furfur

Meaning

1. (declension-3, masculine) bran, husks of grain, chaff
2. (declension-3, masculine) scaly infection of the skin

Concepts

dandruff

bran

Synonyms

porrigo

porrīgō

Translations

pellicule

📽️

roos

🌹

Schuppen

caspa

caspa

caspa

forfora

kepek

Kleie

πιτυρίδα

crusca

squame

son

🔉

Kopfschuppen

Pronounced as (IPA)

[ˈfʊr.fʊr]

Etymology

Unknown. Traditionally explained as from Proto-Indo-European *gʰer- (“to rub, grind”), however as De Vaan notes the vowel /u/ would be unexplained; a preform *gʰur- ~ *ǵʰur- would be expected instead, but no such root exists. Compare Ancient Greek κέγχρος (kénkhros) and κάχρυς (kákhrus), which also relate to grains.
Alternatively, cognate with Sanskrit बुस (busa, “chaff, refuse grain; rubbish”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰus-. In either of these cases, from a reduplicated root.
Given the word's unusual form in the absence of a solid Indo-European explanation, borrowing from some unknown, perhaps substrate, source is likely.