An unusual one. How does one get from παστρικός (scrupulously clean) to παστρικιά?
πάστρα = καθαριότητα. Παστρεύω = to clean, especially with a brush made of a tough reed or grass called σπάρτο (esparto grass?). OK, we’re still miles away from whore. Παστρικός, as we have said, means very clean. By the nature of their profession, prostitutes were known for continually cleaning themselves and their clothes.
www.slang.gr can always be relied on. I love the example at the end:
Σαν ουσιαστικό σημαίνει πουτάνα. Σαν επίθετο, απ’ όπου και κατάγεται ετυμολογικά το ουσιαστικό, χαρακτηρίζει κάτι με την ιδιότητα του καθαρού.
Η λέξη άρχισε να χρησιμοποιείται ευρύτερα μετά την Μικρασιατική καταστροφή και την εγκατάσταση των προσφύγων στην Ελλάδα, όπου η έφεση των γυναικών προσφύγων στην καθαριότητα προκάλεσε μεγάλη εντύπωση στους ιθαγενείς, οι οποίοι όπως φαίνεται ήταν τσακωμένοι με τα σαπούνια.
Τη μοναδική εξαίρεση ως τότε αποτελούσαν οι ντόπιες πουτάνες, που η φύση της εργασίας τους τις υποχρέωνε να πλένουν συχνά τα ρούχα τους, τα σκεπάσματά τους αλλά και τους εαυτούς τους. Έτσι, οι σοφοί ημών πρόγονοι ταύτισαν επαγωγικά την ιδιότητα της καθαρής με την ιδιότητα της πουτάνας.
ΠΑΡΑΔΕΙΓΜΑ
Μαρίκα: Να χαίρεσαι τη νύφη σου, καλή κοπέλα φαίνεται. Και καθαρή…
Κατίνα: Άσε με Μαρίκα μου, να δω τι θα κάνω με τη παστρικιά που μου κουβάλησε ο γιος μου!
So how was the word used. One of the most famous films from the 60s is Let the Wife Fear her Husband (Η Γυνὴ ἵνα Φοβῆται τὸν Άνδρα). The title comes from Ephesians 5:33 “ἡ δὲ γυνὴ ἵνα φοβῆται τὸν ἄνδρα”. Nowadays, in modern bible translations, φοβῆται is usually translated as ‘respect’. However, a quick check of my Liddell & Scott indicates ‘fear’ and ‘panic’ to the exclusion of almost everything else.
When the text is quoted during the marriage ceremony, the bride usually steps on the groom’s toe – a very emancipatory way of saying, “You can fuck off”.
Anyway, the film covers – as I see it – two main subjects: urban upheaval/renewal and the plight of woman without dowries in the latter half of the 20th century. The film was in the news recently because the house used in the filming is being restored. The house will be named Kokovikos House after the fictional couple. That reminds me of the statue of Molly Malone in Dublin; Molly only exists in song! Only the Irish and Greeks would name something or someone after a fictional character. The restoration is covered in this article: https://greekreporter.com/2025/08/26/greece-restore-kokovikos-house-greek-film/
Antonis Kokovikos lives with Eleni. They are not married. In a big city like Athens or Thessaloniki, an unmarried couple could get away with cohabiting, but if it became known that there was no marriage, the “wife” often became known as a παστρικιά. Of course, she was not a whore (and neither is the film’s Eleni); she was probably just a poor girl without a dowry.
The husband – even if one tries to understand the standards of the time – is a bastard to Eleni, and matters get worse when she stamps on his toe during the marriage service. With her newfound legal status, Eleni begins to assert herself , and an already unhealthy relationship further deteriorates.
Here is the trailer for the film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8QMf5aE__E