царевица
Bulgarian
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Ultimately derived from цар (car, “king”). According to the Institute for Bulgarian Language, there are two possible explanations:
- the word reflects the plant's origin from Цариград (Istanbul), as it was planted at the king's command;
- the less likely explanation is that the word is descriptive of the maize plant itself - a tall, "kingly" one.
By surface analysis, царев (carev) + -ица (-ica).
Pronunciation
[edit]Noun
[edit]ца́ревица • (cárevica) f (relational adjective ца́ревичен)
- (uncountable) maize (Zea mays), corn (in the sense of maize)
- (countable) an ear of corn, especially sweet corn
Declension
[edit]Declension of ца́ревица
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | ца́ревица cárevica |
ца́ревици cárevici |
| definite | ца́ревицата cárevicata |
ца́ревиците cárevicite |
Derived terms
[edit]- мле́чна ца́ревица (mléčna cárevica, “sweet corn”)
- сла́дка ца́ревица (sládka cárevica, “sweet corn”)
References
[edit]- “царевица”, in Речник на българския език [Dictionary of the Bulgarian Language] (in Bulgarian), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 2014
- “царевица”, in Речник на българския език [Dictionary of the Bulgarian Language] (in Bulgarian), Chitanka, 2010
- “Каква е етимологията на думата царевица? [What is the etymology of the word царевица?]”, in Институт за български език [Institute for Bulgarian Language][1] (in Bulgarian), 2017 December 29, retrieved 2023-08-05