Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/pilę

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

Onomatopoeic, from the nestling call *pi-pi + *-lę. Likely of Proto-Balto-Slavic origin, akin to Latvian pīle (“duck”), Lithuanian pỹlė (“duck”).

Compare also Proto-Slavic *pisklę (whence Polish pisklę) = *piskati (“to shriek”) +‎ *-lę.

Noun

*pilę n

1. chick, duckling, nestling (young bird)

Alternative forms

• *pylę

Declension

Declension of *pilę (nt-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*pilę	*pilęti	*pilęta
genitive	*pilęte	*pilętu	*pilętъ
dative	*pilęti	*pilętьma	*pilętьmъ
accusative	*pilę	*pilęti	*pilęta
instrumental	*pilętьmь	*pilętьma	*pilęty
locative	*pilęte	*pilętu	*pilętьxъ
vocative	*pilę	*pilęti	*pilęta

Derived terms

• *piľukъ, *piľakъ (“bird of pray”) (literally: “chickener”)

Related terms

• *pilica, *pilьcь, *piliťь (diminutives)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Russian: пыля-пыля (pylja-pylja) (command for calling birds)
• South Slavic:
  • Bulgarian: пи́ле (píle)
  • Macedonian: пиле (pile)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: пи̏ле

    Latin script: pȉle

  • ⇒ Slovene: pilič
• West Slavic:
  • Polabian: pailă (“duck”)
  • Polish: pylę
  • Slovincian: pjilã
  • Sorbian:
    • Lower Sorbian: pile
    • Upper Sorbian: pilo

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “пы́ля”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Duridanov, I. V., Racheva, M., Todorov, T. A., editors (1996), “пиле”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volumes 5 (падѐж – пỳска), Sofia: Prof. Marin Drinov Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 235
• “pylė”, in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė [Lithuanian etymological dictionary database], 2007–2012