stekelvarken
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Dutch[edit]
Etymology[edit]
1708, from stekel (“spike”) + varken (“pig”), perhaps through German Stachelschwein (1556), eventually after the Romance family of terms to which belong Italian porcospino, English porcupine. A slightly earlier Dutch word was ijzervarken (literally “iron pig”), whence Afrikaans ystervark.
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
stekelvarken n (plural stekelvarkens, diminutive stekelvarkentje n)
- A porcupine, large rodent of the families Erethizontidae and Hystricidae.