The Latin Neuter Plurals in Romance - Page ON

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the Piedmontese form la figa (Rohlfs, §382, translator’s note; cf. DCELC) and
Istrian feiga; however, in the standard language of today this word is limited to
the meaning of ‘female genitals’ (in imitation of Greek) or to the obscene “fig”
gesture made with the thumb either protruding between the first two fingers or
placed behind the upper teeth. In central and south Italian we find another pl.
ficora, which has also become a new singular in certain parts (Rohlfs, §§361,
370). Both FICUS (masc.) and FICA (the plural of FICUM which becomes used as
a feminine singular) are found in other Romance languages, with FICA tending
to be reserved for the secondary meanings. Old French has fi ‘tumour’ and fie
‘fig’, now replaced by figue, from Provençal, in the senses of ‘fig’, ‘genitals’
and ‘gesture’, Provençal and Catalan have fic ‘tumour’ and figa as Fr. figue,
Spanish has higo (Moz. fico) ‘fig (of the second crop; breva < BIFERA is used
for the first)’, ‘piles’, higa ‘gesture’ (also an amulet in this form, used for
warding off the evil eye), Ast. figa ‘big fig’ (cf. also no dar dos higas ‘not give
two hoots’, and Berceo, Duel., 176c “que non balien tres figas”), and
Portuguese has figo ‘fig’, ‘tumour in horses’, figa ‘gesture’, ‘amulet’ (as
Spanish; also OPtg. não valer uma figa). There are also words for the tree: Fr.
figuier, Sp. higuera, Ptg. figueira. The word is not found in standard Rumanian,
which has smochin/-ă, but the REW gives Mac.-Rum. hic/hică and Megl.-Rum.
ic/ică for the tree and the fruit; it also quotes the Vegl. faika, a form that agrees
with the paira above. The Rhaeto-Romance forms, Surs. fig, Eng. fic, seem to
have been taken from Italian (we would expect Surs. *fitg, Eng. *fih, from a
earlier *fich, in line with the Ticinese form fik’, cf. spitg, spih in 9x). There is a
feminine form figa (as against spigia/spia), which is found used occasionally in
the sense of ‘fig’, though its usual meaning is ‘sheep-tick’, but this may well
have been taken from the Swiss German Fige; there is also a phrase far fias
‘arouse (sexual) desire’, in which we may see a native form used with a
meaning which has sprung from the obscene use seen in the corresponding