caravilla

Galician

Reproduction of medieval musical instruments. Note the pegs or caravillas used to tune the instruments.

Alternative forms

• cavilla, cravilla

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese cravilla (13th century, Cantigas de Santa Maria), a semi-learned term derived from Latin clavicula (“little key”). Doublet of chavella and clavícula. Compare Portuguese cravelha and Spanish clavija.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kaɾaˈβiʎa̝/

Noun

caravilla f (plural caravillas)

1. hook bolt; latch

   Fun ó muiño d'abaixo, e volvín polo d'arriba; o d'abaixo ten ferrollo, o d'arriba caravilla. (folk song)

   I went to the watermill below, I came back by the one above; the one below has a bolt, and the one above a latch.

   Synonyms: charnela, martabela, pecho, tarabelo

2. (music) peg
   • 1807, anonymous author, Primeiro diálogo dos esterqueiros:

     outros contaban que Beja
     lle apretara as carabillas.
     Esto ben podrà ser certo,
     p[o]rq[u]e cando este Señor
     lle berraba, el tembraba,
     é aposto eu que tiña
     ó ollo do cu tan cerrado,
     que era imposible coupese
     un grau de millo p[o]r el;

     others told that Beja
     had tightened his pegs.
     This is probably true,
     because when this lord
     was shouting him, he was trembling
     and I bet that
     his asshole was so tight
     that it was not possible that
     a corn grain entered in it

3. (carpentry) peg
   • 1418, A. Rodríguez González (ed.), Libro do Concello de Santiago (1416-1422). Santiago de Compostela: Consello da Cultura Galega, page 117:

     destes por nove cravillas para as traves viinte moravedis

     You gave, for nine pegs for the beans, twenty maravedis

   Synonyms: chavella, cuña, torno

   1. peg under the bed of the cart used for tying and securing the load with ropes

      Synonyms: brión, veo

   2. one of several pegs which fasten the wheels to the axe in a traditional Galician cart

      Synonym: entrouso

Related terms

• chave
• chavella

References

• “cravilla” in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval, SLI - ILGA 2006–2022.
• “cravilla” in Xavier Varela Barreiro & Xavier Gómez Guinovart: Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval. SLI / Grupo TALG / ILG, 2006–2018.
• “caravilla” in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega, SLI - ILGA 2006–2013.
• “caravilla” in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega. Santiago: ILG.
• “caravilla” in Álvarez, Rosario (coord.): Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués, Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega.