Re: Substrate language which contributed sarSapa to

Quote: I can't agree w this particular example.  In:
  krokále: = pebble G; çárkara:- = gravel/grit/pebbles AV S;
  sakkhara:- = sugar Pa:;......  Unquote

I was aware of the word in Greek for pebble, but you have given a lot more of information, thank you.

However let me put up again my arguments on zarkara in a bit more elaborate manner, to know how convincing they are.

Let us look at certain words in DEDR (Dravidian Etymological Dictionary, 1984):

DEDR 1265 Tamil  karaṭu roughness, unevenness, churlish temper; karaṭṭu rugged, uneven, unpolished; karaṇ uneven surface in vegetables and fruits, scar; karu prong, barb, spike; karumai, karil severity, cruelty; karukku teeth of a saw or sickle, jagged edge of palmyra leaf-stalk, sharpness. Malayalam karaṭu what is rough or uneven; kaṟu rough; kaṟuppu roughness; karuma sharpness of sword; karukku teeth of a saw or file, thorns of a palmyra branch, irregular surface; karukarukka to be harsh, sharp, rough, irritating; karikku edge of teeth; kari-muḷ hard thorn; projecting parts of the skin of custard-apples, jack-fruits, etc.; kari-maṭal rind of jack-fruits. Kota karp keenness or harshness (of wind); ? kako·ṭ hoe with sharp, broad blade (for -ko·ṭ, see 2064). Kannada karaḍu that is rough, uneven, unpolished, hard, or waste, useless, or wicked; kaṟaku, karku, kakku, gaṟaku, garaku, garku, garasu a jag, notch, dent, toothed part of a file or saw, rough part of a millstone, irregular surface, sharpness. Tulu karaḍů, karaḍu rough, coarse, worn out; wastage, loss, wear; kargōṭa hardness, hard-heartedness; hard, hard-hearted; garu rough; garime severity, strictness; gargāsů a saw. Telugu kara sharp; karagasamu a saw; karakasa roughness; karusu rough, harsh; harsh wordslugu kaṟaku, kaṟuku harshness, roughness, sharpness; rough, harsh, sharp; gari hardness, stiffness, sharpness; (B.) karaṭi stubborn, brutish, villainous; kakku a notch or dent, toothed part of a saw, file, or sickle, roughness of a millstone. Gondi (Ma.) karkara sharp (Voc. 543). Kurukh  karcnā to be tough, (Hahn) be hardened. ?

Cf. Sanskrit karaṭa- a low, unruly, difficult person; karkara- hard, firm; karkaśa- rough, harsh, hard; krakaca-, karapattra- saw; khara- hard, harsh, rough, sharp-edged; kharu- harsh, cruel; Pali kakaca- saw; khara- rough; saw; Prakrit karakaya- saw; Apabhraṃśa (Jasaharacariu) karaḍa- hard. Cf. esp. Turner, CDIAL, no. 2819. Cf. also Sanskrit karavāla- sword (for second element, cf. 5376 Tamil vāḷ).

The word Kar-a/kar-u is present in is present in almost all branches of Dravidian and it means - roughness, unevenness, churlish temper, prong, barb, spike, severity, cruelty, sharpness of sword,, teeth of a saw or file, thorns of a Palmyra branch, irregular surface, toughness, be hardened etc.

Let us look at a closely related word:

DEDR 1260 Kannada garasu, garusu gravel. Tulu karṅkallu gravel, hard sand. Telugu garusu gravel. ?

These words are from the same stem ‘kar-’ and has been formed by the change k > g.

Let us look at another closely related word:

DEDR 2354 Tamil caracara (-pp-, -tt-) to be rough of surface; caracarappu roughness of surface or edge; caruccarai roughness, ruggedness; caral, caraḷ, caraḷai gravel, laterite; curacura (-pp-, -tt-) to be rough, have a rough surface; curacurappu roughness as of woollen cloth. Mlayalam caral, carakkallu gravel. Kannada (Hav.) caralu small rounded pebbles. Tulu caraṭè what is coarse, leavings or stalks; jari grit, granule, sand. Kui srogu a rough surface, coarse sand or pebbles; rough, coarse, uneven; jrogu rough, gravelly; srogu srogu inba to be rough, coarse, uneven, pebbly; srāmbu gravel.

These words are again from the same stem ‘kar-’ formed by the change ka

> ca.

Let me again quote a fourth word:

DEDR 1298 Tamil kal (kaṟ-, kaṉ-) stone, pebble, boulder, precious stone, milestone; kallaṉ hard-hearted fellow. Malayalam kal, kallu stone, rock, precious stone; kalla glass beads; kallan mason; hard-hearted. Kota kal stone, milestone. Toda kas̱ stone; kal milestone, bead; kalïr round river stone. Kannada kal, kalu, kallu stone; hard, stiff state of mind. Koḍagu kallï stone. Tulu kallů id. Tlugu. kallu (pl. kanḍlu) id. Naikri khalbada stone slab for pounding. Parji kel stone. Gadaba (Oll.) kanḍ, (S.) kanḍu (pl. kanḍkil) id. Gondi (Mu. M.) kal (obl. kad-, pl. kalk), (G.) kall(i) (pl. kalku), (Ma.) kalu id. (Voc. 585). Konḍa kalu id. Pebgo kal (pl. -ku) id. Brahui xal id., boulder.

My point is that the root ‘kar-’ in Dravidian is independent of IE and does mean roughness, toughness, unevenness, sharpness, teeth of saw, edge, thorn and derived meanings including gravel, sand and pebble.

This forms the second part ‘kara’ of zar-kara.

I derive the first part ‘zar’ as follows:

DEDR 1288 Tamil karumpu (in compounds karuppu-) sugar-cane; karupp-aṭṭi jaggery made from palmyra juice, jaggery. Malayalam karimpu sugar-cane; karipp-aṭṭi coarse palmyra-sugar. Kota kab sugar-cane. Toda kab id.; kapoṭy jaggery. Kannada karvu, karbu, kabbu sugar-cane. Koḍagu kaybï id. Tulu karmbu id. / Cf. Marathi karvā a bit of sugarcane.

Karumpu is sugar cane and Kar-u-pp-aTTi is jaggery

The first part is derived from sugar cane and again is ‘kar-’

Thus we get ‘kar-kara’ which means solid made from sugar cane juice or toughened sugar cane juice.

Karkara > carkara > zarkara. (Note: here again we find ka > ca change; now I have collected a group of words which involve ka > ca change, which is shall discuss later).

I remember how they make zarkara in villages. Zarkara was made in the field itself after harvesting, by boiling the juice extracted. The exact process I do not remember but one thing I still remember. They won’t make it in to lumps. They stop at a semisolid state which is partially lumpy and partially semisolid. And they called it ‘zarkara’ or ‘cakkara’.

And the derivation I made above fits this well.

-C Jyothibabu