박쥐

Korean
박쥐

Etymology

First attested in the Gugeupganibang eonhae (救急簡易方諺解 / 구급간이방언해), 1489, as Middle Korean ᄇᆞᆰ〯쥐〮 (Yale: pǒlk-cwúy), seemingly a compound of some *ᄇᆞᆰ〯 (*pǒlk) +‎ 쥐〮 (cwúy, “rat”).

The first compound is commonly theorized to be ᄇᆞᆰ (pòlk-, “to be bright”), possibly reflecting a belief (prior to the discovery of echolocation) that bats had bright eyes that allowed them to fly in the dark.[1] However, the tones do not match, making the connection somewhat dubious.

Pronunciation
  • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [ˈpa̠(ː)k̚t͡ɕ͈ɥi] ~ [ˈpa̠(ː)k̚t͡ɕ͈y]
  • Phonetic hangul: [박(ː)쮜]
    • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.
Romanizations
Revised Romanization?bakjwi
Revised Romanization (translit.)?bagjwi
McCune–Reischauer?pakchwi
Yale Romanization?pākcwi

Noun

박쥐 • (bakjwi) (counter 마리)

  1. bat
    Synonym: 편복(蝙蝠) (pyeonbok)
    Hypernym: 날짐승 (naljimseung, “winged animal”)
  2. (figuratively, often derogatory) an opportunist

Alternative forms

Derived terms
  • 박쥐구실 (bakjwigusil, “opportunism”)
  • 박쥐우산 (bakjwiusan, “cloth umbrella”)
  • 박쥐족 (bakjwijok, “(derogatory) night owl”)

See also
  • 낮잠 (natjam, “nap”)
  • 메아리 (meari, “echo”)
  • 밤나들이 (bamnadeuri, “night tour”)
  • 밤눈 (bamnun, “night vision”)

References
  1. The origin of 박쥐 [bat]:
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.