone of the) flank', this refers to it being held to be a cure for renal colic.
jet - came to English from Old French jaiet, Latin gagates, and Greek gagates lithos meaning 'the stone of Gages', the name of a town and river in Lycia associated with the stone. It is not used a colour until the fifteenth century.
onyx - is a Latin word derived from the Greek onux 'claw, fingernail'. Hence there is a similarity drawn between the white vein on a pink background found in onyx and the similar marking on a fingernail.
opal - a word which can be traced through Latin opalus and Greek opallios to Sanskrit upala which simply means 'gem, precious stone'.
pearl - there are two equally possible origins for this word, depending upon if this referred to the pearl or to the oyster. If it comes from the pearl, then this would be Vulgar Latin pernula 'sea-mussel' and also used for 'ham' to refer to the shape of the shell. Alternatively it comes from the same source as 'pear', referring to the shape of the pearl.
rhinestone - is literally 'the stone of the Rhine', a literal translation of the French caillou du Rhin and referring to where this artificial gem was first produced near Strasbourg.
ruby - is from Latin rubeus 'red'.
sapphire - another which can be traced back to Sanskrit, here sanipriya meant 'sacred to the planet Saturn'.
topaz - was claimed by Pliny to be named from an island off the coast of Arabia, where it was said to be mined. However most linguists point to Sanskrit tapas meaning 'heat, fire'.
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