# φούρκα? μπαλλα?



## Aelialicinia

_"Τους άλλους από φούρκα, σπαθί και μπάλλα τους επέρασαν."   

"The rest were impaled by ..................., sword, and ...................."

fourka seem to be some kind of  forked club/spear...but μπάλλα?   _


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## velisarius

I'd read _φούρκα _as "anger" and _μπάλλα _is the "ball" shot from a rifle of the time. (Interested to hear what native speakers say.)

_In their rage, they ran the others through with the sword, or shot them. _

Some context can be seen here:
24 Ιουνίου 1821: Ο «μεγάλος αρπεντές» στο Μεγάλο Κάστρο


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## ioanell

Aelialicinia said:


> "Τους άλλους από φούρκα, σπαθί και μπάλλα τους επέρασαν."


(φούρκα [μτγν.<λατ. furca, βλ. αγγλ. fork] = [here] πάσσαλος, δικράνι = pitchfork, stake ) (μπάλλα [< διαλεκτ. ιταλ. balla] = [here] iron ball, tied by chain to the leg of convicts [as in jail]) or used as a knocking weapon.

You changed the syntax into passive. If we keep the active voice as it is in the Greek text, the sentence might be translated as: "The Turks (_already mentioned before, subject of the verb _επέρασαν) others impaled by stake, others slaughtered with their crescent swords and others crashed to death by hitting them with the iron ball.


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## Aelialicinia

Perfect!


velisarius said:


> I'd read _φούρκα _as "anger" and _μπάλλα _is the "ball" shot from a rifle of the time. (Interested to hear what native speakers say.)
> 
> _In their rage, they ran the others through with the sword, or shot them. _
> 
> Some context can be seen here:
> 24 Ιουνίου 1821: Ο «μεγάλος αρπεντές» στο Μεγάλο Κάστρο





ioanell said:


> (φούρκα [μτγν.<λατ. furca, βλ. αγγλ. fork] = [here] πάσσαλος, δικράνι = pitchfork, stake ) (μπάλλα [< διαλεκτ. ιταλ. balla] = [here] iron ball, tied by chain to the leg of convicts [as in jail]) or used as a knocking weapon.
> 
> You changed the syntax into passive. If we keep the active voice as it is in the Greek text, the sentence might be translated as: "The Turks (_already mentioned before, subject of the verb _επέρασαν) others impaled by stake, others slaughtered with their crescent swords and others crashed to death hitting them with the iron ball.


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## Aelialicinia

velisarius said:


> I'd read _φούρκα _as "anger" and _μπάλλα _is the "ball" shot from a rifle of the time. (Interested to hear what native speakers say.)
> 
> _In their rage, they ran the others through with the sword, or shot them. _
> 
> Some context can be seen here:
> 24 Ιουνίου 1821: Ο «μεγάλος αρπεντές» στο Μεγάλο Κάστρο


Splendid!    Μπαλλα...bullet.   And φουρκα....https://www.translatum.gr/forum/index.php?topic=438737.0


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## sotos

I think μπάλα means the bullet here. Compare with modern cretan "μπαλωθιά" (gun shot).


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## Aelialicinia

sotos said:


> I think μπάλα means the bullet here. Compare with modern cretan "μπαλωθιά" (gun shot).


Μπαλωθια....Wonderful to know that!  Thank you much!


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## velisarius

But did they call them bullets back then, I wonder?  I'm not very familiar with the workings of old firearms, but "bullet" sounds too modern.

Sotos, how do you interpret _φούρκα? _


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## sotos

velisarius said:


> But did they call them bullets back then, I wonder?  I'm not very familiar with the workings of old firearms, but "bullet" sounds too modern.
> 
> Sotos, how do you interpret _φούρκα? _


The bullets were called βόλια in mainland Greece, but probably also μπάλες in islands with latin influence. But βόλι is another word for something small sphaerical, from older gr. βόλος/βώλος. What I knew as φούρκα was a two-prone agricultural tool, similar to trident. I had heard the v. φουρκίζω with the sense of punishment or execution but i'm not sure what it means. I had the feeling that meaned hanging.


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## apmoy70

velisarius said:


> But did they call them bullets back then, I wonder?  I'm not very familiar with the workings of old firearms, but "bullet" sounds too modern.
> 
> Sotos, how do you interpret _φούρκα? _


Hi general, I'm not sotos (obviously) but φούρκα as I know it is this, also known as δικράνι.
Φουρκίζω (as sotos very elloquently has put it) was originally the stabbing with the φούρκα, and in its mediopassive form (φουρκίζομαι) described the rage that leads to stabbing (nowadays only the rage of course).


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## Αγγελος

Φούρκα εδώ είναι η κρεμάλα. Λέξη ιταλική (σήμερα forca), που βασικά σημαίνει "δικράνι", αλλά έχει κι αυτή τη σημασία.


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