ērce

See also: erce and ērcē

Latgalian

Noun

ērce f

1. mite

Latvian

Ērce

Ērce

Etymology

Cognate with Lithuanian érkė, from Proto-Baltic *erkyā- (with er̄ > ē:r), of disputed origin, but possibly from Proto-Indo-European *h₁er- (“to tear, to pierce”) (whence also ērkšķis (“thorn”), q.v.) with an extra -(e)k. The original meaning would then have been “one who pierces, tears.” Possible Indo-European cognates include Sanskrit ऋक्षरः (r̥kṣaraḥ, “sting, thorn, spike”), रक्षः (rákṣaḥ, “harm”), Ancient Greek ἐρέχτω (erékhtō, “to tear, to claw”), Latin ricinus (“tick”). However, the velar consonants do not all match, and assuming separate extensions is unparsimonious. See also Proto-Slavic *ràkъ ~ *òrkъ (“crayfish”), which along with the Baltic cognates may point to substrate origin.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɛ̄ːɾtsɛ]

Noun

ērce f (5th declension)

1. tick, mite (numerous species of tiny arachnids of subclass Acari that live as parasites on various plants and animals)

   kamēr zirgs dzēra, zemniek izrāva ērci, kas bija piezīdušies kaklam ― while the horse drank, the farmer removed the tick that had been sucking at the (horse's) neck

   atgulās tīfu var pārnest arī ērces ― also mites can transmit typhus

Declension

Declension of ērce (5th declension)

	singular	plural
nominative	ērce	ērces
genitive	ērces	ērču
dative	ērcei	ērcēm
accusative	ērci	ērces
instrumental	ērci	ērcēm
locative	ērcē	ērcēs
vocative	ērce	ērces