--- In
cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Piotr Gasiorowski <gpiotr@...> wrote:
>
> On 2006-07-18 06:15, amshuman_k wrote:
>
> > Is the Latin word for cotton, carbasus, a lateral acuisition or an
> > inheritance from IE?
>
> A loan, via the Near East, from some Asiatic source, cf. Skt. karpa:sa-
> 'cotton' and <karba:s>, the famous Persian cottons manufactured in
Isfahan.
>
> Piotr
*****
Liddell and Scott give three meanings for the Greek 'karbasos', in
order "flax", "cotton" (in Periplus Mari Erythraei, so referring to
the Eastern trade), and "white hellebore".
For the Latin 'carbasus', Lewis and Short give "very fine Spanish
flax", "fine linen", "cambric".
So unless the source language can be identified, who knows what
fabric the word originally designated?
Dan