Polundra (in some sources & mdash; & nbsp; palundra) & mdash; & nbsp; is an exclamation point that movie characters sometimes utter. AiF.ru found out what it means, who originally used it, and how this word came to the Russian language.
What does polundra mean?
According to Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary, “ polundra '' & mdash; & nbsp; is a vernacular word meaning an exclamation mark warning of danger. It was originally used by sailors and firefighters to alert their co-workers and others of the danger posed by a falling object. In this sense, “ Polundra! & # 39; & # 39; means Attention! Something is falling from above! ''.
The Marine Encyclopedic Dictionary by V.V. Dimitriev also states that the interjection “ half '' it is now used as a synonym for attention, and originally meant attention from above. This word has been preserved in Russian since the days of the sailing fleet. Sailors, working on masts or yards, warned with the exclamation of 'Polundra!' located below on the deck that dropped any tool or part. & nbsp;
During the Great Patriotic War, the word “ half & # 39; & # 39 ;; used by Soviet navies as a battle cry. Writes about it Evgeny Abramov in the book “ Black Death ''. Soviet marines in combat. & Raquo ;. & Nbsp;
Where does the word “ halfundra '' come from? ?
According to the Ushakov Explanatory Dictionary, the word “ halfundra '' comes from English fallunder & mdash; & nbsp; 'fall down'. Also, this expression means' to be subject to something, '' “ to fall under something '', writes the Soviet linguist Pavel Chernykh in the Historical and Etymological Dictionary of the Modern Russian Language.
Between themes, Chernykh notes that analysis of semantic and phonetic characteristics suggests that the word “ polundra '' rather it came from the crew of the Dutch ship van onderen & mdash; & nbsp; “ bottom (up) '', having undergone several phonetic substitutions in Russian.
According to the linguist, in Russian dictionaries the interjection “ half & # 39; & # 39; first appeared in 1806. It was featured on the pages of the & # 39; New Derivative, Alphabetic & Hellip; & # 39; Nikolay Yanovsky . & nbsp;