мэлхий

Mongolian

Etymology

From Proto-Mongolic *menekei, compare Kalmyk меклә (meklä), Daur meleg. The -l- may come from a dissimilation of the two nasals.

Astronomical sense may be a semantic loan from Tibetan, see ཀརྐ་ཊ (krka ṭa).

Pronunciation

• (Ulaanbaatar) IPA^(key): /miɮxi/, [miɬˈçi]

Noun

мэлхий • (melxii) (Mongolian spelling ᠮᠡᠨᠡᠬᠡᠢ (menekei))

1. frog, toad
2. (in compounds) small
3. (astrology) cancer

Synonyms

• (small): бага (baga), жижиг (žižig)
• (cancer): хавч (xavč)

Derived terms

• яст мэлхий (jast melxii, “tortoise”)

See also

• шанаган хорхой (šanagan xorxoj)