Garrote. Span. and Port. The death penalty by strangulation, in which an iron collar fixed to a post is tightened by a screw and receives the neck of the culprit, which is broken by a sharp turn given by the executioner. Garrote also means a cudgel, or heavy walking-stick; and the tourniquet used by surgeons. It is a word of strange and uncertain etymology, and is said to be connected with Span. garra, a claw, Fr. jarret, a thigh, and other apparently incongruous words.

Gazpacho. A dish in the nature of a vegetable salad very popular in Spain, made of bread, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, garlic, garbanzos or chick-peas, with oil and seasoning of various kinds. The etymology is uncertain.

Gefatura. Span. Office of the following.

Gefe. Span. Chief. Gefe politico = corregidor, q. v.

Gelaba. Arab. A long cloak. Arab. jilbāb.

Genio. Span. and Port. Genius; spirit.

Genoui, dimin. Genouillos. Moor. A Genoese, Genoese children.

Gente, Jente. Span. and Port. People.

Germanía. Span. According to the dictionaries, the dialect or mode of speech used by gypsies, thieves, and ruffians, to prevent their being understood, in which they give special meanings to ordinary words (e.g. aguila, eagle = a clever thief), or invent words of their own (e.g. almifor = horse). No doubt Germanía contains gypsy words, but it is no more identical with Romany than are the Fr. Argot or the Eng. Cant. See Z. ii. 129.

Gibil. Arab. A hill.

Ginete. Span. A good horseman. À la gineta, in the Moorish style (of riding). Diez, strangely enough, would derive this Arab or Moorish word from the Grk. μυμνήτης, a naked or light-armed foot soldier. It is really derived from the proper name Zeneta, a Berber tribe who furnished the finest horsemen to the Spanish Moors (Cron. Alfonso X., fo. 6 d, an. 1263). In Catalan the word has become janetz. Our English word “jennet” may be derived from the same source.

Girar. Span. and Port. To turn round.

Gitana. Thieves’ slang. Twelve ounces of bread. See i. 177.

Gitano. Span. A gypsy. A corrupted form of Egiptiano, an Egyptian. R. 269; McR. 109. See Zincalo.

Godo. Span. and Port. A Goth; Gothic.

Goh. Pers. Mountain. More correctly, koh.

Gonfaloniera. Ital. Standard-bearer.

Grā, Gras, Graste, Gry. Rom. A horse. P. ii. 145; A. 33; Pp. 249; M. vii. 58.

Gracia. Span. Gratia. Lat. Grace.

Granja. Span. A grange, farm. La Granja, the royal palace at San Ildefonso.

Greco. Ital. Griego. Span. Greek.

Guapo, Guapito. Span. and Port. Gay, neat, clever, elegant, gallant.

Guardacostas. Span. A revenue cutter.

Guardia. Span. A guard, watch.

Guerilla. Span. Lit. little war. Irregular warfare to which the Spaniards have ever been so much addicted. The guerrillero is the irregular soldier, or armed paisano, who wages this little war.

Guerra. Span. War.

Guissan. Basque. According to. It is an adaptation of the Fr. guise, Span. guisa. The regular Basque words are arabera, araura. Aizquibel, Basque-Spanish Dict., gives the form gisara.

Gurséan. Moor. The giant aloe. Span. pita. Apud Borrow, ii. 276.

Gusto. Span. (1) Taste, lit. or fig. (2) Fancy, caprice, wish.

Haber. Span. To have. Hay, there are. No hay mas? Are there no more?

Habla. Span. Speech.

Hablar. Span. To speak. Lat. fabulare.

Hacer. Span. To do, make. El hará el gusto por V, He will do what you want.

Hada, Hade. Arab. This.

Haik. Arab. A white cloth worn over the head by the Moors.

Haimas. Arab. Tents. More correctly, ḥaimat, plur. ḥiyām.

Haji. Arab., Turk., and Grk. One who having made the haj, or pilgrimage, to Mecca, is entitled to wear a green turban and assume the title of haji. But the same title, strange to say, is assumed by orthodox Christians who have made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem; and Haji Yanco is quite as common a title or mode of address in the Levant as Haji Ibrahím.

Halal. Arab. Lawful.

Haloof. Berber. Hog’s flesh. More correctly, ḥalluf.

Hamal. Arab. Porter, carrier. More correctly, ḥammāl.

Hanutz. Arab. Shop. More correctly, ḥanūt.

Harām. Arab. and Hebr. Forbidden. Akin to this is harem.

Hasta. Span. Until. See Despues.

Hato. Span. A herd, a multitude. Port. fato.

Hax Weib, Hax. Germ. A witch. A wrong form of Hexe Weib or Hexe, a witch, or female wizard.

Hayim. Hebr. Living. More correctly, hayyim.

Heller. Germ. A copper coin in use in Germany previous to 1848; in value about one farthing.

Herencia. Span. Heritage, inheritance.

Herrador. Span. A blacksmith.

Hidalgo. Span. See Fidalgo.

Higuera. Span. A fig-tree.

Hijo. Span. A son. Lat. filius.

Hinai. Arab. Here.

Hok. Rom. Deceit, falsehood, fraud. Hokka, to lie; hokkawar, to cheat. Hokkano, in Eng. Rom., a lie. P. ii. 160; A. 37; Pp. 317; M. vii. 63. Hokkano baro, the great trick. See Z. i. 310; LL. 244; Lel. 352; Gr. 357.

Hombre. Span. Homme. Fr. A man

Horca. Span. The gallows.

Horno. Span. Oven.

Houris. Arab. The women of the Moslem Paradise. Plural of the Arab, ḥawrá = black-eyed.

Hsheesh. Arab. I.e. ḥashish, a preparation of hemp.

Huáje. Arab. Things. Huáje del Mselmeen, more correctly, ḥawāij el Muslimīn, things of the Moslems.

Hueso. Span. A bone.

Hundunar, Jundunar. Rom. A soldier. P. ii. 172; R. 294. J. gives jundo, jundonal.

Ichasoa. Basque. The sea. The verse quoted by Borrow (ii. 118) more accurately runs thus —

“Ichasoa urac handi.
(The iea – the water – large)
Eztu ondoric aguerri —
(There is not – any bottom – manifest)
Pasaco ninsaqueni andic
(To pass – I could be able – thence)
Maitea icustea gatic.”

(The beloved – the seeing, i. e. to see – for).

Infamia. Span. and Port. Infamy.

Infante. Span. and Port. Prince.

Inglaterra. Span. England.

Ingles. Span. English. Inglesito! “My little Englishman!”

Inquisicion. Span. The Inquisition.

Inshallah. Arab. Please God!

Instancia. Span. and Port. Instance, prosecution. See note, ii. 141.

Jabador. Apparently a Hispanized form of the African Arabic jabdali = a gold-embroidered waistcoat.

Jaca, or Haca. Span. A pony, or small riding horse.

Jara Canallis. Rom. The only authority I have succeeded in finding for this word is Z. ii. * 61. “Jaracañales, guards, officers of the revenue.” It may possibly be derived from the Bohemian gypsy xáro, Hungarian háro = sabre, and the Span. canalla, but I have no reason to suppose that the word xáro or háro was known to the gypsies of Spain.

Jargon. Eng. Originally a Fr. word, meaning any unintelligible sound, as that of birds, then applied to the strange speech of the Gueux; and so to any unknown tongue. Borrow himself says of the gypsies, “when wishing to praise the proficiency of any individual in their tongue, they are in the habit of saying, ‘He understands the seven jargons’” (Z. ii. 125). Frampton Boswell is recorded (G. i. 374) to have stated that Romany was not one of “the seven languages,” “but,” adds Mr. Hinde Groome, “what he meant thereby, goodness alone knows.” The historian Mazaris (a. d. 1416) states that at that time the Peloponnesus was inhabited by seven principal nations, one of which was that of the Egyptians. These “Egyptians” are held by M. Bataillard to have been gypsies (ib. iii. 154), and I would suggest that we have here the origin of “the seven jargons.” The number seven seems to be in a special way connected with the children of Roma. For other instances see Leland, English Gypsies, p. 218; Gr. 171.

Jaun, Jauna. Basque. Lord, the lord.

Jaungvicoa. Basque. The Lord God. Jaun = man, sir, lord; Gincoa or Jincoa = God.

Jehinnim. Arab. and Hebr. Hell.

Jennut. Arab. Paradise. Usually written, jannat.

Jente. Span. See Gente.

Jin. Arab. In classic English, genie (Arabic and Persian jinn), a class of spirits lower than the angels.

Johár. Arab. A pearl.

Jojabar, Jonjabar. Rom. To deceive. From jojána, deceit. See Hok.

Jorge, dimin. Jorgito. Span. George.

Jorobado. Span. A hunchback. The verb jorobar means “to worry.”

Juez. Span. A judge.

Jumal. Arab. Friday. More correctly, jum‘a.

Junta. Span. and Port. An assembly, meeting, council, governing body.

Juntunó. Rom. A listener, spy, sneak. From junar, junelar, to listen. P. ii. 221; Pp. 497; M. viii. 75.

Justicia. Span. A legal tribunal, or the magistrate or magistrates who constitute it. Absol, justice.

Kafir. Arab. Not a Moslem.

Kandrisa. According to Borrow, Turkish trousers. Possibly the same as the African Arabic ḳan dūra = long shirt, toga talaris.

Kapul Udbagh. According to Borrow = “There is no God but one.”

Kauk. Hebr. The furred cap of Jerusalem, according to Borrow. We may perhaps compare ḳūḳa, stated by Redhouse in his Turkish Diet, to be a peculiar plumed head-dress worn by field-officers of the Janissaries.

Kawar. Arab. An uncommon word, meaning, no doubt, a cemetery, being a corrupt form of ḳabr, a tomb.

Kebir. Arab. Great.

Ker, Quer. Rom. A house. P. ii. 153; Pp. 279; M. vii. 79; G. i. 178.

Kermous del Inde. Arab. A fruit; the prickly pear.

Kistur, Kester. Rom. To ride. P. ii. 122; SC. refer to uklistó, Pp. 560; A. 14; M. viii. 89. Borrow derives it from the Wallachian keleri. Perhaps from the Grk. κέλης.

Kjæmpe. Scand. A champion. Cf. “Kempion the kingis son” in the ballad that bears his name.

Knaw. Rom. Now. P. ii. 124; Pp. 130; M. vii. 5.

Kosko, Kooshto. Rom. Good. P. ii. 157. This is an Eng. Rom. word. Continental gypsies use latchó, mishtó.

Kyrie. Grk. Κύριε, sir, my lord.

Labrador. Span. Cultivator, rustic, peasant. Labrar, to till the ground.

Lácha. Rom. Maidenhead, virginity. Z. ii. 7; P. ii. 331; Pp. 325; M. viii. 4.

Lachipé. Rom. Silk. I cannot explain this word, unless it is connected with the following.

Lachó, fem. Lachí. Rom. Good. P. ii. 329; A. 49; Pp. 328; M. viii. 4.

Ladrões. Port. Plur. of ladrão, a thief. Lat. latro.

Laloré. Rom. The Portuguese. Laloró, the red land. Eng. Rom. Lotto (cf. Jackanapes, p. 28). P. i. 54, ii. 338; Pp. 328, 339; M. viii. 8.

Lapurrac. Basque. The thieves.

Largo. Port. A square, or public place in a town.

Lectura. Span. Reading.

Len. Rom. A river. Len baro, the great river; Wady al Kebir, the Guadalquivir. P. ii. 336; Pp. 333; M. viii. 6.

Levantarse. Span. and Port. To raise one’s self, rise.

Le. Span. To him.

Li, Lil. Rom. Paper; a letter, passport, book. P. ii. 329, 339; A. 48; Pp. 334; M. viii. 7.

Lib. Hebr. Heart. More correctly, leb.

Liceo. Span. School, college.

Lilipendi. Rom. A simpleton. Akin to Liló, q. v.

Liló, fem. Lilí. Rom. Foolish, mad. P. ii. 340.

Limosna, dimin. Limosnita. Span. Alms, charity.

Lindo. Span. and Port. Beautiful, pretty.

Liri. Rom. Law. P. ii. 340.

Llavero. Span. Turnkey.

Loco. Span. Mad.

Lombo. Port. Loin.

Londoné. Rom. An Englishman; lit. a Londoner. So B., but it is probably plural. P. i. 54.

Longanizero. Span. Sausage-maker.

Lontra. Port. Otter. Span. nutria. “L” for “N” is characteristic.

Loor. Old Span. Praise.

Lume. Port. Light.

Lumia. Rom. A harlot. P. ii. 334; Pp. 342; M. viii. 9; G. i. 178.

Ma. Arab. Not.

Macho, Macha. Span. A mule, male or female. Considering that, even in Spanish, macho did, and does, signify a male animal of any kind – being an abbreviation of the Latin masculus—macha, a she-mule, is rather a strange word!

Madrilati. Rom. Madrid. Also Adalí, J. In thieves’ slang also Gao (= gav, a town), Z. ii. * 54. But H. gives gao = piojo (a louse).

Maha. Sanscr. Great. Persian mih.

Mahasni, plur. Makhasniah. Arab. Soldiers. More correctly, men of the garrison; defenders.

Mai. Port. Mother.

Mailla. Rom. A she-ass. P. ii. 454. Apparently only found in Eng. Romany.

Majaró. Rom. Holy. P. ii. 462.

Majo, Maja. Dandy; fancy man or girl. Majo, scarcely to be rendered in any foreign language, is a word of more general signification than manolo, q.v. The one is a dandy, or smart fellow, all over Spain; the other is used only of a certain class in Madrid.

Majoon. I cannot find this word, but it is apparently the name of some intoxicating substance, and is probably connected with the Arabic majnūn = possessed by a jinn, mad.

Makhiah. Arab. Brandy made of figs. More correctly, ma’iyya.

Malo. Span. Bad, wicked.

Malvado. Span. and Port. Malicious, evil disposed.

Man. Rom. Me. P. i. 229; Pp. 66; M. xi. 22.

Manolo. Span. Manolo is a somewhat difficult word to translate. It is applied to the flash or fancy man and his manola in Madrid only; a class fond of pleasure, of fine clothes, of bull-fights, and of sunshine, with a code of honour of their own; men and women rather picturesque than exemplary, and eminently racy of the soil.

Manró. Rom. Bread or corn. Estremadura is thus called Chim del Manró, “The Land of Corn.” P. ii. 440; Pp. 350; M. viii. 12. Given as marron, G. i. 177.

Manta. Span. and Port. A woollen blanket. Á manta de Dios = copiously. The word has nothing to do with the national cloak of Spain, which is la capa.

Mantilla. Span. The characteristic headdress of Spanish ladies, of black silk or lace, drawn over the back of the head and shoulders. Dimin. of manta.

Mar. Span. and Port. Sea.

Maravedí. Span. A coin of various weights and values. See Burke’s History of Spain, ii. 282.

Marequita. Span. Dimin. of Maria.

Mariposa. Span. A butterfly; a night light.

Mas. Span. More.

Matador. Span. and Port. (1) A slayer, murderer. (2) The man who kills the bull. See note, i. 170.

Mato. Port. A forest; or more exactly, a wild country, full of bushes and thickets.

Maughrabie. Arab. A Borrovian adaptation of the Arabic Al Maghrib, the west, signifying Mauretania, or North-Western Africa.

Mayim. Hebr. Waters.

Mayor. Span. and Port. Greater.

Mayordomo. Span. and Port. House steward, or major-domo.

Mearrah. Hebr. and Arab. Cemetery. Lit. a cave. Hebr. m‘arah, Arab. maghārah.

Meclis, Meklis. Eng. Rom. Leave off! have done! “‘Meklis,’ said Mrs. Chikno, ‘pray drop all that, sister’” (The Romany Rye, ch. v.). P. ii. 112, 434; Pp. 369; M. viii. 19.

Medico. Span. and Port. A physician.

Meforshim. Hebr. The commentators. More correctly, m’fár’shim.

Meiga. Port. and Gal. A female sharper, fortune-teller, or sorceress. The adjective meigo, in Spanish mego, has the signification of gentle, kind, mild.

Melegrana. Rom. Granada. From the Ital. melagrana, a pomegranate; Span. granada. See note, 375.

Mendi. Basque. A mountain. See note to Ingles Mendi, ii. 314.

Mercado. Span. and Port. A market, or market-place.

Merced. Span. (1) Favour, grace, mercy. (2) A day labourer’s pay, or wages. (3) In combination, vuestra merced, your worship, your honour, etc.; written V. or Vd. and pronounced usted.

Mesuna. Rom. A wayside inn, or posada, q.v. P. ii. 43, 463.

Mezquita. Span. A mosque.

Míla. Irish. A thousand.

Milagro. Span. A miracle.

Min. Rom. My, mine. P. i. 237; Pp. 69; M. xi. 30.

Min. Arab. From.

Mirar. Span. To look.

Miseria. Span. and Port. Misery, wretchedness; also niggardliness, stinginess.

Moderado. Span. and Port. Moderate. The name assumed by the more royalist members of the Cristino party. See i. 180.

Modo. Span. and Port. (1) Measure; (2) courtesy, urbanity. V. no tiene modo, “You’ve got no manners.”

Moidore. O. Eng. Portuguese moeda d’ouro = golden money, was a gold piece of the value of about twenty-six shillings.

Mona. Span. and Port. A she-monkey.

Monró. Rom. A friend; in thieves’ slang, an adult. Z. ii. 149; P. ii. 453; M. viii. 18.

Montana. Span. A hill, mountain.

Monte. Span. and Port. A hill, mountain.

Montera. Span. A hunting-cap, a Montero cap.

Montero. Span. A hunter; originally, a mountaineer.

Moro. Span. Moorish.

Mostrador. Span. The counter, of a shop.

Mozo. Span. A youth, or lad; moza, a girl.

Mselmeen. Arab. Moslems. See Huáje.

Muchacho, Muchacha. Spn. Boy; girl.

Mucho. Span. Much.

Muger, Mujer. Span. Woman; wife.

Mujik, Muzhik. Russ. A peasant. It may be added that their popular song, “Come, let us cut the cabbage” (i. 175), is not, as might be supposed, an exhortation to horticultural pursuits. “To cut the cabbage” is a slang expression among the Slavs for killing a Turk, in allusion to the green turbans worn by the descendants of the prophet.

Muk. Rom. Let, allow. See Meclis.

Mundo. Span. and Port. World.

Mushee. Arab. I.e. ma = not, shee = thing.

Muy. Span. Very, much.

Nacional. Span. and Port. A Nationalist; a member of the National Guard.

Nada. Span. and Port. Nothing.

Nahi. Rom. Translated by Borrow, lost. If so, perhaps connected with najabar, to lose. P. ii. 324; Pp. 381; M. viii. 23. Possibly, however, it is only a negative = is not. P. i. 319; A. 70.

Nao. Port. Ship.

Narangero. Span. An orange-seller.

Nava. Span. A plain.

Ndui. Hebr. A kind of hell, or purgatory, according to Borrow, who puts the word into the mouth of his Lisbon Jews. It is, apparently, the Hebr. niddui = ban, excommunication.

Nefsky. Russ. Of the Neva.

Negro. Span. and Port. (1) Black; (2) a negro, or African; (3) the nickname given by the Basque Carlists to the Cristinos, or Constitutionalists, 1833–1839.

Nicabar. Rom. To take away, steal, destroy. P. ii. 326; Pp. 390; M. viii. 25.

Niri. Basque. My, mine.

Noche. Span. Night.

Nombre. Span. Name.

Novillo. Span. A young bull. See note, i. 361.

Novio. Span. Bridegroom, betrothed.

Nuar. Arab. Flowers. More correctly, nawār.

Nuestro. Span. Our.

Nuveiro. This word is neither Castilian, Galician, nor Portuguese; but is a made-up or fancy word, from the Portuguese nuvem, a cloud; a cloud man, or supernatural being.

O. Rom. The.

Ó. Span. Or.

Obispo. Span. Bishop.

Ojalateros. Span. “Waiters upon Providence.” A burlesque word. See note, i. 169.

Onza. Span. A coin of the value of about £3 6s. 8d.; lit. an ounce of gold. Also known as the doblon de à 8; Anglicized as “piece of eight.”

Oraçam, Oração. Port. A prayer.

Otro. Span. Other. No hay otro en el mundo, “There’s none like it in the world.”

Oulem. Hebr. Of the world. Arab. ‘olam.

Pachí. Rom. Modesty, honour, virginity. P. ii. 347.

Paciencia. Span. and Port. Patience.

Paço. Port. The Court.

Padre. Span. and Port. Father.

Padrino. Span. (1) Sponsor, godfather; (2) second – in a duel.

Padron. Span. Patron, landlord.

Pahan. Phœn. A rabbit.

Paisano. Span. and Port. A countryman; not a peasant, but a man of the same country as another; a compatriot. As the conventional answer to the challenge, “Quien vive?” by a Spanish sentry, it means “Civilian.”

Pajandi. Rom. A guitar. According to Borrow, lit. “the thing that is touched or played upon.” P. ii. 369, 426.

Pajaria. Span. Straw-market. The place where straw is kept is Pajar.

Pal. Rom. See Plan.

Palabra. Span. A word.

Palomar. Span. A dovecote.

Pan. Span. Bread.

Panhagia. Grk. Lit. All-holy. The Virgin Mary.

Paní. See Pawnee.

Pañuelo. Span. A handkerchief. Lit. a little cloth.

Papas. Grk. A priest (παπᾶς).

Para. Span. and Port. For.

Parnó. Rom. White. P. ii. 359; Pp. 410; M. viii. 32.

Parné. White, or silver money; thence, as in the case of Fr. argent, money in general. See Parnó.

Parra. Span. Festoons of vines; the trellis or stakes upon which these festoons are trained.

Parugar. Rom. To barter, swop, chaffer. P. ii. 354; Pp. 412; M. viii. 33.

Pasteleros. Span. Pastrycooks.

Pastesas. Rom. The hands. Ustilar á pastesas is to steal “with the hands,” or by any sleight of hand. Z. i. 315. The usual Span. gypsy word is ba, J.; bas, Z. i. 522. Both are doubtless variations of the more common vast. P. ii. 86; Pp. 573; M. viii. 94; SC. 151.

Pastor. Span. and Port. Shepherd.

Patio. Span. and Port. The court of a house; either the open space round which Spanish houses are so commonly built, or an open court in front of it.

Patron. See Padron.

Pawnee, Paní. Rom. Water. Hind. paní. The one special word known to all gypsies wherever found, even in Brazil. P. ii. 343; Pp. 405; M. viii. 31; G. i. 61.

Peluni. Arab. Of another. See ii. 313.

Penar, Penelar. Rom. To speak, say. P. ii. 386; Pp. 421; M. viii. 41.

Peña. Span. A rock.

Peptndorio. Rom. Antonio; proper name.

Perico. Span. A small parrot.

Pero. Span. But

Perro. Span. A dog.

Pesar. Span. and Port. To afflict, distress. Lit. to weigh. Me peso, “I’m very sorry.”

Peseta. Span. A Spanish coin, representing, down to 1870, two silver reals or four reals vellon, but since 1870 the standard or unit of value in Spanish finance, is nearly equal to the French franc, and, like it, divided for purposes of account, into 100 centimos.

Petulengro, Petalengro. Eng. Rom. A shoeing smith. See note on i. 204; P. ii. 348; Pp. 427; M. viii. 37; SC. 13, 121; and, generally, Lavengro and The Romany Rye.

Pfaffen. Germ. Monks; a contemptuous term for clerics generally, whether regular or secular.

Piazza. Ital. An open square in a town, surrounded by colonnades. In modern American parlance the word is often used for a veranda, in which sense Borrow apparently uses it, i. 276.

Picador. Span. and Port. A riding-master, bull-fighter. See note, i. 170, and Torero.

Picardia. Span. and Port. Knavishness; from picaro, a rogue, knave, or loafer. The English adjective picaresque is conventionally applied to a certain class of Spanish story of low life and sharp practice relieved by humour.

Pícaro. Span. and Port. Rogue, knave.

Picaron. Span. Augmentative (on) of pícaro, a great scamp.

Pica. Span. and Port. Peak, summit.

Pila. Span. A water-trough.

Pinar, Pinal. Span. Grove or wood of pine trees.

Pinró, Pindró, plur. Pindré. Rom. Foot; en pindré, on foot P. ii. 351; Pp. 433; M. viii. 47; A. 33.

Pio. Span. and Port. Pious.

Pirar, Pirelar. Rom. To go, walk. P. ii. 382; Pp. 436; M. viii. 42.

Pita. Span. The aloe (Agave americana).

Plulí. Rom. A widow. P. ii. 377; Pp. 439; M. viii. 43.

Plako or Placo. Rom. Tobacco. Russ. prâk = powder. P. ii. 361; Pp. 445; M. viii. 52. A gypsy model at Granada gave it as prajo in 1876, “L” and “R” being often interchanged by the peasants thereabouts. G. i. 177 and J. has polvo = praco.

Plan, Planoró, Plal. Rom. Brother, comrade. Eng. Rom. pal. P. ii. 383; A. 79; Pp. 445; M. viii. 43.

Playa. Span. The strand.

Plaza. Span. A square or open space in a town. Ital. piazza, q.v.

Plazuela. Span. Dimin. of Plaza.

Poblacion. Span. (1) Population; (2) act of populating; (3) a town.

Pobrecita. Span. “Poor thing!” Dimin. of pobre, poor.

Politico. Span. and Port. Political, civil. See note, ii. 127.

Polk. Russ. A regiment.

Poquito. Span. Dimin. of poco. Small, little.

Por. Span. and Port. For.

Porque. Span. and Port. Because.

Posada. Span. “A lodging; from posar, to sit down or lodge, hence lodging-house, tavern, or small hotel. The genuine Spanish town inn is called the posada, as being meant to mean a house of repose after the pains of travel. Strictly speaking, the keeper is only bound to provide lodging, salt, and the power of cooking whatever the traveller brings with him or can procure out-of-doors, and in this it differs from the fonda, in which meats and drinks are furnished.” – Ford, Gatherings from Spain, ch. xv.

Posadero. Span. Innkeeper.

Posta. Span. and Port. Post, post-house. Casa de las Postas, General Post-office.

Praça. Port. Square, place.

Prado. Span. and Port. A lawn or meadow. The great promenade at Madrid.

Praia. Gal. Seashore, strand.

Presidio. Span. and Port. Place of imprisonment, penitentiary; prim. a fortress, or the garrison thereof.

Prestar. Port. To be of use.

Primero. Span. First.

Principe. Span. and Port. Princeps. Lat. Prince.

Propina. Span. Lat. propinare. Drink-money; pour boire, a tip.

Puchera or Puchero. Span. A stew; prim. the pot in which the stew is made, which, as in the case of the olla, has come to signify the contents. The puchero is more used in the north, the olla in the south of the Peninsula. The combination olla podrida is now at least never heard in Spain.

Pueblo. Span. A small town, or village. El pueblo, the common people.

Puente. Span. A bridge.

Puerta. Span. Door, gate. Puerta del Sol, Gate of the Sun. The central point of Madrid.

Puerto. Span. A bay, or port; also a pass in the mountains.

Pulido. Span. Neat, delicate, charming.

Quatro. Span. and Port. Four.

Que. Span. and Port. What, that.

Quer. Rom. A house. See Ker.

Quien. Span. Who.

Quiero. Span. I wish.

Quinta. Span. and Port. A country house.

Rabbi. Hebr. Master.

Rainha. Port. Queen.

Rais. Arab. Chief; captain of a ship.

Rajil. Arab. Man.

Randado. Rom. Written. From randar, P. ii. 276.

Ratero. Span. Mean, scoundrelly.

Raya. Span. Border, boundary, or frontier.

Real. Span. and Port. Royal.

Real. Span. and Port. A coin or unit of value. The Spanish plural is reales; the Portuguese, reis or rees. The Spanish real is worth about 2½d. English; the Portuguese only 1/20d., one thousand reis making the Portuguese dollar, or piece of mil reis, hence called a milrei or milreis.

Regata. Span. A small channel, or, conduit.

Reja. Span. The iron grating before a window looking on to the street of a town. The recognized trysting-place of a lover and his mistress.

Relacion. Span. Relation, story.

Rematar. Span. and Port. To end, finish. Que Dios remate tu nombre! “May God blot out your name!”

Render. Span. and Port. To yield, surrender.

Repañi. Rom. Brandy. This word, given in 1876 (v. Plako), is derived by Pott from repañi (repañó, J.), a radish, the connexion being the sharp taste of both (ii. 274). Remembering the “fire-water” of the Indians, the aguardiente of Spain and Portugal, and the tattopani of the Eng. gypsies, I am tempted to suggest another explanation. J. gives ardiente = carí, and aguardiente = pañicarí. Now car (P. ii. 125) or jar (ib. 171) = heat. Change the order of the words and caripañi might shorten into repañí.

Repostero. Span. The butler, or majordomo, in a great house. The reposteria is the plate-room, storeroom, or pantry.

Reputacion. Span. Reputation. Gente de reputacion, “swells,” “swagger people.”

Requiso. Span. Requisitioning (from requerir). A technical word; the authority that requisitions private property, horses, etc., for the use of the national army in time of war.

Reyna. Span. Queen.

Ria. Span. and Port. An estuary, as the mouth of a river. More particularly applied to the numerous bays on the Galician and Asturian coasts of Northwest Spain.

Ro, Rom. Rom. A husband; a married gypsy. Roma, the husbands, is the generic name of the gypsy nation, or Romany. P. ii. 275; A. 56; Pp. 462; M. viii. 58; McR. 91.

Romero. Span. Rosemary.

Romi. Rom. A married gypsywoman; fem. of rom, a husband; a married gypsy.

Roque. Span. and Port. The “rook,” or “castle,” at chess. Pers. rukh. The same word is used for the fabulous bird of immense size so often mentioned in Oriental tales.

Rouble. Russ. A kind of Russian money, either silver or paper. Its present value is about two shillings.

Ruah. Arab, and Hebr. Spirit. Used throughout the Old Test, to denote the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit.

Rufianesco. Span. Ruffian, criminal.

Rune. Eng. (1) A letter of the ancient Scandinavian alphabet, usually carved on stone. (2) A short mystic sentence of Scandinavian origin. Norse and Danish rune, Swed. runa.

Sabio. Span. and Port. Learned. King Alfonso X. was surnamed El Sabio, which is sometimes erroneously rendered “The Wise.” Sabio is, rather, “erudite;” and the king was undoubtedly the most learned man of his time, though his government was not always by any means wise.

Sacro. Span. and Port. Sacred.

Safacoro. Rom. The city of Seville. P. ii. 248. J. gives Sevillano = Safacorano.

Sagadua, Sagardua. Basque. Cider; i. e. the strong or Spanish cider, called in French Basque charnoa or sharnoa, as distinguished from the weak cider which is made from apples rotted in water. A probable etymology is sagar = apple; arno = wine.

Sagra. Span. The name of certain districts in Spain, especially of one lying north of Toledo. The word is probably derived from the Arab ṣaḥra = a plain. See note, i. 257.

Salamanquesa. Span. A salamander, or, star-lizard; otherwise called salamandra.

Sandia. Span. A water-melon.

Santiguo. Span. The action of crossing one’s self. Santiguar is “to make the sign of the cross.”

Santo. Span. and Port. Sainted, holy. La Santa Casa, the Inquisition.

Santon. Span. A great saint; more especially applied to Moslem recluses. Also, a hypocrite.

Santurron. Span. A great saint; usually, a great hypocrite.

Sardinha. Port. and Gal. A sardine. Borrow’s friends, la gente rufianesca, have a quaint name for a galley-slave, apaleador de sardinas, a sardine-beater. H. 155.

Sba. Arab. Morning. More correctly, ṣabāḥ.

Scharki. Arab. The East.

Scharr. See Daoud.

Schophon. Heb. Shâphân (שׁפן) A quadruped which chews the cud like a hare (Lev. xi. 5; Deut. xiv. 7); which lives gregariously on rocks, and is remarkable for its cunning (Ps. civ. 18; Prov. xxx. 26). The Rabbins render coney, or rabbit; more correctly the LXX. in three places χοιρογρύλλιος, i. e. an animal resembling the marmot.

Sé. Span. I know; from saber.

Sea. Span. May he be; from ser.

Seco. Span. and Port. Dry. See ii. 82.

Secretario. Span. and Port. Secretary.

Segun. Span. According to.

Segundo. Span. and Port. Second.

Senhor, Senhora. Port. Señor, Señora. Span. Gentleman, lady.

Señorito, Señorita. Span. Dimin. of the above.

Seo. Span. A cathedral church.

Sereka. Arab. A theft. More correctly, sarika.

Serra. Port. A high range of mountains; the Spanish sierra.

Serrador. Span. and Port. A sawyer. Although according to some authorities this was the real name of the person mentioned in i. 138, 233, it seems that he was really a sawyer, by name José Miralles, born in Valencia, on the borders of Aragon. He served under El Fraile (The Friar), a Guerilla chief in the Napoleonic wars, and was rather the rival than the lieutenant of Cabrera, who imprisoned him, on which occasion he broke both his legs in a vain attempt to escape. He subsequently took part in the rising at Maeztrazgo, in 1844, and died in the campaign of that year, while serving under General Villalonga.

Serrania. Span. and Port. District or country of sierras, or mountain ridges.