zelena zelena

rolig commented on the word zelena zelena

"green celery"

The stress on these two words is different: zelêna zélena.

July 29, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

Wow, that's neat... Does the word for "green" actually mean a celery-colored green, or a dark green? I guess the dictionary wouldn't say... but when I hear "green" I usually think of a bright kelly green, not a celery-colored green. I'm curious if the similarity between the two words in this language means that native speakers think of celery-colored green when they see the word--like orange, in English.

Which now that I think about it is a very individual and subjective thing. So... nevermind. *blushes*

July 29, 2008

rolig commented on the word zelena zelena

You raise an interesting question. Which came first: orange the color or orange the fruit? I always felt that, in English at least, the color orange was named after the fruit. In Slovene, surprisingly, the similarity between the word for green and the word celery is coincidental. "Zelen" ("green") comes from Old Slavic and cognates are found in every Slavic language, whereas "zelena" ("celery") is an 18th-century borrowing from a Romance language, perhaps from the Friulian sèlino or the dialectal Italian selano, both of which mean "celery" and which are related also to the English word, via the Latin selinum (I got this from Marko Snoj's Slovene Etymological Dictionary). But to answer your question about the kind of green we're talking about, I would have to say it's a general vegetative green. The Slavic root zel means, basically, "a green plant" and, in addition to the adjective zelen ("green"), has given rise to many words in Slovene, such as zeliš�?e ("herb"), zelje ("cabbage"), zelenjava ("vegetable"), and zelenica ("lawn") – but not zelena ("celery")!

July 29, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

Wow. That's really interesting. Thanks for going to all that etymological trouble. :)

I'm glad it's a general vegetative green. Celery-green is kind of ... prissy.

July 29, 2008

rolig commented on the word zelena zelena

Oh yeah, totally wimpy, not unlike celery itself (in my humble opinion).

July 29, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

Yes, far wimpier than a thick, solid green like zucchini, say, or chard.

July 29, 2008

bilby commented on the word zelena zelena

Celery? Firm and tall? Crisp, crunchy? With bright green tufts outstanding? C'mon dudes, celery kicks zucchini butt.

July 29, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

Only if you're a guinea pig.

July 29, 2008

yarb commented on the word zelena zelena

Celery has bite! It's part of the pungent Apiaceae family, with dill, fennel and cumin. It's cleansing, purgative, sleek and rapier-like in a stirfry. And for myself, I love its faint, wraithlike hue. Zucchini? Whatever.

Very interesting Slovenian etymology - thanks rolig.

July 29, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

Hey, I like celery, I just think the green is kinda wimpy.

July 29, 2008

jennarenn commented on the word zelena zelena

c_b, I think all those cupcakes to the head have addled your brains. Celery is the best, the brightest, the most perfect way to convey soft Laughing Cow cheeses to the mouth.

July 29, 2008

dontcry commented on the word zelena zelena

You mean "Laughing Cow in Drag" cheeses.

July 29, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

*is lactose intolerant* :(

*is most certainly crunchy-style peanut butter tolerant* :)

July 30, 2008

reesetee commented on the word zelena zelena

Crunchy pb is good on celery. And I too love celery's faint, wraithlike hue (thanks, yarb) and bright green tufts outstanding (ditto, bilby).

July 30, 2008

dontcry commented on the word zelena zelena

Celery IS an awesome delivery system for most anything creamy: peanutbutter, soft cheeses, tuna & chicken salad, hummus....

I like the color too. Cool.

July 30, 2008

dontcry commented on the word zelena zelena

I just ate a celery stick with peanutbutter slathered on it. Then I ate a teaspoon of peanutbutter. Now I'm thinking of going back for another celery stalk...

July 30, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

Where were all the celery defenders when we were talking about different shades of green, below? What about a general vegetative green? What about lawn, or cabbage?

And can anyone honestly, truly argue that celery is a better word than zucchini or chard? Come on... which one sounds more like zamboni? Which sounds more like... well... chard?

Full disclosure: I can't actually eat chard, though I wish I could.

July 30, 2008

reesetee commented on the word zelena zelena

Chard. Yum.

July 30, 2008

yarb commented on the word zelena zelena

I like chard but it's a vegetable's vegetable, isn't it? It's very squarely a very terrestrial vegetable. Celery has a certain otherworldliness. Celery you can imagine growing on another planet in wild, ghostly plantations; not so chard.

July 30, 2008

bilby commented on the word zelena zelena

I might even have to defend celery green. It really is a vibrant, intense green. If you've ever grown it yourself you'll know what I mean. The stuff that is grown commercially is intentionally made pale as it is thought consumers prefer this. It's usually done by mounding up soil around the stems to reduce exposure to light. I've heard that in hydroponically-grown it can be done by controlling the nutrients delivered to the plant. So yeah, store-bought celery does have an odd colour about it to me.

I long to frolic through wild, ghostly forests of celery on alien worlds, I really do. Take me away yarb.

July 30, 2008

darqueau commented on the word zelena zelena

this phrase has inspired me to add this:

katedra katédra

July 30, 2008

Prolagus commented on the word zelena zelena

Càpitano, capitàno.

July 30, 2008

rolig commented on the word zelena zelena

The wimpy celery color I'm referring to is, I admit, the lifeless pale green of store-bought celery after it's been sitting in my refrigerator for a couple of weeks. (I'm not a big fan of celery, except in potato salad, where it adds that special crunch.) So the color is not only wimpy, but limpy too! But I am willing to be persuaded by bilby that somewhere out there (maybe where the truth is, too) a vibrant green forest of celery waits to be frolicked in.

July 30, 2008

reesetee commented on the word zelena zelena

Ah, Celery World. *dreaming*

July 30, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

OK, I can appreciate the "this could grow on Mars" viewpoint of celery. I *certainly* appreciate the view that it adds a special crunch (I had some every day this week, in fact). And I do know that locally-grown celery at the farmer's market is a nicer green than the pale crap from the supermarket. Nevertheless, I respectfully continue to maintain that:

a) chard, especially that chard with the red or white stalks or veins and the deep deep green leaves, is far more stunningly beautiful than celery (and acknowledge that this could be true for me only because I can't eat it, so it's the lure of the unpossessable),

b) zucchini, in its happy shape, solid physical presence, deep speckled greenness, and willingness to become yummy when cooked the way it seems only Italians know how to do, is a far superior vegetable for certain purposes which include "sounding like zamboni," and

c) when searching for paint colors, anything called "celery" or similar variants such as celeriac (though a different vegetable entirely) is a wimpy green.

I'll just leave it at that, after thanking my fellow Wordies for the delightful conversation about vegetables, one of my favorite topics. :)

July 30, 2008

reesetee commented on the word zelena zelena

Ah, Zucchini World. *dreaming*

July 30, 2008

trivet commented on the word zelena zelena

What the bear said. But I do like a nice anemic piece of celery for ants on a log.

July 30, 2008

bilby commented on the word zelena zelena

Why can't you eat chard?

July 30, 2008

reesetee commented on the word zelena zelena

Don't let's go there, bilby. ;->

July 30, 2008

bilby commented on the word zelena zelena

Mind you, I like this page mainly because it reminds me of eating pita zeljenica in Sarajevo on the way to visit an ex-girlfriend, Zeljka.

July 30, 2008

chained_bear commented on the word zelena zelena

Great. Thanks, bilby. Your single comment has used up most of the entire Wordie allowance of J's for today. *pouts*

July 30, 2008

jennarenn commented on the word zelena zelena

Oh no! Oh no!!! ennarenn has been decapitalated!

*runs around with her j cut off*

July 30, 2008

reesetee commented on the word zelena zelena

Yikes! Anyone know a good juju for ennarenn?

July 31, 2008

sionnach commented on the word zelena zelena

The thought of a similar discussion for the phrase "beet(root) red" makes me want to *hork.

July 31, 2008

dontcry commented on the word zelena zelena

We had fresh zucchini from my garden last week, sautéd with some olive oil and basil from my herb garden. Yum!

July 31, 2008