чугун

Russian

Alternative forms

• чугу́нъ (čugún) — Pre-reform orthography (1918)

Etymology

Inherited from Middle Russian чюгунъ (čjugun) (att. no later than 1665), likely a back-formation from чюгунной (čjugunnoj) first appearing in the Pskov 3rd Chronicle in the context of a 1615 siege (even though iron shot was cast in Russia already in late 16th century).

A Turkic borrowing, the most closely fitting are Chuvash чугун (čugun) and Azerbaijani çuqun (“cast iron; iron pot”), but both may be Russian loans. Cf. also Tatar чуен (çuyen), Crimean Tatar çoyun, Ottoman Turkish جويكن (çöygen, “cast iron; teapot”), Kumyk чоюн (çoyun), Ukrainian чавун (čavun, “cast iron; iron pot”), Romanian ceaun (“cauldron”).

Mudrak notes that medieval Turkic cognates meant either 'bronze, copper' as with Karakhanid جُوذِن (čoδïn) or 'iron ore', that in Karluk-Yugur, Altay and Teleut they denote metallic vessels, and suggests that it was derived from Middle Chinese 鑄 (t͡ɕɨo^H, “to cast”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [t͡ɕʊˈɡun]

Noun

чугу́н • (čugún) m inan (genitive чугуна́, nominative plural чугуны́, genitive plural чугуно́в, relational adjective чугу́нный, diminutive чугуно́к)

1. cast iron

   се́рый чугу́н ― séryj čugún ― gray cast iron

   бе́лый чугу́н ― bélyj čugún ― white cast iron

   переде́льный чугу́н ― peredélʹnyj čugún ― pig iron

   чу́шковый чугу́н ― čúškovyj čugún ― pig iron

   ко́вкий чугу́н ― kóvkij čugún ― malleable iron

2. cooking pot (traditionally made of cast iron)

Declension

Declension of чугу́н (inan masc-form hard-stem accent-b) 

	singular	plural
nominative	чугу́н čugún	чугуны́ čuguný
genitive	чугуна́ čuguná	чугуно́в čugunóv
dative	чугуну́ čugunú	чугуна́м čugunám
accusative	чугу́н čugún	чугуны́ čuguný
instrumental	чугуно́м čugunóm	чугуна́ми čugunámi
prepositional	чугуне́ čuguné	чугуна́х čugunáx

Derived terms

• чугу́нка (čugúnka)
• чугунолитейный (čugunolitejnyj)

Descendants

• → Armenian: չուգուն (čʻugun)
• → Azerbaijani: çuqun
• → Ingrian: cuguna
• → Persian: چدن (čodan)

See also

• желе́зо (želézo)
• сталь (stalʹ)

References

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “чугун”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress