From: Torsten
Message: 68983
Date: 2012-03-14
>German Eich-horn "oak-horn", regularly **eixorn-.
> --- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Piotr Gasiorowski <gpiotr@> wrote:
> >
> > One interesting fact about the European red squirrel is that it
> > while it may make its dray in any tree that has a hole in it, it
> > can't metabolise tannins and so *doesn't* feed on acorns and has
> > *no* symbiotic relationship with oaks (which is one the main
> > reasons why the imported grey squirrel has a competitive advantage
> > over it).
> >
> I think the association between 'squirrel' and 'oak' is possibly a
> folk etymology (actually, the most conspicuous acorn eaters are
> pigs), although this doesn't necessarily implies your proposal is
> right.
> > > I wonder further whether Lat. <vi:verra> 'ferret' belongs withHow about this:
> > > purported deformations of PIE *wer-wer-, or originated with the
> > > same *h1eigWern- vel sim., with initial /w/ acquired from
> > > <vi:vus> 'alive' (sc. 'vigorous') by folk-etymology. This can
> > > drive a man nutty.
> >
> > This won't work for Balto-Slavic *waiweri- 'squirrel', however.
> >
> IMHO the original meaning of *wer- was 'tail' (cfr. Greek ourá), and
> it's the base of the Greek compounds aiél-ouros, áil-ouros 'some
> k. of animal (wildcat or weasel)', ski-ouros 'squirrel'.
>
> Reduplication of this root in Balto-Slavic, Celtic and Latin is
> comparable to the one of *bhebhr-u- 'beaver', which in my own model
> could perfectly be a different output of the same PIE root (beavers
> also have a long tail).