Re: Slavic obscene words (Was: Brugmann's Law)

From: ualarauans
Message: 51495
Date: 2008-01-19

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Piotr Gasiorowski <gpiotr@...>
wrote:
>
> > --- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Rick McCallister
<gabaroo6958@...>
> > wrote:
> >> Any truth to the notion that the word is from French
> >> pirogue < Spanish piragua < some Native American word
> >> --due to its shape?
> >
> > More likely it's cognate to Lith. purai^ pl. "winter crops",
> > Gr. PUROS, PUROI "wheat". Proto-Slavic *pyrogU.
>
> But it's *pirogU, not *pyrogU. I prefer Vasmer's explanation (from
*pirU
> 'feast, breakfast').

The word could have been influenced from *pirU later. The original
semantics seem to pertain to "bread", if I don't mistake, and *pirU
is strictu sensu a "drinking" (< *pi-). Polish has piero'g – why
the -ie-? Slovak piroh might have been borowed from Old Ukrainian.