Looking through the same animal book described yesterday, I learned (and remembered) the Pulaar words for earthworm, crocodile, giraffe, owl, iguana, and snail. I learned (and forgot) the words for zebra and butterfly.
Snail is "bambatayahde," which I like for two reasons.
- Bambatayahde is one of the most complicated Pulaar words I have ever come across, yet snails are extremely uncomplicated.
- "Bambude" means "to carry something (e.g. a baby) strapped to one's back." "Yahde" means "to go." Snails carry something on their backs as they go! Bambatayahde is now second only to the Spanish paraguas on my list of favorite compound words.
I also like the word for giraffe, which directly translates to "bush goat." I've always found it amusing that Pulaar refers to so many wild animals as a "bush ____" with the blank filled in with the animal's closest domestic equivalent. Pigs, as another example, are "bush donkeys." I was further amused when I received this random trivia text from a fellow volunteer: "The word 'porpoise' means literally 'pig fish' and 'porcupine' means 'pig with thorns.'" Ancient Romans (or Greeks, or whoever) were just like the Fulas!
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