bishë

Albanian

Etymology

Borrowed from Vulgar Latin bīstia (compare Italian biscia, French biche), from Latin bēstia.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbiʃə/
• Rhymes: -iʃə

Noun

bishë f (plural bisha, definite bisha, definite plural bishat)

1. beast, wild animal
   • 1555, Gjon Buzuku, Meshari, Genesis 7:21, page 60v, lines 51–54:

     e atȣ ȣ bduor / ћiξe miss e corp: ћi per enbii ξeet ȣ ћett: / ɛoite stansete ћovedate bisete. E ћiξe stã/seh ћi ꝑ enbii ξeet clhe: e ћiξe nierij:

     [e aty u bduor gjithë mish e korp qi për ëmbī dhēt u gjet: zojtë, shtansëtë, govedatë, bishëtë, e gjithë shtansë qi për ëmbī dhēt kle, e gjithë nierī.]

     And there He destroyed all flesh and every body that was on the earth: birds, animals, livestock, beasts, and every animal that was on the earth, and every man.

   1. (colloquial) wolf

      Synonym: ujk

   2. (archaic) badger

      Synonym: baldosë

   3. (archaic) hamster
2. (figurative) beast, violent or immoral person
3. (biology) shipworm, teredo (Teredo)

   bisha e barkave ― naval shipworm (Teredo navalis)

Declension

	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	bishë	bisha	bisha	bishat
accusative		bishën
dative	bisheje	bishës	bishave	bishave
ablative			bishash

Declension of bishë

Derived terms

• bishar
• bishor

 

References

• “bísh/ë,~a”, in FGJSSH: Fjalor i gjuhës së sotme shqipe [Dictionary of the modern Albanian language]‎ (in Albanian), 1980, page 149b
• Lloshi, Xhevat (2010) “bisha”, in Fjalor i emrave të bimëve dhe të kafshëve shqip–latinisht dhe latinisht–shqip (in Albanian), Skopje, Pristina, Tirana: Logos-A, →ISBN, page 33
• Mann, S. E. (1948) “bishë”, in An Historical Albanian–English Dictionary, London: Longmans, Green & Co., page 30b
• Kristoforidhi, Kostandin (1904) “bίσ̈ε̯-α”, in Λεξικὸν τῆς Ἀλβανικῆς γλώσσης [Lexikòn tês Albanikês glṓssēs] (in Greek), Athens, page 47
• Meyer, G. (1891) “bišɛ”, in Etymologisches Wörterbuch der albanesischen Sprache [Etymological Dictionary of the Albanian Language] (in German), Strasbourg: Karl J. Trübner, →DOI, page 38
• Rossi, F. (1875) “bìsc”, in Vocabolario della lingua epirotica–italiana (in Italian), page 78a
• Orel, Vladimir E. (1998) “bishë”, in Albanian Etymological Dictionary, Leiden, Boston, Köln: Brill, →ISBN, page 27