pônais

Norman

Alternative forms

• pânais, paunais
• pânnais (Jersey)

Etymology

From Old French pasnaie, from Latin pastinaca (“parsnip, carrot”), from pastinum (“two-pronged fork”); related to pastinare (“to dig up the ground”).

Noun

pônais m (plural pônais)

1. (Guernsey) parsnip
   • 1883, Nicholas Guilbert, L'Ami Pierre:

     V'là not bouan vier ami Pierre, / A serellaïr dans ses pânais […] .

     There's our good old friend Peter, weeding his parsnips.

   • 1903, Edgar MacCulloch, “Proverbs, Weather Sayings, etc.”, in Guernsey Folk Lore‎^[1], page 512:

     A p'tit pourche grosse pânais.

     The little pig gets the big parsnip.

   • 2006, Peggy Collenette, “Au shaoux du Vouest”, in P'tites Lures Guernésiaises, Cromwell Press, published 2006, page 16:

     Quand nous vait les belles paunais et les manifique carottes.

     Look at the beautiful parsnips and the magnificent carrots.