porcupine English · revision 964

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈpɔː(ɹ)kjʊˌpaɪn/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|porke despyne]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) [[bor|fro|porc espin|t=spiny pig]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate) from [[la|porcus|t=pig]] and ''spīna'' “thorn, spine”.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) Merriam-Webster takes the French word from Old Italian ''porcospino''.^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The rodent covered with defensive quills (before 1400).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The word had many forms in Middle and early Modern English, such as ''portepyn'', ''porkpen'' and ''porkenpick'';^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) Shakespeare's ''Hamlet'' has ''porpentine''.^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) The same idea of a “spiny pig” gives the name in other languages, such as German ''Stachelschwein''.^(Etymonline) The popular belief that the porcupine shoots its quills probably arose from its habit of slapping its tail, which may fling loose quills some distance.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1400 – ''porke despyne''.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1400 – ''portepyn''.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1530 – ''porpentine''.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1834 – ''English porcupine'', the hedgehog.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # Any of various [[rodent|alt=rodents]] of the Old World family Hystricidae or the New World family Erethizontidae, covered with long, sharp, erectile [[quill|alt=quills]] mixed with coarse hair.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[porcine]]

+ * [[porky]]

+ * [[pork]]

+ * [[spine]]

+ * [[hedgehog]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}