Chalcoparia
kal-ko-PAIR-ee-uh
Genus
the copper-cheeked one
Literally: copper cheek
| Part | Meaning | Language | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| chalco- | copper | Greek (chalc, -o) | combining form with connecting vowel -o- |
| paria | the cheek | Greek (pari, =a) | nominative singular form =a; final -a is the standalone ending |
A single Greek compound noun used as a genus name, treated as feminine Latin (ending -a). chalco- is the modifier (copper) and paria (cheek) is the head noun. The name describes a conspicuous coppery-coloured cheek patch, characteristic of Chalcoparia singalensis, the Ruby-cheeked Sunbird.
Pronunciation
- kal-ko-PAIR-ee-uh Antepenult rule: penult vowel 'i' is short and followed by only one consonant before a vowel, so stress falls on the antepenult 'par'; but 'pair' is the antepenult and its vowel is followed by a single consonant then -ia, making it long — stress on the antepenult 'PAR/PAIR'.
Other readings
chalc- could theoretically come from chalc, -eo ('coppery' as an adjective stem) rather than chalc, -o ('copper' as a noun stem); the meaning is essentially the same in context.
Chalcoparia is a monotypic genus of sunbird (family Nectariniidae); the single species is C. singalensis, the Ruby-cheeked Sunbird, whose brilliant coppery-orange cheeks inspired the name. ch- is pronounced as hard 'k' per classical pronunciation rules. The -a ending of paria is the Greek nominative singular, reused as a Latin feminine genus termination.