Thomas Wier
@trwier.bsky.social
Linguist & Caucasologist • Professor at the Free University of Tbilisi • Research languages of the Caucasus, the Tonkawa language • Author of 'Tonkawa Texts' • Weekly Georgian Etymologies
Academic research: https://freeuni.academia.edu/ThomasWier
Academic research: https://freeuni.academia.edu/ThomasWier
This same shift in meaning happened across the Western world in the early modern period -- the first English use of 'cold lead' to refer to bullets occurs only in the 17th century. So the Georgian soldiers who calqued this meaning were part of a wider pattern.
December 9, 2025 at 2:27 PM
This same shift in meaning happened across the Western world in the early modern period -- the first English use of 'cold lead' to refer to bullets occurs only in the 17th century. So the Georgian soldiers who calqued this meaning were part of a wider pattern.
The modern meaning of bullet is of course much more recent. This meaning is first attested in a Georgian court case dating to 1749 in which the tools of war - rifle, swords, weapons, bullets and medicine - were confiscated from their owners:
December 9, 2025 at 2:27 PM
The modern meaning of bullet is of course much more recent. This meaning is first attested in a Georgian court case dating to 1749 in which the tools of war - rifle, swords, weapons, bullets and medicine - were confiscated from their owners:
So it seems likely that something similar happened with the word for 'lead': a northern Caucasian word for blue such as Lezgic *naIƛ̣:(ʷ)V or Abkhaz-Adyghean *ƛ̣ʷV blue, iron came to be associated with a particular metal characterized by that color, as raw lead often develops a blue or purple patina:
December 9, 2025 at 2:26 PM
So it seems likely that something similar happened with the word for 'lead': a northern Caucasian word for blue such as Lezgic *naIƛ̣:(ʷ)V or Abkhaz-Adyghean *ƛ̣ʷV blue, iron came to be associated with a particular metal characterized by that color, as raw lead often develops a blue or purple patina:
...as well as other language families, like north Caucasian languages:
December 9, 2025 at 2:25 PM
...as well as other language families, like north Caucasian languages:
This trend was true of Indo-European languages...
December 9, 2025 at 2:23 PM
This trend was true of Indo-European languages...
Words for metals across languages shift meaning easily, either to the purpose of use (gold/silver > money) or for the color it characterizes. For example, the Kartvelian word for gold was borrowed into Greek as ὦχρος 'pale yellow':
December 9, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Words for metals across languages shift meaning easily, either to the purpose of use (gold/silver > money) or for the color it characterizes. For example, the Kartvelian word for gold was borrowed into Greek as ὦχρος 'pale yellow':
The word is clearly old in Kartvelian, as it is found with expected sound-changes across the family:
Megrelian ტყვია ṭq̇via
Svan ტყუი ṭq̇wi
In this case, the forms are nearly identical.
Megrelian ტყვია ṭq̇via
Svan ტყუი ṭq̇wi
In this case, the forms are nearly identical.
December 9, 2025 at 2:19 PM
The word is clearly old in Kartvelian, as it is found with expected sound-changes across the family:
Megrelian ტყვია ṭq̇via
Svan ტყუი ṭq̇wi
In this case, the forms are nearly identical.
Megrelian ტყვია ṭq̇via
Svan ტყუი ṭq̇wi
In this case, the forms are nearly identical.
The word is first attested to refer not to a tool but a metal, either tin or lead, in the Old Georgian Bible translation of Numbers 31:22: გარნა ოქროსა და ვეცხლისა და რვალისა და რკინისა და ტყვივისა და ბრპენისა "Gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin and lead [must be cleansed in fire]"
December 9, 2025 at 2:18 PM
The word is first attested to refer not to a tool but a metal, either tin or lead, in the Old Georgian Bible translation of Numbers 31:22: გარნა ოქროსა და ვეცხლისა და რვალისა და რკინისა და ტყვივისა და ბრპენისა "Gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin and lead [must be cleansed in fire]"
Rayfield's translation probably best captures the feeling of that work:
December 2, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Rayfield's translation probably best captures the feeling of that work:
In Georgian literature, this old word becomes the centerpiece of Symbolist poet Galaktion Tabidze's famous poem ქარი ჰქრის Kari hkris 'the Wind Blows':
December 2, 2025 at 11:59 AM
In Georgian literature, this old word becomes the centerpiece of Symbolist poet Galaktion Tabidze's famous poem ქარი ჰქრის Kari hkris 'the Wind Blows':
So it may be that this Kartvelian root *kar- wind is in fact an ancient loan from some Steppe language through semantic shift. Many words for wind come from a verb 'breathe':
Greek άνεμος < PIE *h₂enh₁- breathe
Ge'ez ነፋስ näfas < Semitic *napš- breath, spirit
Greek άνεμος < PIE *h₂enh₁- breathe
Ge'ez ነፋስ näfas < Semitic *napš- breath, spirit
December 2, 2025 at 11:58 AM
So it may be that this Kartvelian root *kar- wind is in fact an ancient loan from some Steppe language through semantic shift. Many words for wind come from a verb 'breathe':
Greek άνεμος < PIE *h₂enh₁- breathe
Ge'ez ነፋስ näfas < Semitic *napš- breath, spirit
Greek άνεμος < PIE *h₂enh₁- breathe
Ge'ez ነፋስ näfas < Semitic *napš- breath, spirit
If we allow for semantic shift to cold & ice with some suffixation, we find other Steppe language roots:
PIE *ḱers-no- hoarfrost: Old Norse hjarn, Latvian sȩ̄rsna
Altaic *k`ĭrma hoarfrost: Turkish kɨraɣu, Chuvash xǝrbǝx
Uralic *kerte thin snow: Finnish kerte, Khanty kȧrtǝɣ
PIE *ḱers-no- hoarfrost: Old Norse hjarn, Latvian sȩ̄rsna
Altaic *k`ĭrma hoarfrost: Turkish kɨraɣu, Chuvash xǝrbǝx
Uralic *kerte thin snow: Finnish kerte, Khanty kȧrtǝɣ
December 2, 2025 at 11:58 AM
If we allow for semantic shift to cold & ice with some suffixation, we find other Steppe language roots:
PIE *ḱers-no- hoarfrost: Old Norse hjarn, Latvian sȩ̄rsna
Altaic *k`ĭrma hoarfrost: Turkish kɨraɣu, Chuvash xǝrbǝx
Uralic *kerte thin snow: Finnish kerte, Khanty kȧrtǝɣ
PIE *ḱers-no- hoarfrost: Old Norse hjarn, Latvian sȩ̄rsna
Altaic *k`ĭrma hoarfrost: Turkish kɨraɣu, Chuvash xǝrbǝx
Uralic *kerte thin snow: Finnish kerte, Khanty kȧrtǝɣ
So the root has clear Kartvelian bona-fides. However, even protolanguages borrow from other languages, and similar roots are found across Eurasia e.g. in Altaic and Dravidian:
Old Turkic qalɨq sky
Dolgan kallān sky
Kannada gāḷ wind
Telugu gāli wind
Konda gāli wind
Old Turkic qalɨq sky
Dolgan kallān sky
Kannada gāḷ wind
Telugu gāli wind
Konda gāli wind
December 2, 2025 at 11:57 AM
So the root has clear Kartvelian bona-fides. However, even protolanguages borrow from other languages, and similar roots are found across Eurasia e.g. in Altaic and Dravidian:
Old Turkic qalɨq sky
Dolgan kallān sky
Kannada gāḷ wind
Telugu gāli wind
Konda gāli wind
Old Turkic qalɨq sky
Dolgan kallān sky
Kannada gāḷ wind
Telugu gāli wind
Konda gāli wind
The word may have originally been not a noun but a verb, as its cognates in sister lgs form verb stems:
Megrelian გონქირაფა gonkirapa to disappear
Svan ადქარუე adkarwe he lost
If so, the idea of 'wind' is derived from this more general verbal set of meanings.
Megrelian გონქირაფა gonkirapa to disappear
Svan ადქარუე adkarwe he lost
If so, the idea of 'wind' is derived from this more general verbal set of meanings.
December 2, 2025 at 11:57 AM
The word may have originally been not a noun but a verb, as its cognates in sister lgs form verb stems:
Megrelian გონქირაფა gonkirapa to disappear
Svan ადქარუე adkarwe he lost
If so, the idea of 'wind' is derived from this more general verbal set of meanings.
Megrelian გონქირაფა gonkirapa to disappear
Svan ადქარუე adkarwe he lost
If so, the idea of 'wind' is derived from this more general verbal set of meanings.
It is first attested in the earliest Georgian work, the Martyrdom of Queen Shushanik, dating to 476: ჟამსა ზაფხულისასა ცეცხლებრ შემწუელი იგი მჴურვალებაჲ მზისაჲ, ქარნი ხორშაკნი და წყალნი მავნებელნი 'During summer, fiery burning of the sun, searing winds and torrential waters'
December 2, 2025 at 11:57 AM
It is first attested in the earliest Georgian work, the Martyrdom of Queen Shushanik, dating to 476: ჟამსა ზაფხულისასა ცეცხლებრ შემწუელი იგი მჴურვალებაჲ მზისაჲ, ქარნი ხორშაკნი და წყალნი მავნებელნი 'During summer, fiery burning of the sun, searing winds and torrential waters'
Something similar probably happened to bazhe sauce, which gets its name metaphorically for the rich 'tax' or 'duty' used to make walnut paste with garlic, salt, vinegar, fenugreek, coriander, marigold and red pepper:
November 25, 2025 at 9:54 AM
Something similar probably happened to bazhe sauce, which gets its name metaphorically for the rich 'tax' or 'duty' used to make walnut paste with garlic, salt, vinegar, fenugreek, coriander, marigold and red pepper:
For example, the famous melange of stewed vegetables called ajapsandali, which in Ottoman Turkish literally means 'marvelous barge' receives its name as a metaphor for the surprise awaiting hungry diners:
Weekly Georgian Etymology: აჯაფსანდალი ajapsandali, from Ottoman Turkish عجب acep wondrous marvelous and صَنْدَل sandal, vessel for bringing victuals and water, from Arabic عَجَب ʕajab marvel and Greek σάνδαλον barge. In Turkish gastronomy, many dishes take poetic/jocular names.
November 25, 2025 at 9:54 AM
For example, the famous melange of stewed vegetables called ajapsandali, which in Ottoman Turkish literally means 'marvelous barge' receives its name as a metaphor for the surprise awaiting hungry diners:
But it also represents a difference between eastern and western Georgia in how they named their dishes. Here, dishes are named not just by their ingredients or preparation, but often with more poetic or jocular names, as was the case in nearby Ottoman Turkey.
November 25, 2025 at 9:48 AM
But it also represents a difference between eastern and western Georgia in how they named their dishes. Here, dishes are named not just by their ingredients or preparation, but often with more poetic or jocular names, as was the case in nearby Ottoman Turkey.
This probably reflects how early Georgian cookbooks reflected the tastes and traditions of eastern Georgian food culture of Kartli and Kakheti, where the Georgian language and its idioms are dominant. Here people simply didn't use the Megrelian word for similar sauces.
November 25, 2025 at 9:48 AM
This probably reflects how early Georgian cookbooks reflected the tastes and traditions of eastern Georgian food culture of Kartli and Kakheti, where the Georgian language and its idioms are dominant. Here people simply didn't use the Megrelian word for similar sauces.
All scholars agree that the classic Georgian bazhe sauce, made from walnuts, garlic and vinegar, is in origin a Megrelian sauce, hailing from western Georgia. Despite its importance, it not attested until the 20th century -- it is not e.g. found in Barbare Jorjadze's 1874 famous cookbook.
November 25, 2025 at 9:45 AM
All scholars agree that the classic Georgian bazhe sauce, made from walnuts, garlic and vinegar, is in origin a Megrelian sauce, hailing from western Georgia. Despite its importance, it not attested until the 20th century -- it is not e.g. found in Barbare Jorjadze's 1874 famous cookbook.
In Georgian cuisine, a ketsi is a commonplace part of meals for cooking and serving mushrooms, cheese, chicken and other kinds of stews. Here for example is the famous Shkmeruli dish, made from fried chicken in a bath of milk, garlic and other spices:
November 17, 2025 at 3:32 PM
In Georgian cuisine, a ketsi is a commonplace part of meals for cooking and serving mushrooms, cheese, chicken and other kinds of stews. Here for example is the famous Shkmeruli dish, made from fried chicken in a bath of milk, garlic and other spices:
Such word-boundary reanalysis is common in unfamiliar loanwords. Just think of English 'orange', which comes ultimately from Arabic نَارَنْج nāranj, but where the initial /n/ was along the way reanalyzed not as part of the noun but as part of the article: *a norange > an orange.
November 17, 2025 at 11:17 AM
Such word-boundary reanalysis is common in unfamiliar loanwords. Just think of English 'orange', which comes ultimately from Arabic نَارَنْج nāranj, but where the initial /n/ was along the way reanalyzed not as part of the noun but as part of the article: *a norange > an orange.