This base type goes back to the lat. accusative form pĭnguem 'fat' (cf. Georges under pinguis ), which has been preserved in Romansh, especially in Engadine painch 'butter' (cf. HWdR, 589, under pieun 'butter'). From an onomasiological standpoint, the specification from 'fat' to 'butter' can be easily be explained: In the areas where oil traditionally was not – or more precisely – could not be produced, BUTTER was simply used as FAT. Oil was not common in the local traditional cuisine, whereas the use of oil instead of butter was dominant in central and southern Italian cuisine (cf. Scheuermeier 1943: 28).