-ла suffix as a diminutive in Russian?

[kart.livejournal.com]

What is the origin of using -ла to make a diminutive? My grandmother applies this to words sometimes, but I'm not sure if it's чистый русский or influenced from Yiddish. I can only think of a few examples.

1. Googie (Гуги) is my cousin. Grandmother sometimes calls her Googala (Гугала).
2. Sometimes you can call a sluggish person a pączkala (пончкала) in a friendly way.

Comments

[nale.livejournal.com]

Is there really such suffix in Russian? To my kowledge, there is none and there never was.

If you are referring to пачкуля, it's completely different (-ул'-) and hardly has anything to do with Yiddish.

[kart.livejournal.com]

Well, I had never heard of it in proper Russian either, but figured it couldn't hurt to ask. My grandmother says weird things.

As far as I know, a пончeк is a jelly donut (or sufgania, in чистый древнееврейско) :)

[nale.livejournal.com]

I'd say it's not at all weird, it's just not Russian.

Generally correct, but it is spelled пончик. :-)

[oryx_and_crake]

True, and I think I must add that genuine Russian пончик was never a jelly donut (the jelly kind only appeared with перестройка and american style fast-food joints). It was a plain donut with a hole in the middle (think Krispy Kreme original without glazing).

[nale.livejournal.com]

One might also add that what you described is called пончик only in Moscow and that in St.Petersburg it's пышка. I didn't think I should start on this, but after your comment I somehow feel like I must. :-)

[oryx_and_crake]

Did they use the word пончик in SP at all?

[nale.livejournal.com]

Yes, they did and still do, as far as I know, to define a fried what-you-call-it with filling (jam; or sugar, that melts when the thing is fried). I think this meaning is not very common and in a few hours there will be a gozillion comments here saying I'm wrong. :-) But I just tell what I know.

About пышка, however, I'm positively sure and I'll fight for it. I ate tons of them in "пышечная" near ДЛТ. :-)

[kart.livejournal.com]

a fried what-you-call-it with filling

Yes, that's a пончик as I understand it.

[gera.livejournal.com]

It's Yiddish.
And it's rather -лэ than -ла.

[sertoun.livejournal.com]

that's чистый Yiddish :)

[a-garvey.livejournal.com]

-ла is hardly used to make diminutive in Russian. And it is just very uncommon. May by the noun меняла is example of it.

[oryx_and_crake]

even in меняла the suffix is -л, not -ла. -а is an ending.

[a-garvey.livejournal.com]

that's right

[wire-shock.livejournal.com]

And not a diminutive.

[oryx_and_crake]

In p.2, the accented ą suggests Polish, as there is no such letter in Russian.

As to p.1, -ул is a diminutive in Russian, with -я as ending, as in
Миша - Мишуля
Зина - Зинуля
there is nothing like -ла suffix in Russian (there is no such Russian name as Гуги either). So, that must be pure Yiddish.

[kart.livejournal.com]

In p.2, the accented ą suggests Polish, as there is no such letter in Russian.

Well, as far as I know there is no equivalent word in English, but we sometimes use the word "Pączky", at least in rural Pennsylvania. The only Latin spelling I've ever seen is in Polish, but then again, I'm a horrible speller :))

Thanks for explaining the origin if that "-la" diminutive. Grandmother used to live in a Jewish neighborhood, so it makes sense that she'd mix Yiddish with her Russian.

[spazzling21.livejournal.com]

My great great grandparents were Russian Jews; the Russian was lost a long time ago in the family, but the Yiddish stayed. My grandparents call people "Bubie" and "Boobala" fondly. So, possibly similar to "Googie" and "Googala?" I don't know.