> > > ( > Do you mean "cwrcyn"? Not that I dispute your linguistic talents - thou gh > > ) > this may be a regional variant. > > ( > > ) gwrcath, cwrcath, cwrcyn -- is the last one a compound of gwr/cwr + > > ( cyn? If so, what is "cyn" here? > > > > cwrcath > cwrc > cwrcyn by accretion of a diminutive ending? Cwrc is > > spoken but perhaps not often written. > > > > I don't know whether it has a convincing plural, hence the suggestion > > of 'cyrc' (actually the plural of corcyn, a bottle-cork), which sounds > > about as convincing as 'mwncwn' for the plural of 'mwnci'. I have > > heard 'cyrcs' as an informal spoken plural for 'cwrc'. Cwrcod? > > Cwrcynod? Perhaps you only see them one at a time. I suppose it's > > probably "cwrcynnau" or "cyrcynnau" (like llyfryn -nau). > > > > Unfortunately 'mwncwn' and 'twrcwn' have almost become sort-of acceptable > > (if you have the nerve) for mwnci%od and twrci%od, so you never know. > > > > Gwlad yr hetiau gwrach, y jac codi baw a'r chwarae gyda geiriau. g "Mwncwn" and "twrcwn" are absolutely spot-on textbook examples of folk etymology -- right down to the vagueness of the semantic analogy: monkeys, turkeys, dogs -- they're all beasts, aren't they?. It doesn't take nerve, just a plain man's lack of linguistic self-consciousness. If men-in-the-street start getting so sophisticated that this sort of thing gets suppressed, they'll be taking the bread out of the mouths of writers of historical linguistics textbooks. ************************ Nigel Love Linguistics Cape Town NLOVE@BEATTIE.UCT.AC.ZA ************************