mefus

Welsh

Alternative forms

meddus

Etymology

This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.
Particularly: “Not given an etymology or cognates by GPC. This chart claims that the word is either a derivative of Latin Maius (“May (month)”),^[1] (perhaps because strawberries are ripest around May and June), or is related to Gaulish *majoþa (“strawberry”), the latter of unknown origin (that said, maybe it's also derived from the Latin root listed above, considering the similar phonetics). Said etymology has also been applied to Catalan maduixa (“id”) and Occitan majofa (“id”), though no citations are given on those pages or on the chart; is there academic literature discussing it? Or is it an ad-hoc folk etymology?”

Pronunciation

(North Wales) IPA^(key): /ˈmɛvɨ̞s/
(South Wales) IPA^(key): /ˈmeːvɪs/, /ˈmɛvɪs/
Rhymes: -ɛvɨ̞s

Noun

mefus f (collective, singulative mefusen)

(North Wales) strawberries

Synonyms

(South Wales) syfi

Derived terms

mefusbren (“arbutus, strawberry tree”)

Mutation

Mutated forms of *mefus*
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
mefus	fefus	unchanged	unchanged

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

References

R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “mefus”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies

^ https://archive.ph/XXyhS

[1] ttps://archive.ph/XXyhS

[1]