gushëkuq

Albanian

Alternative forms

• gushakuq — dialectal
• gushkuq — northwestern Gheg, Shkodër

Etymology

From gushë (“neck, chin”) +‎ kuq (“red”), due to the characteristic red-orange tint of the bird's breast and face.

Noun

gushëkuq m (plural gushëkuqë, definite gushëkuqi, definite plural gushëkuqët)

1. robin
2. (zoology) European robin (Erithacus rubecula)

   Synonyms: gushar, grykakuq, gushëspec, gjinokuq, canakuq

3. (archaic, derogatory) popular name for the gendarme during the reign of King Zog of Albania

Adjective

gushëkuq (feminine gushëkuqe)

1. rednecked

Further reading

• “gushëkuq”, in FGJSSH: Fjalor i gjuhës së sotme shqipe [Dictionary of the modern Albanian language]‎^[1] (in Albanian), 1980
• “gushëkuq”, in FGJSH: Fjalor i gjuhës shqipe [Dictionary of the Albanian language] (in Albanian), 2006
• Mann, S. E. (1948) “gushakuq”, in An Historical Albanian–English Dictionary, London: Longmans, Green & Co., page 139