< Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic
Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/berza
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This Proto-Slavic entry contains reconstructed words and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence. |
Proto-Slavic
Etymology
From Proto-Balto-Slavic *bérˀźas, with a change in gender and inflection, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerHǵós. The term refers specially to the genus Betula and was given because of its distinctive white bark. Other kinds of birch were known as *olьxa (“alder”) (also encountered as *elьša in some descendants) because of their brownish bark.
Inflection
Declension of *bèrza (hard a-stem, accent paradigm a)
| Singular | Dual | Plural | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | *bèrza | *bèrzě | *bèrzy |
| Accusative | *bèrzǫ | *bèrzě | *bèrzy |
| Genitive | *bèrzy | *bèrzu | *bèrzъ |
| Locative | *bèrzě | *bèrzu | *bèrzasъ, *bèrzaxъ* |
| Dative | *bèrzě | *bèrzama | *bèrzamъ |
| Instrumental | *bèrzojǫ, *bèrzǭ** | *bèrzama | *bèrzamī |
| Vocative | *bèrzo | *bèrzě | *bèrzy |
* -asъ is the expected Balto-Slavic form but is found only in some Old Czech documents; -axъ is found everywhere else and is formed by analogy with other locative plurals in -xъ.
** The second form occurs in languages that contract early across /j/ (e.g. Czech), while the first form occurs in languages that do not (e.g. Russian).
** The second form occurs in languages that contract early across /j/ (e.g. Czech), while the first form occurs in languages that do not (e.g. Russian).
Related terms
Descendants
- East Slavic:
- South Slavic:
- West Slavic:
Further reading
- Trubačóv, Oleg, editor (1974), “*berza”, in Etimologičeskij slovarʹ slavjanskix jazykov [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), volume 01, Moscow: Nauka, page 201
- Mallory, J. P.; Adams, D. Q., editors (1997) Encyclopedia of Indo-European culture, London, Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, page 65ff
- “beržas” in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė
References
- Derksen, Rick (2008), “*bèrza”, in Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 4), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 38: “f. ā (a) ‘birch’”
- Olander, Thomas (2001), “berza -y”, in Common Slavic accentological word list, Copenhagen: Editiones Olander: “a (SA 155, 177; PR 132; RPT 107, 111)”
- Kapović, Mate (2007), “The Development of Proto-Slavic Quantity”, in Wiener Slavistisches Jahrbuch, University of Vienna, page 5: “*be̋rza”
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