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Kan

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Kap

Kaninchen, n., ‘rabbit,’ dimin. of an earlier ModHG. Kanin; it is based upon Lat. cuniculus, which passed into HG. in various forms; MidHG. küniclîn (accented on the first syllable), evidently germanised, also künolt, künlîn, külle. The ModHG. form is based upon a MidLat. variant, caniculus; the form with a is properly restricted to North and Middle Germany, while ü (Künchel) is current in the South. Comp. MidE. coning, E. coney, from Fr. connin (Ital. coniglio).

Kanker (1.), m., ‘spider’ (MidG.), from the equiv. MidHG. kanker (rare), m. The derivation of the word from Lat. cancer, ‘crab’, is, for no other reason than the meaning, impossible. It seems to be based upon an OTeut. vb. ‘to weave, spin.’ This is indicated by the OIc. kǫngulváfa, kǫngurváfa, ‘spider’; AS. gongelwœ̂fre, ‘spider,’ must also be based upon a similar word; its apparent meaning, ‘the insect that weaves as it goes along,’ is probably due to a popular corruption of the obscure first component. We should thus get a prim. Teut. stem kang, ‘to spin,’ which in its graded form appears in ModHG. Kunkel. his stem has been preserved in the non-Teut. languages only in a Finn. loan-word; comp. Finn. kangas, ‘web’ (Goth. *kaggs).

Kanker (2.), m., ‘canker,’ from OHG. chanchar, cancur; comp. AS. cancer, E. canker. Probably OHG. chanchur is a real Teut. word from an unpermutated gongro-; comp. Gr. γόγγρος, ‘an excrescence on trees,’ γάγγραινα, ‘gangrene.’ Perhaps a genuinely Teut. term has been blended with a foreign word (Lat. cancer, Fr. chancre).

Kanne, f., ‘can, tankard, jug,’ from the equiv. MidHG. kanne, OHG. channa, f.; comp. AS. canne, E. can; OIc. kanna, Goth. *kannô. The OTeut. word cannot have been borrowed from Lat. cantharus (Gr. κάνθαρος); an assumed corruption of kantarum, m. acc. to a fem. kannô, is improbable. The derivation of Kanne, from Lat. canna, ‘cane,’ is opposed by the meaning of the word. Since ModHG. Kahn is based upon a Teut. root ka-, the latter can hardly be adduced in explanation of Kanne, although the meaning of both might be deduced from a prim. sense ‘hollowed wood,’ If we assume, as is quite possible, a Goth. *kaznô, ‘can,’ another etymology presents itself, Goth. kas, OIc. ker and OHG. char, ‘vessel,’ would be cognate, and -nô-, a suffix of the same root. If we

compare, however, with Kanne the Suab. and Alem. variant Kante, which is based upon OHG. chanta, we obtain kan- as the root. The G. word passed into Fr. (Mod. Fr. canette, ‘small can,’ equiv. to MidLat. cannetta, dimin. of MidLat. canna).

Kante, f., ‘sharp edge, border, margin, fine lace,’ ModHG. only, from LG. kante, ‘edge, corner’; the latter, like E. cant, ‘corner, edge,’ which is also unknown to the earlier periods of the language, is derived from Fr. cant, ‘corner,’ which, with Ital. canto, is said to be based finally on Gr. κάνθος, ‘felloe of a wheel.’

Kantschu, m., ‘leather whip,’ from Bohem. kančuch, Pol. kańczuk. The word is of Turk. origin (Turk. kamčẹ, ‘whip’). Comp. Karbatsche.

Kanzel, f., ‘pulpit,’ from MidHG. kanzel, OHG. cancella, chanzella, f., lit. ‘the place set apart for the priests,’ then ‘pulpit’; from the equiv. MidLat. cancellus, cancelli, ‘grating,’ cancelli altaris, ‘the grating enclosing the altar, the part separated, rom the nave of the church by a grating’; in MidLat. generally ‘any part surrounded by a parapet, especially an oriental flat roof.’ “Qui vero Epistolas missas recitare volebant populo in regione Palæstinæ antiquitus, ascendebant super tectum et de cancellis recitabant et inde inolevit usus ut qui litteras principibus missas habent exponere Cancellarii usitato nomine dicantur” (du Cange). Hence Kanzler. From the same source, MidLat. cancellus, is derived E. chancel, taken from OFr., the meaning of which forms the starting-point for the development of the signification of the HG. word.

Kapaun, m., ‘capon,’ from the equiv. MidHG. kappûn; borrowed after the era of the substitution of consonants from Rom. cappônem (Lat. capo, equiv. to Gr. κἀπων); comp. Ital. cappone, Fr. chapon (whence also Serv. kopun). Even in the AS. period capûn, ‘gallinaceus,’ is found derived from the same source (E. capon); comp. Du. kapoen. From the Lat. nom. cappo is derived MidHG. kappe, and even OHG. chappo. For another term see under Hahnrei.

Kapelle (1.), f., ‘chapel, orchestra,’ an early loan-word, which always remained, however, under the influence of MidLat. capella, on which it is based, for while numerous other words borrowed from Lat. have their accent changed according to the