ID 809 • Sw – • BP … • APD … • © SG | 15Feb2021
√MRǦ
grass-covered steppe; pasture; meadow – WehrCowan1979.
Etymology not clear. Suggestions for a derivation of the word from bi-consonantal themes with similar meanings have been made but seem rather speculative.
▪ According to Ehret1989, the obsolete vb. †maraǧ‑ (vn. marǧ) ‘to send an animal to pasture’ is an extension in “durative” *g from an earlier biconsonantal *mr, the “simple form” of which has been preserved in ↗marr‑ / marar‑ ‘to pass, pass by, depart, go away’. Other triradical themes from the same *mr‑ : (+ “inchoative/denominative” *y =) †mary ‘to take out, pull out’, (+ “durative” *t =) †mart ‘to drive away’.
▪ Orel&Stolbova1994#1741 reconstruct Sem *marg‑ ‘meadow’ and parallel this with the word morgo ‘field’ in one ECh language (their basis for reconstructing ECh *m˅r˅g‑ < *marug‑), and perhaps also Or marga ‘grass’ (< LEC *mar˅g‑). On account of these cognates the authors reconstruct AfrAs *mar˅g‑ ‘field’ (which they think may in turn be derived from AfrAs *mar‑ ‘field’).
► marǧ in: harǧ wa-marǧ confusion, jumble, tumult, hubbub: related to marǧ ‘meadow’?
► maraǧ disorder, confusion, jumble: related to marǧ ‘meadow’?
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