caviarn.

Etymology: Of uncertain origin, found in Turkish as khāvyār; in Italian in 16th cent. as caviale (whence 16th cent. French cavial, Spanish cavial, 16th cent. English cavialy), also as caviaro, whence French caviar. and Portuguese caviar.‘It has no root in Turkish, and has not the look of a Turkish word. Redhouse in his MS. Thesaurus marks it as Italian-Turkish, looking upon it as borrowed from Italian.’ Prof. C. Rieu. In English occurring with great variety of spelling and pronunciation, after Italian and French, with various native modifications. Originally, caviˈāly, -ˈāle, -ˈārie, -ˈāre was of 4 syllables, with accent on the penult, as in Italian, but was sometimes reduced to 3 syllables, by slurring -iā-, as -yā-, and later with the accent shifted to the first syllable. As early as 1625, the final -e, in caviare, caveare, was often dropped in speech, and later also in writing, giving caviar, cavear (compare French caviar), pronounced /kævɪˈɑː(r)/, /-ˈɛə(r)/, sometimes /kævˈjɑː(r)/, /-ˈjɛə(r)/, and perhaps also with accent shifted /ˈkævɪɑː(r)/, /-ɪə(r)/, /-jə(r)/. About 1700, prevalent forms were caˈvear, caˈveer, rhyming with prepare, and cheer; the latter pronunciation appears to have been the only one in common use in the end of the 18th cent., for Walker, 1797, who spells caviare and pronounces /kəˈvɪə(r)/, says, ‘Either the spelling or the pronunciation of this word should be altered..the ancient spelling seems to have been Caviare; though Buchanan and Bailey, in compliance with pronunciation, spell it Caveer, W. Johnston Cavear, and Ash, as a less usual spelling, Cavier.’ Smart (1846) pronounces /kævˈjɛə(r)/, Webster has the accent on first syllable /ˈkævɪɑː(r)/; prevalent pronunciations in England c1890 were /kævɪˈɑː(r)/, /kævˈjɑː(r)/, ‘etymologically the best’ ( N.E.D.), also /kævɪˈɛə(r)/, and as in Smart. The prevalent pronunciation in the late 20th century is as in Webster. Shakespeare's caviˈarie, and Swift's caˈveer, are recognized archaic forms.