--- In
cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Piotr Gasiorowski <gpiotr@...> wrote:
>
> On 2007-12-03 11:28, alexandru_mg3 wrote:
>
> > I suspect that we have here a compound word ( PAlb. *na -
*parka? ) but
> > I couldn't fix yet the second part with a high probability
> >
> > Any help here?
>
> I wonder if it isn't Lat. natrice- --> something like PAlb.
*nätrika >
> *netërka > nepërkë ~ nëpërkë through irregular distortion (or
perhaps
> even folk-etymological contamination with <nëpër> 'through'),
borrowed
> into Romanian in the distorted form. Just a guess, but I can't
offer a
> better idea at the moment.
>
> Piotr
>
As on my side, Piotr:
Rom./Alb. nëpërkë is really the "Balkan ancient name" of
Vipera_ammodytes
url:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vipera_ammodytes
http://www.venomousreptiles.org/articles/268
The today name of this snake in Romanian is:
'vipera cu corn' -> 'horned viper' in English (and of
course 'nëpërkë' either)
This snake has his central habitat: the Balkans and he has a kind
of 'small horn, small pole, small twig' as 'distinct sign of his nose'
Following this semantism, the reconstruction of nëpërkë will be:
nëpërkë < PIE *(s)nh1-e *pert-(i)k-eh2
where:
PIE *(s)nh1- 'snake'
--------------------
PIE *pert- 'pole, sharp/young twig, sprout'
-------------------------------------------
Armenian: ort'
Old Greek: ptoìrthos
Slavic: *perka:
Latin: pertica
So the Balkan Latin name (< today Romanian) "vipera cu corn"
->'horned viper' is ONLY a simple translation of the ancient Balkan
nomination:
Romanian/Albanian nëpërkë <
*Dacian *neperka: < [k < tk; n < sn] <
*Early-Dacian *(s)ne-*pertka: <
PIE *(s)nh1-e *pert-(i)k-eh2
with the original meaning 'horned viper' too...
Marius
P.S. If you don't trust this etymology please take a look first at
the very nice picture at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Vipera_ammodytes_2.jpg
You can well see that the *pert- ...is there :)