# Hindi: Hindi words for various beetles



## bakshink

Dung Beetle in Hindi is called Gubraila.  गुबरैला
What is the Hindi name for Orange spotted beetle called  "lady bug", "lady beetle" or even "lady bird"?


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## lcfatima

You know I asked a few people this before (but it didn't occur to me to ask here, I guess I forgot). We Americans say lady-bug but since in Dubai it is British English, so I asked,  "What do you say for lady-bird." I was told there are no lady birds in India, so there is no word. Is it true?


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## bakshink

I don't know of a place in India where they don't exist. If you ever come to India visit the hill station Shimla ( I had my schooling there) in the spring season. There used to be so many flying about and dead on the roads that we would call the place "Lashon ka sansaar".There was a belief among us kids that depending upon when it took off from crawling on your finger the outcome of some future event could be known. We called them 'tota' (same as a parrot) and getting them crawl on the jutted out fingers we would recite "Tote- Tote fail ke pass" and be happy or sad, depending upon when they flew off.


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## lcfatima

Tota? That's so cute! I'll have to try predicting my life events with them sometime, too.


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## bakshink

Dear Icfatima
Since no one else has shown any interest in the cute creature, this is a toast to you.
Hindi name for Lady- bird is "Indragope" lady beetle n इन्द्रगोप. Source: http://www.shabdkosh.com/en2hi/search.php?e=beetle&f=0

And   what trickles down to children always has some sound source.
In parts of Northern Europe, tradition says that one's wish granted if a ladybird lands on oneself (this tradition lives on in North America, where children capture a ladybird, make a wish, and then "blow it away" back home to make the wish come true). In Italy, it is said by some that if a ladybird flies into one's bedroom, it is considered good luck. In central Europe, a ladybird crawling across a girl's hand is thought to mean she will get married within the year. In some cultures they are referred to as *lucky bugs* (Turkish: _uğur böceği_).
  In Russia, a popular children's rhyme exists with a call to fly to the sky and bring back bread; similarly, in Denmark a ladybird, called a _mariehøne_ ("Mary's hen"), is asked by children to fly to 'our lord in heaven and ask for fairer weather in the morning'. 

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_bug


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## lcfatima

Hahaha, thanks.


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## Faylasoof

bakshink said:


> Dung Beetle in Hindi is called Gubraila.  गुबरैला
> What is the Hindi name for Orange spotted beetle called  "lady bug", "lady beetle" or even "lady bird"?



Amongst Urduphones I've mostly heard <gubreelaa / gubrīlā> - a variation of <gubraila>,it seems. Here is what Platts gives:

 گبريلاगुबरीला gubrīlā, or गुबरेला gubrelā - Prakrit वत्तओ and वट्टओ=Sanskrit वृत्तकः;—and Prakrit वंतअे=Sanskrit. वत्; and Prakrit उल्लओ and इल्लअे=Sanskrit उल and इल+कः)m. The species of black-beetle found in dunghills or old cow-dung (and which rolls along a little ball of dung (gobar) in which it deposits its eggs), the Cantharus, or Scarabaeus.

There are alternatives too:
 
گردبهی गर्दभी _gardabhī_ (fem.) = a  kind of beetle generated (and living) in cow-dung, a dung-beetle.

      گبرونڐا गुबरौंडा gubraunḍā, or गबरौंडा gabraunḍā [masc.] = Species of black- beetle found in dunghills or old cow-dung (and which rolls along a little ball of dung (_gobar_) in which it deposits its eggs), the _Cantharus_, or _Scarabaeus_, or _Copris_

  Then there are other beetles too:

Beetle
بَھونرا  bhau.nraa

Ladybird / bug
 پَنبَہ دوز  pambah doz
 چِتّی داربَھونرا chittee daar bhau.nraa

چھال بَھونرا chhaal bhau.nraa = Bark Beetle
 

گهوا घुवा _ghuwā = _ the carpenter-beetle.
... etc.

Note: There seems to be some _desi _confusion between a bumble bee and a beetle! I've seen both  بَھونرا  bhau.nraa and  بُھوترا bhootraa being used for both.


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## lcfatima

What does pamba doz literally mean?


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## panjabigator

What do you guys use <ji.ngar> for?


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## bakshink

Dear All,

Thank you very much for your contributions

I think Bhanwara is not a beetle but a Bumble bee. There are many forms of Gubrallas even and Hindi/Urdu names for all of them may be impossible to know though and knowing about them all may be an entomologists delight and I am not one. However I am attaching pictures of some of those (beetles, not entomologists) I could find.

Bark beetle - We would call it "Beenda". They make high pitched, shrill notes especially around evening time. We believed as kids that those were enticing calls made by "chudails- feamle ghosts??". As the singing abruptly stops when you get near the tree on which the beetle is and it's coat gels so well with the bark that you can't see it sitting. 
Source of pictures: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/


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## Faylasoof

Dear Bakshink,

We always used <bhau.nraa> to mean a bumble bee until I started exploring the word and, as I say above, even Platts shows the use of this word for BOTH a beetle and a bumble bee!! 

This left me confounded until I came across another word <bhoothra / bhauthraa >. I only vaguely recall using this during my younger days. I think it might be rather rare, at least in the circles we moved in.

 I also looked at some other dictionaries and they also use <bhau.nraa> interchangeably for a bumble bee and a beetle.


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## Faylasoof

lcfatima said:


> What does pamba doz literally mean?



 <pambah / pambeh> = cotton - in Farsi

<dooz> is the present stem of <dooxtan> = to stew, stitch together etc. --  also in Farsi

In Urdu, we use <dooz> to also mean something like <burrowing / submerging etc. >, hence the word <aab dooz> = submarine, as it submerges in water.


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## Faylasoof

panjabigator said:


> What do you guys use <jhi.ngar> for?



PG, a <jhee.ngar / jhii.ngar جھينگر> is a cricket. 

This is a universal defintion of this insect and to my knowledge doesn't apply to anything else, e.g. a beetle; not that you or anyone ever said this. Just making it clear.


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## lcfatima

I think I heard the word zameen doz somewhere, too.

Jhinger is a cricket or a roach? What about jhoonger? Jhinga is a prawn, the words are all too close for comfort, but since they all have exoskeletons I can see they are related.


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## BP.

_jhoo.ngar_ might be a variation or even a mispronunciation of _jhii.ngar_, just like I called it _jhii.ngur_.


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## panjabigator

lcfatima said:


> I think I heard the word zameen doz somewhere, too.
> 
> Jhinger is a cricket or a roach? What about jhoonger? Jhinga is a prawn, the words are all too close for comfort, but since they all have exoskeletons I can see they are related.



Absolutely too close for comfort.  

Faylasoof, thanks for the correction.  What do you say for roaches? There are definitely too many of those in the subcontinent...


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## Faylasoof

PG, for roaches (true, there are far too many there), we use two words depending on the size / species:

-smaller, light coloured ones we call <سُسك susk (sing.& plural)>.
-big, dark ones are <لال بیگ laal baig / لال بیگیا laal baigyaa (sing.) لال بیگیے laal bagye (plural)>

 Some use the two interchangeably.

... and there is also <تل چٹا til chittaa>! We don't use it but I've heard it. Is it Punjabi? 

Roaches and beetles are different, as I'm sure you all know.


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## Faylasoof

lcfatima said:


> I think I heard the word zameen doz somewhere, too.


 
Anything that buries itself or burrows into the ground can be called a <zameen doz>. So _beetles, rodents, snakes, lizards or burrowing machines_, like the one used to dig the Eurotunnel can be called so.



> Jhinger is a cricket or a roach? What about jhoonger? Jhinga is a prawn, the words are all too close for comfort, but since they all have exoskeletons I can see they are related.



I bet <jhee.ngar = cricket> and <jhee.ngaa = prawn> have very different taste. Can't say as I've only had the latter. However, a <Tiddee = locust> is very much close to a cricket and not only in some regions of India but also the Middle East people eat locusts. The most famous locust eater was John the Baptist (Prophet YaHyaa) who lived on it and wild honey. See the New Testament.


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## bakshink

Cricket is Jheengur in Hindi झींगुर or Tiddi  and cockroach is तिलचटा or तिलचट्टा. In Punjabi Cricket is just called Tiddi and I don't know of a Punjabi name for Cockroach, Susk and Tilchitta will work as fine. Many forms of crickets are eaten elsewhere e.g. in Central America too but I didn't know of the Baptists having liking for them. May be in his time there were so many that one could live on those. Now a days locusts are a rarity (if not yet the endangered species) so they will qualify as delicacies.


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## Koozagar

what about  کھٹمل


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## panjabigator

Koozagar said:


> what about  کھٹمل



Really glad that you revived this thread Koozagar Sahib - I was just thinking about posting here.  I discovered the word سسک comes from the Persian for 'cockroach'. 

I haven't heard this word - I'd be interested to know if it works in Punjabi and Urdu as well.


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## Faylasoof

Koozagar said:


> what about
> کھٹمل


 
 A کھٹمل _khaTmal_ , or a bed bug in English, belongs to the class _Insecta_, the order _Hemiptera_ and the family _Cimicidae_. Beetles on the other hand belong to a different order, viz. _Coleoptera_ and a different family.  So beetles  and bed bugs are classified differently. 


panjabigator said:


> Really glad that you revived this thread Koozagar Sahib - I was just thinking about posting here.  I discovered the word سسک comes from the Persian for 'cockroach'.
> 
> I haven't heard this word - I'd be interested to know if it works in Punjabi and Urdu as well.



In Urdu for sure PG, as I mentioned earlier:



Faylasoof said:


> PG, for roaches (true, there are far too many there), we use two words depending on the size / species:
> 
> -smaller, light coloured ones we call <سُسك susk (sing.& plural)>.
> -big, dark ones are <لال بیگ laal baig / لال بیگیا laal baigyaa (sing.) لال بیگیے laal bagye (plural)>
> 
> Some use the two interchangeably.
> 
> ... and there is also <تل چٹا til chittaa>! We don't use it but I've heard it. Is it Punjabi?
> 
> Roaches and beetles are different, as I'm sure you all know.




No clue if سُسك _susk_ is used in Punjabi.


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## Koozagar

Thanks FLS. Do you use just the generic   کیڑا    ?


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## Birdcall

tilchaTTaa is the common word for roaches in Mumbai. And I believe in Mumbai they say gubrailaa, not -iilaa or -ela.


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## Faylasoof

Koozagar said:


> Thanks FLS. Do you use just the generic کیڑا?


 Yes we do Koozagar! But this is true only for those insects which we do not encounter _commonly_. For roaches / flies / bed bugs / wasps / bees etc., and _some_ beetles, we always use the appropriate term. 
The issue of terminology is tricky here because biological classification and common usage of terms for certain insects that superficially look the same / similar may be different.


Birdcall said:


> tilchaTTaa is the common word for roaches in Mumbai. And I believe in Mumbai they say gubrailaa, not -iilaa or -ela.


 Thanks! Good to know!


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## Faylasoof

pskopje said:


> wow...lot of good information. I had gubraila too. But google translate mentioned एक प्रकार का गुबरैला...so not sure. To learn hindi you could also check speak2india


 The exact pronunciation may vary. As I mentioned above, this is how we pronounce it:


Faylasoof said:


> Amongst Urduphones I've mostly heard <gubreelaa / gubrīlā> - a variation of <gubraila>,it seems. Here is what  Platts gives:
> 
> گبريلاगुबरीला gubrīlā, or गुबरेला  gubrelā - Prakrit वत्तओ and वट्टओ=Sanskrit  वृत्तकः;—and Prakrit वंतअे=Sanskrit. वत्; and Prakrit उल्लओ and  इल्लअे=Sanskrit उल and इल+कः)m. The species of black-beetle found in  dunghills or old cow-dung (and which rolls along a little ball of dung  (gobar) in which it deposits its eggs), the Cantharus, or Scarabaeus.


 Here is the link to Platts' entry.


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