Cognate Set 172 – Meaning: worm

IE-CoR reference form:
*kʷr̥mi-
IE-CoR reference language:
Proto-Indo-European
Ideophonic:
no
Parallel derivation:
no
Proposed as cognate to:
*u̯r̥mi- [Proto-Indo-European] scale: 2
Justification:
Two variants *kʷr̥mi- and *u̯r̥mi- in the same meaning 'worm' are generally reconstructed for PIE. The variant *u̯r̥mi- attested in Germanic and Italic might have been secondary from *kʷr̥mi- (cf. {de Vaan 2008}:665), but it may also be possible that the two lexemes were a rhyming pair already in Indo-European poetic language (cf. Watkins 1987:288). Cf. also Demiraj 1997:225-226, Orel 1998:197, EWAia I:394-395, ALEW 493-494, Derksen 2015:246, ESSJa 4:171-172 Derksen 200893-94, Matasović 2009:181-182.
Found in clades:
Albanian, Baltic, Celtic, Indic, Iranic, Slavic
Revised by:
Matthew Scarborough
Found in 6 clades by 54 lexemes.
Language Lexeme Native script Phonetic Phonemic Notes
18   Albanian: Gheg krym(b)
34   Kashmiri kyom کیوم com kjom
67   Persian: Tehran kerm كرم kʲerm kerm
76   Lithuanian kirmėlė̃ kʲɪrʲmʲeːˈlʲeː kʲɪrʲmʲeːˈlʲeː
159   Gaelic: Scottish cnuimh krɯ̃ĩv
158   Old Irish cruim ˈkˠʰr̥ˠʊṽʲ ˈkruṽʲ
19   Albanian: Standard krimb
22   Pali kimi kɪmɪ kimi
155   Middle Breton preff, pref, preu ˈpreːṽ
66   Middle Persian kirm klm kɪɾm kirm ZMP
56   Kurdish N.: Bahdini k'ɨrɨm kɨrɨm
53   Yaghnobi kirm
157   Breton: Treger preñv ˈprẽːf ˈprẽːv̤
156   Breton: Gwened preñv pɾɛ̃ːɥ
77   Old Prussian girmis
151   Welsh: North pry genwair prɨː ˈɡɛnwa(i)r prɨː ˈɡenwa(i)r
150   Middle Welsh pryf prɨv
21   Vedic: Early kŕ̥miḥ कृमिः kɾmis ˈkɾmih
71   Kumzari kurm kʊɻm kʊɻm
62   Tati kelme kelme
48   Sogdian kirmi qyrmy ki˞mi rhotacised vowel
68   Bakhtiari kerm ceɾm kerm
69   Delvari kerm kerm
70   Lari kerm kerm
64   Balochi: Sistani kerm kerm
57   Kurdish C.: Jafi kırm kɨrm
20   Albanian: Arbëresh krimp ˈkɾimp
47   Khwarazmian kirm krm kirm
58   Kurdish S.: Elami kırm kɘ̟ɾm
60   Hawrami kirm kɨrm
78   Old Church Slavonic črĭvĭ чрьвь tʃr̩ʲʋɪ̆ tʃr̩ʲvɪ
79   Bulgarian červej червей ˈtʃɛɾvɘj ˈtʃervej
80   Macedonian crv црв tsəɾf tsrv
81   Macedonian: Suho čèrv′ḁ ˈtʃeɾvʲɐ ˈtʃervæ
82   Macedonian: Visoka čèrv′ḁ ˈtʃe̞ɾβʲɐ ˈtʃervæ
83   Serbo-Croat crv tsə̂ɾv tsr̂ːv
84   Slovene: Early Modern zherv
85   Slovene črv tʃə́ɾw tʃə́rv
86   Slovene: Kostel črv tʃɾ̩f tʃrv
97   Russian červâk червяк tʃɪɾˈvʲɑ̈k tʃerˈvʲak
98   Belarusian čarvâk чарвяк tʂɑ̈ɾvʲɑk tʂervʲak
99   Ukrainian červâk черв’як tʂɛ̽ɾˈvʲjɑ̈k tʂerˈvjak An alternative lexeme is 'робак' (it seems to be less used).
100   Rusyn červák tʂɛɾˈ(v/β)ɑ̈k tʂerˈvak The lexeme 'ɣlɪstá' means 'earthworm'.
87   Old Polish czerw, czyrw, czyrzw tʂɛrvʲ/fʲ, tʂɨrvʲ/fʲ, tʂɨr̝ʲvʲ, tʂɨr̝̊ʲfʲ tʂervʲ, tʂirvʲ, tʂir̝vʲ '(Ch)robak' is more general, it refers to all small and crawling animals (e.g. snakes), although mostly it is used for insects and their catterpillars.
91   Slovak červ tʃɛrw tʃerv
92   Old Czech črv tʃɛrβʲ tʃervʲ
93   Czech červ tʃɛɾf tʃerv
94   Sorbian: Upper čerw ˈtʃɛʀ ˈtʃɛʀwj
95   Sorbian: Lower cerw tsɛɾ tserwj
39   Pashai: North-West kaṛaawak کړاوک kəɽɑˑˈʋak kaɽaːwak
36   Gawri ɬim ݪِم ɬim̥ ɬim H?
152   Middle Cornish pryf, pref priːv, preːv
153   Late Cornish prêv preːv
59   Kurdish S.: Qorveh kɨrɨm kɨrɨm
References
  • Demiraj, Bardhyl: 225-226
    S.v. Alb. krimb, -i 'Wurm, Raupe, Made', the inherited word for 'Wurm', with Ved. kŕ̥mi- 'Wurm, Made', Lith. kirmìs 'Made' and formally identical with PIE *kʷr̥mi-.
  • Derksen, Rick: 246
    S.v. Lith. kirmìs 'worm, maggot, snake' (Latv. cirmis 'worm, maggot, snake, caterpillar', OPr. girmis 'maggot'), from PIE *kʷr-m-i- (cf. OCS črъvь 'worm', Skt. kŕ̥mi- 'worm, maggot', OIr. cruim 'worm', W. pryf 'id.').
  • Derksen, Rick: 93-94
    S.v. Proto-Slavic *čьrvь 'worm, maggot' (ESSJa IV 171-172), from Balto-Slavic *kir-m/w-i- (cf. Lith. kirmìs 'worm, maggot, snake', Latv. cirmis 'worm, maggot, caterpillar', OPr. girmis 'maggot'), from PIE *kʷr-m-i- (cf. Skt. kŕ̥mi- 'worm, maggot', OIr. cruim 'worm', W pryf 'worm'). Note the Balto-Slavic vocalisation *ir (instead of *ur) after an original labiovelar is unexpected.
  • Hock, Wolfgang and Fecht, Rainer and Feulner, Anna Helene and Hill, Eugen and Wodtko, Dagmar S.: 493-494
    S.v. OLith. kirmìs 'Wurm' (BSl. Latv. cirmis 'Wurm, Made, Raupe' OPr. ? girmis 'Made', OCS črьvь 'Wurm', etc.), from PIE *kʷr̥-mi- 'Wurm, Made', Ved. kŕ̥mi- 'Wurm, Made', NPers. kirm 'Wurm', Alb. krimb 'Wurm, Raupe, Made', OIr. Cruim 'Wurm, Made; Drache', MW pryf 'Insekt, Larve, Made, Wurm; Schlange', etc.).
  • Matasović, Ranko: 181-182
    S.v. Proto-Celtic *kʷrimi- 'worm', from PIE *kʷrmi- 'worm' (IEW 1152), cf. Skt. kŕ̥mi-, Alb. krimb, Lith. kirmìs, Sloven. črm.
  • Mayrhofer, Manfred: I:394-395
    S.v. Ved. kŕ̥mi- 'Wurm, Made' (IIr. cf. Manichaean Sogd. kyrm- 'Schlange', MPers. klm (kirm) 'Wurm, Drache, Schlange', NPers. kirm 'Wurm, Schlange'), from PIE *kʷr̥mi- (cf. OIr. cruim, W., Bret. pryf 'Wurm', Lith. kirmìs 'Wurm, Schlange', Sloven. čr̂m 'Fingerwurm, Karbunkel', etc.). Beside *kʷr̥mi- exists "a rhyme formation in Indo-European probably for reason of tabu" *u̯r̥mi- (NHG Wurm, cf. Lat. vermis), (so Watkins 1987:288).
  • Orel, Vladimir: 197
    S.v. Alb. krimb ~ krym 'worm', reflecting PAlb. *krim- and to be connected with IE *kʷr̥mi- 'id.' (cf. Skt. kŕ̥mi-, Lith. kìrmis etc.).
  • Pokorny, Julius: 649
    Cf. s.v. *kʷr̥mi- ‚Wurm, Made‘
  • Trubačev, O. N.: IV:171-172
    S.v. Proto-Slavic *čьrvь, very close to *čьrmь in the same meaning as attested in PSl. *čьrmelь, *čьrmъ, *čьrmьnъ. IE correspondence can be given for *čьrmь, but *čьrvь is less convincing. Possibly formed to the same element with different *-m-/*-v- formants. Alternatively perhaps the form in *-v arose under influence from other lexemes.
  • Watkins, Calvert: 288
    "[T]he word for 'worm, serpent, dragon' [in Germanic] is Old English wyrm, Old Norse ormr, Old Saxon and Old High German wurm, Gothic waurms: Germanic *wurmiz exactly cognate with Latin vermis, and presupposing Indo-European *u̯r̥mis. The word is a rhyme formation in Indo-European to *kʷr̥mis, probably for reason of tabu; kʷr̥mis is found in Celtic, Balto-Slavic, Albanian and Indo-Iranian. The usual meaning of *kʷr̥mis is just 'worm' in most traditions, but in Middle Iranian it is also the word for 'dragon'; compare the Pahlavi version of the familiar Indo-European formula: kirm ōzat 'slew the dragon' (Kārnāmak IX). There can be no doubt that in *u̯r̥mis/*kʷr̥mis we have two variants of the same designation of the Indo-European mythological serpent-adversary."
  • de Vaan, Michiel: 665
    Cf. s.v. Lat. vermis 'worm, maggot', from PIE *u̯r̥mi- 'snake, worm' (cf. Goth. waurms 'snake', OIc. ormr, OEng. wyrm, OFr. wirm 'snake', OS wormo, OHG wurm, 'worm' < PGmc. *wurma/i-). Cf. the PIE doublet *kʷrmi- 'worm, maggot', possibly secondarily from PIE *kʷrmi- > *wrmi- in Lat. and Germanic.