>I remember hearing a long time ago that the word "bUchi" came
>into Telugu from the last name of a Portugese (?) warrior
>Debucchi.
Yes, I heard that too. But the word bUchi ia much older word meaning a
piSaca,Telugu deyyam, spirit. Siva is often descrbed as bUchula-rEDu.
Connection with the French genereal is scholalry-folk etymology. It does
not have seem to have any basis. But I would check Dravidain Etymological
Dictionary. Ed. T. Burrow and M. B. Emeneau, Oxford, 1984.
Incidentally, the Telugu king the French (not Portugese) general (called
bUsI in Telugu) defeated was the Velama king of Bobbili, Rangarao, The
battle was fought in 1757. The French sided with the Vijayanagar against
Bobbili in that battle. You may still find the heroic story of Bobbili sung
as an epic by folk singers. I have several recordings of this popular folk
epic. There was even a movie, bobbili yuddham, made of this story.
>corresponding Telugized words for the british and french.
French were called Farangulu, as were any foreigners and there were several
words for the English, but tella doralu replaced all of them. Greeks were
called yavanas in Sanskrit texts as you probably know. No Telugu word,
perhaps not so much because they did not come that far south, but Telugu is
not a language that goes that far back.
VNR