# გირინი
## Laz
### Noun

გირინი • (girini)
* Alternative form of გურუნი (guruni)

## Mingrelian
### Alternative forms

* გჷრჷნი (gərəni)

### Etymology

Cognate with Laz გურუნი (guruni). The origin is unknown. An overview of opinions follows.
* According to Čikobava, from *გ-ვირ-ინ- (*g-vir-in-), where according to him, the root of the word is ultimately cognate with Old Georgian ვირი (viri). Ǯavaxišvili further compares Svan ჰუ̂ილ (hûil, “mule”), მაუ̂რა̈ნდ (maûränd, “bull”), მაუ̂ირ (maûir), ლიუ̂რიელ (liûriel, “mate (of animals)”), ხუ̂ირ (xûir, “male (of animals)”). Neither Čikobava's nor Ǯavaxišvili's comparisons are accepted by Klimov-Xalilov or Kiria.
* Čuxua on the basis of Georgian ქვირანაჸი (kviranaʾi, “foal”), Mingrelian ქვირა (kvira, “foal”), გირინი (girini, “donkey, ass”), Laz გურუნი (guruni, “donkey, ass”), as well as Svan ჰუ̂ილ ← *გუ̂ილ (hûil ← *gûil, “mule”) (for development compare ჰუ̂იჯ ← *გუ̂იჯ ← *გუ̂ილ (hûiǯ ← *gûiǯ ← *gûil, “snake”), which according to some ultimately goes back to Proto-Kartvelian *gwel-), reconstructs Proto-Kartvelian *gwir- (“donkey, mule”), with further comparisons to Chechen говр (govr), dialectal гавр (gavr), Ingush говр (govr, “horse”) for which he reconstructs Proto-Nakh *gawr- (“horse”). Georgian ქვირა (kvira, “foal”) is however considered to be a "foreign" word which see for its origins.
* Fähnrich disregards Čuxua's connection of Mingrelian გირინი (girini) and Svan ჰუ̂ილ (hûil) to various forms of Georgian ქვირა (kvira).

### Noun

გირინი • (girini) (plural გირინეფი)
* donkey, ass
* (figuratively) tactless person

### References

* ↑ Čikobava, Arnold (1938) Č̣anur-megrul-kartuli šedarebiti leksiḳoni [Laz–Megrel–Georgian Comparative Dictionary] (Works; IV) (in Georgian), Tbilisi: Arnold Chikobava Institute of Linguistics, published 2008, page 94
* ↑ Ǯavaxišvili, Ivane (1937) Kartveli eris isṭoriis šesavali. Ṭomi 2. Kartuli da ḳavḳasiuri enebis tavdaṗirveli buneba da natesaoba [Introduction to the history of the Georgian nation. Volume II. The original structure and relations of Caucasian and Kartvelian Languages] (in Georgian), Tbilisi: Academy Press, pages 178–179, 207–208
* ↑ Schmidt, Karl Horst (1962) Studien zur Rekonstruktion des Lautstandes der südkaukasischen Grundsprache (Abhandlungen für die Kunde des Morgenlandes; XXXIV, 3)‎ (in German), Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner Verlag, page 109
* ↑ Klimov, G. A., Xalilov, M. Š. (2003) Словарь кавказских языков. Сопоставление основной лексики [Dictionary of Caucasian Languages. A comparison of the Basic Vocabulary] (in Russian), Moscow: Vostochnaya Literatura, →ISBN, pages 239-240
* ↑ Kiria, Č̣abuḳi, Ezugbaia, Lali, Memišiši, Omar, Čuxua, Merab (2015) Lazur-megruli gramaṭiḳa [Laz–Mingrelian Grammar] (in Georgian), Tbilisi: Gamomcemloba Meridiani, page 784
* ↑ Ḳarṭozia, Guram, Gersamia, Rusudan, Lomia, Maia, Cxadaia, Taia (2010) Manana Ṗerṭenava, Sopio Šamugua, Irma Xaramišvili, Maḳa Comaia, editors, Megrulis lingvisṭuri analizi [Linguistic analysis of Mingrelian language] (in Georgian), Tbilisi: Meridiani, →ISBN, page 554
* ↑ Čuxua, Merab (2007) “*gwir-”, in Iberiul-ičkeriul enata šedarebiti gramaṭiḳa [Ibero-Ichkerian Comparative Grammar] (in Georgian), Tbilisi: Tbilisi State University Press, page 534
* ↑ Fähnrich, Heinz (2007) “*kur-”, in Kartwelisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch [Kartvelian Etymological Dictionary] (Handbuch der Orientalistik; VIII.18) (in German), Leiden, Boston: Brill, page 472, on the basis of Georgian ქურა (kura, “a kind of goat with small ears; hornless sheep”), Mingrelian ქვირა (kvira, “foal”), reconstructs Proto-Georgian-Zan *kur- (“foal, colt”). Both words however are Iranisms, see Georgian ქვირა (kvira) for more.

### Further reading

* Kajaia, Otar (2005) “გირინი”, in Megrul-kartuli leksiḳoni [Mingrelian–Georgian Dictionary], online version prepared by Joost Gippert, Frankfurt am Main, published 2001–2004, page 268
* Kipšidze, Iosif (1914) “გირინი”, in Грамматика мингрельского (иверского) языка с хрестоматией и словарем [Grammar of the Mingrelian (Iverian) Language with a Reader and a Dictionary] (Материалы по яфетическому языкознанию; 7)‎ (in Russian), Saint Petersburg: Academy Press, page 218a
* Kiria, Č̣abuḳi, Ezugbaia, Lali, Memišiši, Omar, Čuxua, Merab (2015) “*გურინ-ი”, in Lazur-megruli gramaṭiḳa [Laz–Mingrelian Grammar] (in Georgian), Tbilisi: Gamomcemloba Meridiani, page 784
* Kobalia, Alio (2010) “გირინი”, in Merab Čuxua, Nona Kobalia, Nana Kobalia, editors, Megruli leksiḳoni [Mingrelian Dictionary] (Ḳolxuri seria; 7)‎, online version prepared by Manana Buḳia, Tbilisi: Artanuji, →ISBN
* Pipia, Daniel (2008) “გირინი”, in Tamaz Pipia, Givi Boǯgua, editors, Megruli saleksiḳono masalebi [Megrelian dictionary materials] (Ḳolxuri seria; 3)‎, online version prepared by Manana Buḳia, Tbilisi: Artanuji, →ISBN