מְלָפְפוֹן (melafepon) — cucumber

Etymology

"We decided and resolved to restore the crown to its rightful place — but what did we accomplish? Even members of my own household, who try to be precise in their speech, mock me every hour when a melon is brought to the table," lamented Prof. Shmuel Yeivin, former scientific secretary of the Va'ad HaLashon (Language Committee) from 1935 to 1942, addressing the full Academy for the Hebrew Language. "I am not troubled by the mockery — but try asking the greengrocer for קִישּׁוּא and see what you get." In saying this, Yeivin admitted defeat in the campaign to correct a mix-up in Hebrew: the reversal of the words מְלָפְפוֹן and קִישּׁוּא.

The word "מְלָפְפוֹן" first appears in the Mishnah: "The gourd (קִישׁוּת) and the מְלָפְפוֹן do not constitute kilayim [forbidden mixed planting] with each other" (Kilayim 1:2). The Mishnah also states that workers may eat raw קִישּׁוּאִים while laboring in the field — suggesting these are raw-eating vegetables (cucumbers), while מְלָפְפוֹן must be cooked before eating (melon). The Jerusalem Talmud confirms: "Therefore in Greek they call it 'molafepon' (μηλοπέπων)" — a fusion of μήλον (apple/fruit) and πέπων (gourd), i.e., fruit-gourd. This is linguistically accurate: the Greek word was borrowed into Mishnaic Hebrew as מְלָפְפוֹן, entered Latin as melopeponem, was shortened to melonem by the Middle Ages, became French melon in the 13th century, and was adopted by English and eventually modern Hebrew as מֶלוֹן.

Rashi (11th century) ruled: "קִישּׁוּאִים are what are called 'concombre' [French for cucumber] in vernacular." Rabbi Ovadiah of Bertinoro (15th century) likewise: "קִישּׁוּאִין are called 'faqus' in Arabic and 'concombre' in the vernacular," while identifying מְלָפְפוֹן as "citrouille" (French for gourd/pumpkin). Ben-Yehuda's dictionary maintained the traditional assignment: מְלָפְפוֹן = melon/muskmelon; קִישּׁוּא = cucumber.

Yet already by 1868 — when Ben-Yehuda was only 10 years old — "HaMagid" newspaper referred to "כּבוּשׁ מְלָפְפוֹן" (pickled melafepon), clearly meaning pickled cucumber. The reversal had somehow taken hold in spoken use. The Va'ad HaLashon mounted a sustained campaign: its 1930 plant dictionary noted under מְלָפְפוֹן (defined as melon): "an error that has become entrenched, calling by this name what is actually the cucumber." In 1934, Ze'ev Ben-Hayyim urged that "there is no need to shrink from uprooting a widespread but young and erroneous usage — the will and persistence are needed, and schools can help." The 1938 Va'ad kitchen vocabulary stated bluntly under קִישּׁוּא: "Not 'מְלָפְפוֹן' — whoever uses that name for this vegetable is simply mistaken." To no avail. The swap was too deep in everyday speech to reverse.

Key Quotes

"הקשות והמלפפון, אינם כלאים זה בזה" — משנה, כלאיים א׳ ב׳

"לפום כן צווחין ליה בלישנא יונא מולפפון" — תלמוד ירושלמי, כלאיים א׳ ב׳

"קישואים הם קוקומברו״ש בלע״ז" — רש״י (קוֹנְקוֹמְבְּר = מלפפון בצרפתית)

"לא 'מלפפון', שכל המשתמש בשם זה לצמח זה אינו אלא טועה" — מילון מושגי המטבח, ועד הלשון, 1938

Timeline

• Mishnaic period: מְלָפְפוֹן = melon; קִישּׁוּא = cucumber — borrowed from Greek μηλοπέπων
• 11th century: Rashi identifies קִישּׁוּאִים = French "concombre" (cucumber)
• 15th century: Bertinoro confirms קִישּׁוּא = cucumber, מְלָפְפוֹן = gourd
• 1868: "HaMagid" already uses מְלָפְפוֹן for pickled cucumber — reversal underway
• 1930: Va'ad HaLashon plant dictionary flags the error
• 1934: Ze'ev Ben-Hayyim urges correction via schools
• 1938: Va'ad kitchen vocabulary calls the usage an error
• Post-1948: Yeivin admits defeat; the swap is irreversible
• Present: מְלָפְפוֹן = cucumber; מֶלוֹן = melon (from French, borrowed separately)

Related Words

• קִישּׁוּא — zucchini/courgette in modern Hebrew (Mishnaic: cucumber)
• מֶלוֹן — melon (modern Hebrew, direct French/English loanword)
• אֲבַטִּיחַ — watermelon
• דְּלַעַת — pumpkin/gourd
• כִּלְאַיִם — forbidden mixed planting (the Mishnaic context for this word's first appearance)