Podunk

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• /ˈpoʊdʌŋk/
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• CMU ARPABET: P OW1 T AH0 NG K Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
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From Podunk, a mythical small town of no importance, from Eastern Algonquian.

From an Eastern Algonquian, likely Loup A, word or words. Similar names were applied to various small and generally unknown places. By the late 19th century the word came to mean an obscure small town, a use possibly popularized by Mark Twain (see quotation). Carlton and Reed survey similar place names and note a transformation from Potaecke to Potunke to Podunk. Carlton suggests a derivation from the adjective petukque ("round"). Tooker compares Ojibwe petobeg (“bog”) (as Chippewa) and Abenaki poteba (“to sink in the mire”) and divides the word into pot- ("to sink") and -unk (locative). Algonquian expert Ives Goddard says "We have no idea what the word means. You'll be able to find guesses in the sources if you look around. Don't believe any of it."

21 source translations are retained for this English entry.

• Danish: Østre Bøvelse — mythical small town of no importance
• Dutch: Schubbekutteveen — mythical small town of no importance
• Dutch: Nergenshuizen — mythical small town of no importance
• French: Trifouillis-les-Oies — mythical small town of no importance
• German: Hintertupfingen — mythical small town of no importance
• Hungarian: Piripócs — mythical small town of no importance
• Hungarian: Salakszentmotoros — mythical small town of no importance
• Italian: vattelapesca — mythical small town of no importance
• Malay: negeri antah-berantah — mythical small town of no importance
• Negeri Sembilan Malay: ontahmano — mythical small town of no importance
• Sarawak Malay: tempat jin bertendang — mythical small town of no importance
• Polish: Pcim Dolny — mythical small town of no importance
• Polish: Pipidówka — mythical small town of no importance
• Romanian: Cuca Măcăii — mythical small town of no importance
• Romanian: Cucuieții din Deal — mythical small town of no importance
• Russian: тьмутарака́нь (tʹmutarakánʹ) — mythical small town of no importance
• Russian: Мухосра́нск (Muxosránsk) — mythical small town of no importance
• Scottish Gaelic: Lùb a' Gheòidh — mythical small town of no importance
• Ukrainian: звідкілясь (zvidkiljasʹ) — mythical small town of no importance
• Ukrainian: хтозна-звідки (xtozna-zvidky) — mythical small town of no importance
• Ukrainian: чортзна-де (čortzna-de) — mythical small town of no importance