Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/kangura-

This Proto-Germanic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Uncertain; possibly related to English kink (“curl, turn, twist”), Icelandic kengur (“hook”), and if the word is of Indo-European origin, it may be further related to Old Church Slavonic гѫжвица (gǫžvica, “wicker”) and Czech houžev (“withy”), all from Proto-Indo-European *gengʰ- (“twist, turn, plait, weave”)^[1]. Finnish kankuri (“weaver”) is probably borrowed from Germanic^[2] together with Finnish kangas (“web”); alternatively, the present word could be borrowed from Finnish^[3].

• IPA^(key): /ˈkɑŋ.ɡu.rɑz/

*kangura- ?^[2]

1. The meaning of this term is uncertain. Possibilities include:
   1. net, plait, web
   2. weaver, spider

According to Íslensk orðsifjabók, the word's original meaning may have been "net, plait, something woven", hence the sense of Old Norse kǫngurváfa (“spider”) would be “web-weaveress”; but Finnish kankuri, clearly the same etymon, means “weaver”, which is close to the sense of German Kanker (“spider < he who weaves”). However, Kanker is also attested as Ganker and a relation to Proto-Germanic *gangjaną (“go”) is also possible^[1], in which case Kanker would be unrelated to the English and North Germanic descendants listed below; that is, if Kanker was not remade in a way similar to that of the first element of Old English gangewifre and gangelwæfre, which are usually seen as being of the same origin as kǫngurváfa^[1][2]

or

• Old English: *gangel, *gange
  • ⇒ Old English: gangelwæfre f (“spider”)
  • ⇒ Old English: gangewifre f (“spider”)
• >? Middle High German: kanker m (“spider”)
  • German: Kanker (“harvestman”)
• Old Norse: *kǫngur-
  • ⇒ Old Norse: kǫngurváfa f (“spider”)
    • ⇒ Icelandic: könguló, kónguló
    • Norwegian: kongro
    • Jamtish: kangero
    • Swedish: kangro
  • →? Finnish: kankuri (“weaver”)