oursin

French

Etymology

The first attestation of the word (1549) is Provençal orsin de mar, compare with its French synonym hérisson de mer. The Provençal orsin may actually originally derive from ors (“bear”) or Latin ursīnus, with French oursin likewise from ours (“bear”), or an adaptation of the Provençal. It may have been contaminated with hérisson (cf. Provençal eriçon) and related terms, which are closer semantic fits. Compare also Portuguese ouriço-do-mar, Italian riccio di mare, Spanish erizo de mar, Catalan eriçó de mar (dialectal oriç), English urchin or hurcheon all deriving from Latin ericius which also gives French hérisson.

Pronunciation

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Noun

oursin m (plural oursins)

1. sea urchin

   Sur certains points les plus fréquentés de Marseille, on étale les coquillages les plus savoureux, les plus appétissants : les moules, les clovisses, les oursins, les praires, les huîtres. (in Journal officiel, 4 juin 1873)

Further reading

• “oursin”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

• ruions