ON THE ETYMOLOGY OF THE RUSSIAN WORDS СУПИР [SUPIR], СУПЕР [SUPER] ‘RING’

The article analyzes the etymology of the Russian words супир [supir], супер [super] ‘ring’ which is known in the fiction of XIX and the first half of XX centuries, as well as in modern dialect dictionaries. Existing versions on the origin of given words and their structural variants are presented, also a new hypothesis is formulated. It is based on the etymology of Ye. L. Berezovich and V. S. Kuchko who derive супир [supir], супер [super] from the root пер-/пир- [per-/pir-]. But the given motivation “squeezed, locked stone” is disputed. The author offers to base the semantics ‘ring’ on the meaning ‘to lock, to join’, initially — ‘to squeeze, to compress’ which is proved by the synonymic root derivatives and the technology of ring production.