PTITE VIÓLÉTE / dog violet

“ptite vióléte“, s.f., pronounced [ptɪt vɪjɔlɛt] 🔊, lit. small violet, oe “vióléte sòvaje“, lit. wild violet, and “błû vióléte “, lit. blue violet, or simply “vióléte“, are the Sarkese name for “dog violet” (Viola riviniana), a flowering plant of the genus Viola native to Sark which blooms in April and May. It should be noted that the concept of violet in Sarkese differs from its counterpart in English, as the primary flower within the group is “wallflower”, while “dog violet” being actually the only flower which is called “violet” in both languages. Similarly though, the other members of the genus Viola which grow in Sark, are like in English called “pansè“, pansy, such as “pansè sòvaje.

origin: Gallo-Romance / first recorded for Sarkese: 2020 (MN) / current status in the 21st century: preserved, in use

“ptite vióléte” is a compound name. The main noun, “vióléte“, is feminine invariable and countable (a she-word that does not change). The adjective “ptite” is in the feminine form, and therefore invariable too, which means that there is no difference in pronunciation or writting between the singular form (one) and the plural form (some).

In the other two Norman languages of the Channel Islands, Guernsey Norman and Jersey Norman, dog violet is called “coucou”, whose Sarkese counterpart “cůců” is however strictly reserved for bluebells. For more information on the etymology of the word “violéte”, see the SNDO entry “vióléte“.

(MN)

Citation: NEUDÖRFL, Martin. ptite violéte/dog violet. In: Sark Norman Dictionary Online [on-line]. https://www.bonjhur.net/sndo-vocab-flora-violete-ptite

Relevant SNDO Entries:

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