WotD: blackcurrant

[muckefuck]

1. die Johannisbeere
2. de aalbes, de zwarte bes
3. la grosella negra
4. la grosella negra
5. le cassis
6. y gyrren ddu
7. an cuirín dubh
8. 까치밥나무열매
9. 黑醋栗 hēicùlì

Notes: 8. Lit., "crow food tree fruit". 9. Lit., "black vinegar chestnut".

Comments

[bwillsouth.livejournal.com]

Despite the bizarreness of a "black vinegar chestnut", I think Johannisbeere is probably the one that needs the most explaning. Unless of course the Celtic ones are bizarroland or something.

[muckefuck.livejournal.com]

The Celts are just borrowing and adapting English currant. (Interesting to see how in both cases it's reanalysed as containing a diminutive ending.)

As for Johannisbeere, they come into ripeness around Midsummer--Johannistag (the Feast of St John the Baptist) on the Catholic saints calendar.

[pne.livejournal.com]

German: more specifically, schwarze Johannisbeere, as opposed to rote Johannisbeere (redcurrant).

I'm not sure what most Germans would think of if they just heard Johannisbeere, but it seems to me that I see redcurrants quite a bit more often in shops up here than blackcurrants.

[itchwoot.livejournal.com]

Just Johannisbeere is both of them. ;)
I don't think of any of the two in particular when I hear that. They're not that different, are they?

[gorkabear.livejournal.com]

We have a problem with berries in Iberialand. Partially because there's no tradition of consuming them, unless imported from France (not that we don't have them) into expensive jams.

For years I didn't know how to call cassis in Spanish/Catalan and most people would confuse them with blueberries (arándanos or nabius/mirtils) or even worse with "forest fruits".

And "grossella negra" is a simple adaptation - because we had no name for it!