gaură

Forms

gaură f (plural găuri)^[1]

Etymology

Most sources take it as inherited from Vulgar Latin *cavula (“little hollow”), a diminutive of Latin cavus (“hollow”).^{[2][3][4][1][5]} Candrea and Densusianu note that the change of /k/ to /ɡ/, found in other derivatives of the adjective too, is unexplained.^[6] The Latin adjective goes back to Proto-Indo-European *ḱouH-ó- (“hollow”).^[7]

Ciorănescu prefers another explanation: cavum (“hole”) would have given a Romanian singular ⟨*gău⟩, which was lost, and the present singular was rebuilt from its plural ⟨găuri⟩, as fagure beside fag.^[2] An etymon caula has also been proposed, and he rejects caverna.^[2] Wiktionary gives both the diminutive and the rebuilt singular.^[1]

The word survives south of the Danube: Aromanian gavră and Megleno-Romanian gaură.^{[2][8][9][10]} Papahagi finds the Aromanian sounds hard to explain.^[8] Albanian gavrë comes from Aromanian, according to Ciorănescu.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Tiktin's first record is from 1405, cited after Drăganu.^[11] MDA2 dates the word in texts to Dosoftei's lives of the saints (1682–1686).^[3]

Semantic evolution

The word names any hollow, opening or pit, made on purpose or arising by itself; in Moldavia bortă and in Transylvania hudă are its regional synonyms.^[3][4] Set phrases name particular holes: gaura cheii “keyhole”, gaura acului “eye of a needle”.^[3][12]

Proverbs and idioms use it often: a se băga în gaură de șarpe “to hide in a snake's hole”, out of fear;^[12] nu s-o face gaură în cer “the sky won't fall”, no great harm.^[11][12] In slang it came to mean a burglary.^[2] Astronomy uses gaură neagră for a black hole.^[12]

Timeline

• 1405 – the first record, cited by Tiktin after Drăganu.^[11]
• 1682–1686 – in Dosoftei's lives of the saints.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. A hole, hollow or opening, natural or made, in a body, a material or the ground.^[12][3][1]
2. In set phrases: gaura cheii “keyhole”, gaura acului “eye of a needle”.^[3][12]
3. (astronomy) gaură neagră, a black hole.^[12]
4. (slang) A burglary.^[2]

Word family

• găurar
• găuri
• găuritor
• găuros

Related words

• Aromanian gavră
• Latin cavus

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Ciorănescu, Alexandru (1958–1966), Diccionario etimológico rumano, La Laguna: Universidad de La Laguna (Romanian ed.: Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române, București: Saeculum, 2001), p. s.v. gaură
3. ^ a b c d e f g Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 967
4. ^ a b Academia Română (1913–1949), Dicționarul limbii române (DA), ed. Sextil Pușcariu, tom I (A–B, C, D–De) and tom II (F–I, J–Lojniță), București: Socec / Universul / Monitorul Oficial și Imprimeriile Statului; page scans at cflr-scans.solirom.ro, p. s.v. gaură
5. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
6. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Densusianu, Ov. (1907–1914), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române: elementele latine (A–Putea), București, p. no. 720
7. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
8. ^ a b Papahagi, Tache (1963), Dicționarul dialectului aromân, general și etimologic, București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 487
9. ^ Pascu, Giorge (1925), Dictionnaire étymologique macédoroumain, 2 vols. (I: Les éléments latins et romans; II: Les éléments grecs, turcs, slaves, albanais, germaniques, magyars, néologismes, créations immédiates, obscurs), Iași: Cultura Națională, p. 1, 91
10. ^ Capidan, Theodor (1935), Meglenoromânii III: Dicționar meglenoromân, București: Academia Română, p. 137
11. ^ a b c Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. gaură
12. ^ a b c d e f g DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 427