quinteau

French

Etymology

Emigrants from Perche brought the term to New France, and hence into Canadian and Louisiana French. Its pronunciation was "normalized" (to drop the [i̯], to match the pronunciation of other words ending in -eau) either by the Perche speakers when they spoke to non-Perche speakers, or by those other speakers after they borrowed the term.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɛ̃.to/
• (Louisiana, Quebec) IPA^(key): [kɛ̃to]
• (Perche, modern) IPA^(key): [kɛ̃ti̯o], (Perche, 17th century) [kɛ̃ti̯ɔ(u̯)]

Noun

quinteau m (plural quinteaux)

1. (dated outside Perche, Louisiana, Missouri, New England, Quebec) a heap, pile, or stack, such as of sugar or hay
   • 1904, Recueil de la Commission des arts et monuments historiques de la Charente-Inferieure, page 263:

     Somme de poisson froys, 2 deniers; — Balle de mercerie, 4 deniers; — Tonneau de ballenne, 2 deniers; — Quinteau d’alemandes, 5 deniers; — Quinteau de sucre, 6 deniers; — Quinteau de canelle, 6 deniers;

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)