Abstract
The sable is an important animal for fur trade in the world since the ancient time in Eurasia. Therefore, it is important to review the names for the sables in various languages in Eurasia to investigate the transmission of words for the sables. In the present paper, to give basic information for the transmission and transformation of the words for the sable in Eurasia, words for the sable and 3 other species of marten (Martes sp.), weasels, and squirrels in Eurasian languages were investigated.
In East Asia, the sable is called in various words. The sable was called “furuki ” (or fuluki) in ancient Japan (ca. 8 to 13 c.). It is called “hoinu ” -like words in Ainu language, “dambi ” with modifiers or other words in Korean, “bulgan ”-like words in Mongolic languages, and “segep ”-like words in Tungusic languages, and “diao ” with modifiers in Chinese. In the regions of central-western Eurasia where the sable is (was) distributed, the sable is called in words of “bulgan ”-like words in Mongolic languages, those of “kish ”-like words in Turkic languages, “nukse ”-like words in Finno-Ugric languages, and “sobol ” in Russian. In Iranian languages, the sable is fundamentally called in “samur ”. The word “samur ” is spread in central-western Asia and southeastern Europe. In northern-western Europe, the sable is called in “sobol ”-like words.
In Eurasian languages, martens are sometimes called in the words related with squirrels. Especially, it is not worthy that squirrels are called “uluki ” -like words in Tungusic languages.
