Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/bǫkъ

This Proto-Slavic entry contains reconstructed terms 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

Of onomatopoeic origin, related to Proto-Slavic *bǫkati, *bukati (“to rattle, to bang”). Compare Proto-Slavic *žukъ (“bettle”) from *žužati (“to buzz”).

Noun

*bǫkъ m

1. buzzer
2. buzzing insect, bumblebee

   Synonyms: *bǫbarъ, *žukъ, *ovadъ

Inflection

Declension of *bǫkъ (hard o-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*bǫkъ	*bǫka	*bǫci
genitive	*bǫka	*bǫku	*bǫkъ
dative	*bǫku	*bǫkoma	*bǫkomъ
accusative	*bǫkъ	*bǫka	*bǫky
instrumental	*bǫkъmь, *bǫkomь*	*bǫkoma	*bǫky
locative	*bǫcě	*bǫku	*bǫcěxъ
vocative	*bǫče	*bǫka	*bǫci

^* -ъmь in North Slavic, -omь in South Slavic.

Derived terms

• *bǫkařь (“bettle”)
• *bǫkačь, *bǫkačьka (“bug”)

Related terms

• *bǫbarъ (“bettle”)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • ⇒ Russian: бука́шка (bukáška, “bug, insect”) (colloquial); бука́ра (bukára)/буха́ра (buxára, “bumblebee”) (dialectal)
  • ⇒ Ukrainian: бука́рка (bukárka, “bettle”)
• South Slavic:
  • ⇒? Bulgarian: бъ́кел (bǎ́kel, “clue”)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: бу̑к (“bang”)

    Latin script: bȗk (“bang”)

• West Slavic:
  • Czech: buok, búk
  • Kashubian: bączk
  • Old Polish: bąk
    • Polish: bąk
  • Slovak: buk (dialectal)
  • Sorbian:
    • Lower Sorbian: buk (“gadfly”) (archaic)

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “букашка”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1975), “*bǫkъ”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), numbers 2 (*bez – *bratrъ), Moscow: Nauka, page 235