| 释义 |
▪ I. punkie1 U.S. local.|ˈpʌŋkɪ|
Also punkey.
[See quot. 1794, and cf. Lenape, ponk, punk, light ashes, dust, powder, pongus sand-fly, ponxu full of sand-flies.]
A minute fly or midge, common in some parts of the north-eastern States of America, which bites severely. Also attrib.
1769R. Smith Tour Four Great Rivers (1906) 42 We begin to be teazed with Muscetoes and little Gnats called here [sc. in New York] Punkies. [1794G. H. Loskiel Mission Indians N. Amer. III. 79 The most troublesome plague..especially in passing thro' the woods, was a kind of insect, called by the Indians Ponk, or Living Ashes.] 1876Forest & Stream 13 July 368/2 Hands tingling from punkie bites. 1877Hallock Sportsman's Gaz. 642 Sandy beaches or gravelly points are liable to swarm with midges or punkies. 1903[see no-see-em]. 1933F. H. Cheley Camping Out 423 The ‘punkeys’ and ‘midgets’ can outstrip them [sc. mosquitoes] for ferocity and the painful character of the wound which they inflict. 1957Biol. Abstr. XXXI. 1535/1 Punkies of the genus Culicoides are an important source of annoyance to personnel engaged in outdoor occupations over much of southern and central Alaska. 1962Gordon & Lavoipierre Entomol. for Students of Med. xxii. 148 Those members of the family Ceratopogonidae which suck blood are known to entomologists as ‘biting midges’, but in some parts of the world they are given local names, such as ‘punkies’.
▪ II. punkie2 W. Country dial.|ˈpʌŋkɪ|
[Perh. var. of punkin, itself a var. of pumpkin + -ie.]
A lantern made by setting a candle in a hollowed-out mangel or similar vegetable. Punkie night (see quots. 1931, 1960).
1931N. & Q. 21 Nov. 372/2 At Hinton St. George, and in the neighbouring village of Lopen, mangolds, scooped out and fitted with candle ends to form lanterns, are known as ‘punkies’. During the parade of punkies, the following lines are sung: 'Tis Punkie night to-night, 'Tis Punkie night to-night. Adam and Eve, they won't believe 'Tis Punkie night to-night. This is said to be a century⁓old custom..based upon the fact that a party of men from Hinton and Lopen visited Chiselborough Fair..and did not return to their homes so early as promised. Their wives went in search of them, and the attractions of the fair..were so great that by the time they commenced the journey home, their lamps were innocent of oil, and improvised lanterns, made from mangold-wurzels..were utilised. ‘Punkie Night’ has been once more revived at Hinton St. George. Ibid. 26 Dec. 465/2 ‘Punkie night’..might be Oct. 31, the evening before All Saints' Day, which is very generally celebrated in America as Hallowe'en. 1959I. & P. Opie Lore & Lang. Schoolch. xii. 267 To children in south Somerset a punkie is a home-made mangel-wurzel lantern of more artistic manufacture than those commonly made elsewhere for Hallowe'en. 1960Guardian 10 Nov. 10/2 In Somerset ‘Punkie Night’, during the third week in October, is a great occasion in the little village of Long Sutton... Punkies..are made from hollowed-out mangels to resemble a face. 1972Folklore LXXXIII. 240 A punkie is a general term for a mangold, turnip or similar vegetable that has been hollowed out, a face marked through the skin, and a candle placed inside. Ibid., Punkie Night was in early November. |