Condor or Kondor?

[Sal Williams]

I have a question, torpedoboot Kondor is spelled with a "K" but when Legion Condor is spelled with a "C". Both spellings seem to be original German spellings. Any ideas on why?

[Scott]

Perhaps the "Kondor" is named after a person who spelled it that way?

Scott

[Dave Danner]

I have a question, torpedoboot Kondor is spelled with a "K" but when Legion Condor is spelled with a "C". Both spellings seem to be original German spellings. Any ideas on why?

Condor is not a German word. It is a Spanish word, from Quechua ######ur (I wonder if that word will come through the filter?). Following the rules of German orthography, when "condor" is imported into German, it is spelled Kondor, just like Kalorie, Kamera and Kanada. So the boat becomes Kondor.

Legion Condor, though, used the Spanish word condor, without conforming it to German spelling.

[Dave Danner]

... from Quechua ######ur (I wonder if that word will come through the filter?)...

I have my answer.

The Quechua word for the bird was c u n t u r .

[Scott]

I thought the Legion Condor had some symbolic link to the large bird/vulture. Didn't the Luftwaffe have a long-range bomber named Condor? (with a "C")

Scott

[Rosenberg]

Hi,

Scott you are right there is such a bird. Basically there is a simple explaination:A lot of German words were written with a "C" for some time and it was changed to a "K"-you will easily find old pictures that say Coeln when it is K?ln nowadays. So my guess is that torpedoboat was starting service later than the name Condor came to the Legion.I have no idea of the exact year the use changed.

Best

[Scott]

Ahh, ok. I see what you mean. Thanks!

Scott

[Sal Williams]

Thanks for all the replies. I still am not sure this explains the whole story though. The Condor airplane was not much if any earlier than the torpedoboot Kondor and yet spelled with a "C". I also don't see how the airplane name would be a "borrowed" word from another country as it was a German deseign.

[Rosenberg]

Sal,

after looking up the Kondor boat on the net I found it started service in 1926,so my observations are not applicable. I will try finding out what is the reason for the various of use of C and K.

Best

[peter monahan]

"I also don't see how the airplane name would be a "borrowed" word from another country as it was a German deseign. "

Sal

Keep in mind that the language we are all writing in is composed of (very roughly) 40-50% Saxon/Jutish/German and the rest French, Latin, Greek, Persian, etc. For example:

Mustang - a US warplane or a wild horse - fr. Spanish

Crocodile - a Br tank - fr Greek (or Latin?)

Tomahawk - US warplane - from Algonkian language group (literally "man-killer" or "man-club")

The condor / kondor / ######ur was/is famous for being a graceful flyer and able to stay in the air for hours mwith minimal effort. Not a bad name for a long range plane in anybody's language!

My dos pesos worth!

Peter

[joe campbell]

very interesting thread!

remember that in circumstances like this

that there was someone in "command"

who probably had some "poetic license"

in naming/titling....

joe