First attested in the Seokbo sangjeol (釋譜詳節 / 석보상절), 1447, as Middle Korean 프〮ᅀᅥᇰ귀〮 (Yale: phúzèngkwúy), equivalent to a compound of 플〮 (Yale: phúl, “grass; vegetable; non-woody plant”) + *서ᇰ귀〮 (Yale: *sèngkwúy). The latter element is not productive in isolation in Middle Korean or any mainland dialect, but is still found as Jeju 송키 (songki).
The latter element was ultimately borrowed from Jurchen; compare Manchu ᠰᠣᡤᡳ (sogi, “vegetables”), Oroch соггиха (soggixa, “green”).
The modern Seoul form is a borrowing from Gyeongsang or a similar southern dialect which did not undergo the Seoul /s/ > /z/ shift, and is not directly descended from the Seoul dialect of Middle Korean.
| Romanizations | |
|---|---|
| Revised Romanization? | puseonggwi |
| Revised Romanization (translit.)? | puseonggwi |
| McCune–Reischauer? | p'usŏnggwi |
| Yale Romanization? | phusengkwi |
푸성귀 • (puseonggwi)