persimmon

[elroy]

I'm wondering what words different languages use for "persimmon."

The word used in Palestinian Arabic is كاكا (kāka), which also means "poop"!

I've always found this a most unfortunate name for the fruit. I wonder if it was borrowed from another language in which the word is benign?

Thanks!

 

[Sardokan1.0]

In Italian is "cachi" or also written "kaki"

 

[apmoy70]

In Greek it's «λωτός» [loˈtos] (masc.) < Classical masc. «λωτός» lōtós < a Mediterranean Wanderwort, οr «διόσπυρος» [ðiˈospiɾos] (masc.) --> Zeus' fruit < «Ζεύς» Zeú̯s (masc. nom. sing.), «Διός» Dĭós (gen. sing.) + «πῡρός» pūrós (masc.).
Never heard of the names kaka, kaki, or cachi for the fruit.

 

[Sardokan1.0]

Apparently "Kaki" is the Japanese name

Persimmon - Wikipedia

 

[Yendred]

In French, this fruit is also called kaki.
Diospyros kaki is the species name of the tree.

As told by Sardokan, "kaki" comes from Japanese.
"Diospyros" (as told by apmoy70) comes from Greek ("the fruit of God")
and "persimmon" comes from Algonquian language meaning "dry fruit".

"kaki" is not to be confused with "khaki" color (the color of many army uniforms), which comes from Hindi, meaning "soil-colored".

 

[bibax]

Czech:

tree: tomel japonský (botanical term);

fruit: kaki, churma or kaki-churma (also written kakichurma, ch is pronounced [x], or sometimes [k], also written kaki kurma, also ... );

Rather rare in our shops.

 

[Ghabi]

In this part of the world, the fresh fruit (known as lam4ci2 腍柿 in Cantonese) is only eaten/displayed on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, otherwise it appears in its dried form (ci2beng2 柿餅 "persimmon cake", which has become a generic name for a very flat object in Cantonese, as in "the car was run over by a truck to become a persimmon cake"), which is extremely sweet.

 

[Dymn]

Catalan and Spanish: caqui

 

[franknagy]

The word used in Palestinian Arabic is كاكا (kāka), which also means "poop"!

Hungarian : kaki which means in childern's language poop, too.
So I prefer kakiszilva where szilva = plum.

 

[bibax]

In Czech kakati = Latin cacare; e.g. Kaká kaká. = Kaká cacat. (Kaká, the Brasilian footballer)

But no kaki derived from kakati, there is only a certain similarity with khaki (colour).

 

[AndrasBP]

In Hungarian it's also called datolyaszilva (date plum) which is longer than kakiszilva, but sounds much nicer!

 

[KalAlbè]

Portuguese: Caqui

 

[franknagy]

Is not is interesting that the word "kaki" ("kaka"/ "chaqui", ...) means the same thing in so many unrelated languages, is it?

 

[bearded]

In Italian is "cachi" or also written "kaki"

Correct. Some Italians (including myself) say ''caco'' in the singular.
We say 'cachi' also for the colour.
The It. vulgar word for 'poop' is cacca.

 

[jazyk]

The word I am familiar with in Portuguese is caqui (stress on the last syllable).

 

[Sardokan1.0]

Correct. Some Italians (including myself) say ''caco'' in the singular.
We say 'cachi' also for the colour.
The It. vulgar word for 'poop' is cacca.

I've heard sometimes on tv people saying "caco"; here is considered weird, no one would name the fruit "caco"

 

[Circunflejo]

Catalan and Spanish: caqui

In Spanish, it can also be written kaki. Same pronounciation in both cases.

 

[franknagy]

@Circumflejo
Caqui/kaki
Off topic question:
The Latin and Romance languages disliked the the letter "K". Why? Because it is a Greek letter?
Nowadays, however, the letter "K" is respected again.

 

[Yendred]

Is not is interesting that the word "kaki" ("kaka"/ "chaqui", ...) means the same thing in so many unrelated languages, is it?

Well it's just because the word has an exotic origin in all these languages, and because it evenly describes an exotic object for all the cultures of these languages.

You can observe the same effect for example with the word "kangaroo":
English: kangaroo
French: kangourou
German: Känguru
Spanish & Italian: kangaroo
etc.

The word had no reason to evolve diferently in all these languages since all these cultures have the same relation with an object attached to Australia and the word describing it attached to its australian indigenous origin.
(although according to Wikipedia, the etymology of "kangaroo", supposed to mean "I don't understand" in local indigenous language, is mythological)

 

[Circunflejo]

Spanish & Italian: kangaroo

You got the Spanish wrong. It's canguro in Spanish.

 

[sound shift]

I know them as "persimmons", but I've often seen them advertised in the UK as "Sharon Fruit". I've just found out that that's a trade name.

 

[Yendred]

You got the Spanish wrong. It's canguro in Spanish.

Oops sorry! I got it wrong
Thanks for the correction.