Re: cahorro

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Rick McCallister <gabaroo6958@...> wrote:

>
> And then there is Spanish and Portuguese cachorro (and possible regional forms) which appear to be based on metathesis of
> txakur.
>
> > Apparently, cachorro is derived from an expressive variant *cattullu- of Latin catulus 'puppy'. But of course the intermediate
> > language wasn't Romance.
>
> Somehow either cachorro was influenced by txakur or vice versa.
>

I'm afraid this is utterly unprovable.

> If catulus were stressed on the 1st syullable, you'd get catlus > cachu- > cachorro.
>

But you've got also vetulu- > vetlu > veclu > viejo, so this won't work.

Hovewer, Bouda ("Baskisch-Kaukasiche Etymologien"), quoted by García de Diego ("Diccionario etimológico español e hispánico"), derives cachorro from a Caucasian root *katS- 'young of dog and other animals', also the source of Spanish gazapo and dialectal Portuguese cachapo 'young rabbit'. In today's framework, this would correspond to PNEC *k'wymts's'(w)a: 'puppy'.