▪ Engl
rice, (
mC13), from oFr
ris, from It
riso, from Lat
orīza, from Grk
óryza ‘rice’, via an IndIran lang (cf. Pashto
vriže, oPers
brizi), ultimately from Skr
vrīhí-s ‘rice’. The Grk word is the ultimate source of all Eur words (Welsh
reis, G
Reis, Lith
rysai, SrbCroat
riza, Pol
ryż, etc.). Introduced 1647 in the Carolinas – etymonline.com.
▪ Kluge2002: (As previous, adding that) oInd
vrīhí‑ is of obscure etymology, perhaps of Sem origin. Rice came to Europe via the Arabs.
▪ Nourai (and after him Rolland2014) give 3 Pers and 3 Av words: Pers
oroz,
varīzeh,
berenǧ, and Av
brīzi,
vrinǧ,
urvinǧ.
▪ Lokotsch1927#1733: Ar
ruzz, from < Grk
óryza, from some Oriental source. From Ar (with def.art.)
ar-ruzz are Span Portug
arroz, Sard
arrosu, Catal
arros etc.
▪ Landberg1923 notes that some Ar lexicographers also give
runz as a var. (
Ṣiḥāḥ says that both
ruzz and
runz are coll. for
ʔaruzz).
1
Landberg thinks that the dialectal
runz could be a dissimilation of
ruzz, but considers also the possibility that it was the other way round, i.e.,
ruzz was secondary, the result of an assimilation, in which case, he says,
runz would be the primary form »et le grec
óryza proviendrait alors de l’arabe ou de l’aram.«