X
🔧

Settings

Search type

Word search: Languages

Word search: Databases

🌏 Region(s): Ryukyu (Kunigami: Oku)

なべーらー

nabeeraa

Pronunciation: [nabeːɾaː]

Definition

Noun

  1. (Type of cucumber) Luffa; loofah; sponge gourd

Etymology

Cognate with Kikai (Shiomichi) なぱらやー naparayaa; Amami (Yuwan) なべェーらー nabëëraa; Amami なびーら nabiira; Okinoerabu なびらん nabiran; Yoron なべーら nabeera; Kunigami (Oku) なべーらー nabeeraa; Okinawan なーべらー naaberaa and なーべーらー naabeeraa; Miyako (Ikema, Irabu, Shimoji: Minaai) なびゃーら nabyaara; Yaeyama (Hatoma) なべーら nabeera; Yaeyama (Kohama) なべら nabera; Yaeyama (Taketomi) でェべれェ dëberë; Yaeyama (Hateruma) なーびら naabira "luffa".

Likely cognate with Japanese なべあらい【鍋洗い】 nabe arai "pot scrubber, dish scrubber, dish brush", from a compound of なべ【鍋】 nabe "pot" and あらい【洗い】 arai "wash, scrub" , owing to the fact that luffas were used to wash pots.

Discussion:

  • The Ryukyuan forms may have a fused diminutive suffix, *-(y)a, which would explain why the final vowel is *-(a)a instead of *-ee.

Spelling

OrthographyForm
Kanaなべーらー
Romanizationnabeeraa
Pronunciation (IPA)[nabeːɾaː]

意味:へちま・ヘチマ【糸瓜・天糸瓜・絲瓜・天絲瓜】

+ amend/report

Categories:

なべーらー
Cite this entry: Read, Zachary. (2025, July 16). なべーらー : nabeeraa | define meaning. JLect: Japonic Languages and Dialects Database. Retrieved 2025, December 6, from https://www.jlect.com/entry/5763/nabeeraa/.