Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/komъ

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

Traditionally compared with Lithuanian kãmas (“chunk”), kamuolỹs (“ball”), Latvian kams (“mass, clod”), kamols (“ball”), probably from a common Proto-Balto-Slavic *kam⁽ˀ⁾as (“mass”). Further comparison has been drawn to Sanskrit शम् (śam, “to toil, to wreck”), Ancient Greek κᾰ́μνω (kámnō, “to exert, to work hard”), presumably from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ḱemh₂- (“to exert force, to get toiled”).

It is uncertain if the current term is related to homonymous *komъ (“bulge, mound”), attested in South Slavic: Bulgarian Ком (Kom), Комощи́ца (Komoštíca) (oronyms), dial. Serbo-Croatian ко̏м, ко̀мац (“hill, steep”) (alternatively compared with Romanian coamă (“ridge, crest”) < Latin coma (“hair”)). Compare Russian кому́ля (komúlja, “lump of earth”).

Noun

*komъ m

1. clod (East Slavic)
2. (secondary) lump of marc, refuse matter (West, South Slavic)

   Coordinate term: *komina

Alternative forms

• *koma f (ā-stem)

Declension

Declension of *komъ (hard o-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*komъ	*koma	*komi
genitive	*koma	*komu	*komъ
dative	*komu	*komoma	*komomъ
accusative	*komъ	*koma	*komy
instrumental	*komъmь, *komomь*	*komoma	*komy
locative	*komě	*komu	*koměxъ
vocative	*kome	*koma	*komi

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

Derived terms

• *komiti (“to squash”)
  • *komina (“refuse matter”)
• *komъkъ (diminutive)

Related terms

• *komęga (“type of vessel, boat”)
• *komolъ (“hornless, mutilated”) (possibly)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Belarusian: ком (kom)
  • Russian: ком (kom)
  • Ukrainian: ком (kom)
• South Slavic:
  • Serbo-Croatian: (dialectal, obsolescent)

    Cyrillic script: ко̏м, ко̏ма f (“marc”)

    Latin script: kȍm, kȍma f (“marc, dross”)

  • Slovene: kom (“ball, clump”) (dialectal)
• West Slavic:
  • Polish: kom

Further reading

• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1983), “*komъ”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), numbers 10 (*klepačь – *konь), Moscow: Nauka, page 179
• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “ком”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Georgiev, Vladimir I., editor (1979), “Ком”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volumes 2 (и – крепя̀), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Pubg. House, page 572
• “kamas”, in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė [Lithuanian etymological dictionary database], 2007–2012