LL-L "Lexicon" 2008.05.09 (01) [E]

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L O W L A N D S - L  - 09 May 2008 - Volume 01
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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Lexicon

Dear Lowlanders,

Here's a seasonal topic, for the Northern Hemisphere at least.

The Standard German name for the flower (one of my favorites) genus *Paeonia
*, English "peony," is *Pfingstrose* ("Whitsun rose"). However, when I grew
up, in my part of Northern Germany it was called *Bauernrose* ("peasant
rose") in German. Clearly, this goes back to a Missingsch substratum which
by definition comes with a hefty Low Saxon substratum. And, in fact, we call
the flower *Buurnroos'* (*buernroos'*) in Low Saxon.

I am wondering if there is a lesser-recorded trail of Lowlandic names
involving this "peasant rose" idea, which seems to say that a peony is to
peasants what a rose is to aristocrats and other wealthy folk.

(In Chinese, on the other hand, a by-name for the peony is 富貴花 (Mandarin *
fùguìhuā*) "flower of fortune and nobility". And in Lower Sorbian one of the
names for "peony" is *kralojska roža* "royal rose".)

Dutch *pioenroos* and Limburgish *pioenroes*, like the German and Low Saxon
equivalents, contain the "rose" idea. *Paeonia officinalis* is called *Echte
*("true")* Pfingstrose* or *Bauern-Pfingstrose* ("peasants' Whitsun rose")
in German; so there is a German link.

The "Whitsun" idea seems to be German and seems to have affected Upper
Sorbian (*swjatkownička *'peony' from *Swjatki* 'Whitsun', 'Pentecost').

Thanks for thinking about it and perhaps sharing your thoughts and
discoveries.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron
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