Hungarian Historical Phonology enyeleg

enyelëg 'liebkosen'

First attestation/Old Hungarian data

enyelëg 'schwätzen'

Important dialectal forms

enyelëg 'herumschleudern'

1602 enyeleg (EWUng)

Uralic/Ugric/Pre-Hungarian reconstruction

Disputed

UEW: PUg *ȣ̈ńɜ- ‘caress; chat, chatter; liebkosen; schwätzen‘

Status of the Ugric etymology

Implausible

Loan etymology

None suggested

Cognates suggested in earlier research

MSzFE, UEW:

? Mansi: South (TJ) üńəw·l-, East (KU) ińəjl-, West (P) ińjəl-, North (So) ańiγl- 'küssen'

Commentary

The Ugric etymology is considered uncertain by UEW and MSzFE and unlikely by EWUng. UEW notes that even the vowel-correspondences within Mansi dialects are irregular. Hungarian e points to earlier *ä, which is incompatible with the Mansi variants. Because of the phonological problems, the Ugric etymology has to be rejected. No competing etymologies are known for either the Hungarian or the Mansi word.

Conclusion

The Ugric etymology is phonologically irregular and has to be rejected.

References

EWUng 323, s.v. enyeleg: Unknown origin, probably not PUg

MSzFE 157, s.v. enyelëg (enyelgő): ? PUg

UEW s.v. ȣ̈ńɜ-: ? PUg Uralonet