Prussia

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Archived revision by WingerBot (talk | contribs) as of 17:41, 4 September 2022.
Jump to navigation Jump to search
See also: Prússia

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
The flag of Prussia from 1892 to 1918.

Etymology

From New Latin Prūssia, a Latinization used by Peter of Dusburg of a Baltic (Old Prussian, or perhaps Lithuanian or Latvian) autonym. The Proto-Indo-European source of the name is unclear; more at Prussia. Compare the Proto-Balto-Slavic *prus-sk-[1], whose cognates include Proto-Slavic *prъskati (“to splutter, to splash”), Sanskrit प्रुष्णोति (pruṣṇóti, “to sprinkle”)[1], and thus signifying "watery land".

The Middle English designation for the region, Pruce, derives from the same Latinization and is the source of the terms pruce and spruce.

Pronunciation

  • Lua error in Module:parameters at line 360: Parameter 1 should be a valid language or etymology language code; the value "UK" is not valid. See WT:LOL and WT:LOL/E. IPA(key): /ˈpɹʌʃə/
  • Audio (Berkshire):(file)
  • Rhymes: -ʌʃə

Proper noun

Prussia

  1. (chiefly historical) A geographical area on the Baltic coast of northeastern Europe.
  2. (historical) A Baltic country located in this area, conquered by the Teutonic Order and ultimately absorbed into Germany.
  3. (historical) A German province which was originally located in this area but later greatly expanded, and which was the predecessor to and a member of the German Empire; abolished as an administrative unit at the end of the Second World War.
  4. (countable) A country known for exceptional military professionalism in her region. Historically used for Bulgaria as the "Prussia of the Balkans".
    • 2010, Stephen Kinzer, A Thousand Hills — Rwanda’s Rebirth and the Man Who Dreamed It:
      Sometimes referred to as the “Prussia of Africa,” Rwanda insists on enormous self-discipline from every citizen.

Usage notes

In the Baltic languages the 'u' is long; it was also long in Middle English, but it has become short in modern English.

Derived terms

Translations

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Derksen, Rick (2008) Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 4), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 423

Anagrams

Portuguese

Proper noun

Prussia f

  1. Obsolete spelling of Prússia.
    • 1914, David Lloyd George, A Guerra Europea, Harrison and Sons, page 2:
      Porque é que a Austria e a Prussia não estão cumprindo com a sua parte do contracto ?
      Why are Austria and Prussia not performing the obligations of their bond ?
Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=Prussia&oldid=69117033"