Names
Rõika (Rõigas)
Radish, horseradish, black radish. Four main types: põldrõigas (wild radish, Raphanus raphanistrum); aedrõigas (lit. garden radish, but just plain ‘radish’, R. sativus, the red one, aka redis (see further); aed-mädarõigas enticingly translated as ‘garden rot/pus radish’, aka piprajuur or ‘pepper-root’ (Armoracia rustiana); and sinerõigas (lit. blue radish), best known for its martial mascara Isatis tinctoria, or woad. From MLG redich or redik, radish, perhaps through the earlier loan redikas, then upping its estonianization as in the dialectal reigas, dropping the ‘d’ sitting uncomfortably on the Estonian tongue and adding the common-enough -as ending. Next door to Mustjuure.
Ronga (Ronk)
Also known as Kaaren (see Kaarna), the common raven, or just plain raven, or corbie, Corvus corax. Name of Baltic-Finnish origin, cognate of Livonian kronk and related to both Livvi-Karelian kronkuttua and Lithuanian krankti, to croak. Why a language obsessed with the letter ‘k’ (about 15% of Estonian words begin with this) would drop it is curious. Part of the Lilleküla bird-name group of streets. See also Rähni.
