devil, satan
→
<thorny plant>
7 realizations
MACROAREA: Eurasia
Related shifts
| ID | Relation type | Meaning 1 | Direction | Meaning 2 |
| ACCEPTED Realization 1 (ID: 22615) | ||
|---|---|---|
| type | Derivation | |
| language | Belarusan | |
| lexeme 1 | чорт | |
| lexeme 2 | чортапалох | |
| meaning 1 | devil, satan | |
| direction | → | |
| meaning 2 | Carduus | |
| reference | ESSJa: 4, 163 | |
| comment | ||
| ACCEPTED Realization 2 (ID: 22390) | ||
|---|---|---|
| type | Derivation | |
| language | Moksha | |
| lexeme 1 | шяйтан | |
| lexeme 2 | шяйтан тише | |
| meaning 1 | devil, satan | |
| direction | → | |
| meaning 2 | plumeless thistle (Carduus); cottonthistle (Onopordum) | |
| reference | Serebrennikov et al. 1998 | |
| comment | ||
| ACCEPTED Realization 3 (ID: 22451) | ||
|---|---|---|
| type | Derivation | |
| language | Old Polish | |
| lexeme 1 | czart | |
| lexeme 2 | czartopłoch | |
| meaning 1 | devil, demon, evil spirit | |
| direction | → | |
| meaning 2 | plumeless thistle (Carduus) | |
| reference | Merkulova 1967: 96 | |
| comment | ||
| ACCEPTED Realization 4 (ID: 22450) | ||
|---|---|---|
| type | Derivation | |
| language | Russian | |
| lexeme 1 | черт | |
| lexeme 2 | чертополох | |
| meaning 1 | devil | |
| direction | → | |
| meaning 2 | plumeless thistle (Carduus) | |
| reference | Fasmer 1986: 4, 348 Merkulova 1967: 96 SA: 5, 527-530 | |
| comment | Also dialectal чертогон (second part from гнать 'to chase away'), чертопугальник (second part from пугать 'to frighten'). |
|
| ACCEPTED Realization 5 (ID: 22737) | ||
|---|---|---|
| type | Derivation | |
| language | Russian | |
| lexeme 1 | шиш | |
| lexeme 2 | шишобар | |
| meaning 1 | evil spirit | |
| direction | → | |
| meaning 2 | (dialectal) thotny plant, Carduus | |
| reference | SA: 5, 527 | |
| comment | Also шишобара, шишебарник | |
| NEW Realization 6 (ID: 28410) | ||
|---|---|---|
| type | Complex derivation | |
| language | Tatar | |
| lexeme 1 | убыр | |
| lexeme 2 | убыр уты | |
| meaning 1 | demon, vampire | |
| direction | → | |
| meaning 2 | (botany) thistle | |
| reference | Asylgaraev, Ganiev et al. (eds.) 2007: 2, 465 | |
| comment | 'vampire fire' |
|
| ACCEPTED Realization 7 (ID: 22614) | ||
|---|---|---|
| type | Derivation | |
| language | Ukrainian | |
| lexeme 1 | чорт | |
| lexeme 2 | чортополох | |
| meaning 1 | devil, satan | |
| direction | → | |
| meaning 2 | Xanthium spinosum, Carduus nunats | |
| reference | Grinčenko: IV, 473 ESSJa: 4, 163 | |
| comment | Also Carlina acaulis. | |
In East Slavic languages, as well as in Polish, names meaning "devil-scarer" (Belarusian чортапалох, Russian чертополох, Polish czartopłoch, Ukrainian чортополох) refer to a range of prickly herbaceous plants belonging to the genera Carduus, Agrimonia, Arctium, Carlina, Onopordon, Xanthium, Sonchus, Echinops, Cirsium, and Eryngium. These names imply that the plant was believed to scare the devil away. The second part of the these plant names derives from the Proto-Slavic *polxъ 'frightful, fearful' (cf. Russian полох obsolete 'fear', переполох 'commotion, flurry', полошить 'to frighten'; Ukrainian полох 'fear, horror'; Russian Church Slavonic плахъ 'fear'; Bulgarian плах 'timid, fearful'; Serbian плах, Croatian plȃh 'vehement, impetuous'; Slovene plȃh 'timid'; Czech and Slovak plachý 'timid, shy'; Polish płochy 'timid'). According to Vasmer, *polxъ is likely related to Ancient Greek πάλλω 'to excite' and Gothic usfilma 'frightened, horrified'.
In East Slavic folk culture, prickly plants such as thistles or burdock were used as a defence against evil spirits. In Russian tradition, thistles were placed in the corners of the house and under the pillow, or were hung them above the doorway (Vologda); a sheaf of thistles was set by the gate or door, and kept them in the stable to ward off the house spirit (Kazan), and thistles were also used them as a remedy for diseases caused by sorcery (Kazan). During an epileptic seizure, the patient would be struck with a thistle stalk (Cherepovets). In Russian folktales, one could escape a devil by throwing the plant's prickly flower heads at him. In another tale, a woman rids herself of a fiery serpent by sprinkling the house with a thistle infusion. In Belarusian tradition thistles were left in the cowshed to combat witches who stole milk from cows (Vitebsk), as well as in the house to protect against the "walking dead" (Brest).
At the same time, however, there is also a notion that the thistle is a plant associated with the devil. This is reflected in names such as Belarusian чортавы пазуры (Western Polesie), Ukrainian чортове насiння, and Polish ziele czarta.
Other Russian dialectal terms are also formed according to the "scaring the devil" model, including чертогон, whose second element derives from гнать ‘to chase away’; чертопугальник whose second element derives from пугать ‘to frighten’, and шишобар ‘burdock’ from шиш 'evil spirit' and -бороть ‘to fight, to defeat’.
Similar names in the Turkic and Finno-Ugric languages of the Volga region most likely arose under the influence of Russian (Wichmann 1942, 83). However, A. K. Matveev did not rule out the possibility of Finno-Ugric influence on Russian in this case (Матвеев 1952, 40).
Фасмер 3,317-318
Колосова В. Б. Чертополох // Славянские древности. Т. 5. С. 527-529.
Wichmann G. Syrjanischer Wortschatz. Bearb. von T. E. Uotila. Helsinki, 1942
Матвеев А. К. Финно-угорские заимсвования в русских говорах Северного Урала. Свердловск. 1952
Меркулова В. А. Очерки по русской народной номенклатуре растений: Травы, грибы, ягоды. М., 1967. 96-98.
Анненков Н. И. Ботанический словарь. СПб. 1878. С. 84
Cf. Ingush Iел 'afterworld', Iел арба 'burdock' (Bekova et al. 2009)