għalqa
Maltese
Etymology
Reminiscent of Arabic حَقْل (ḥaql, “field”), but the required phonetic development (voicing of the onset plus metathesis -ql- → -lq-) seems rather far-fetched. Hence probably from, or at least influenced by, a word from the Arabic roots ع ل ق (ʿ-l-q) or غ ل ق (ḡ-l-q); most plausibly perhaps عُلْقة (ʿulqa, “sufficient amount of substinence, food, or pasture”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈaːlʔa/
Noun
għalqa f (plural għelieqi)
- field
See also
- raba'