Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/-vъ

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

From Proto-Balto-Slavic *-was, from Proto-Indo-European *-wós, one of the suffixes from the so-called Caland system. As with other simple suffixes, *-vъ could be agglutinated to other morphemes forming compound suffixes like *-avъ (e.g. *glupavъ ← *glupъ), *-ivъ (e.g. *adušivъ ← *aduxa), *-ovъ (e.g. *surovъ ← *syrъ).

Historically, *-vъ has been used to form perfect active participles or pure adjectives from verb roots. Later on, some forms were reanalyzed into nouns. This was sometimes accompanied with prosodic alteration of the root.

Suffix 1

*-vъ

1. From thematic declension of u-stem proto-adjectives, without independent base

   *novъ (“new”)

   *terzvъ (“sober”)

   *pьrvъ (“first”)

   *sъdorvъ (“healthy”)

2. Deverbal, forming attributive adjectives

   *lajati (“to lurk, to ambush”) → *lěvъ (“left”)

   *perti (“to propel, to beat”) → *pravъ (“straight, right”)

   *merti (“to deprive, to die”) → *mьrtvъ (“dead”)

   *krojiti (“to fashion, to cut”) → *krivъ (“curved”)

   *sijati (“to shine, to shimmer”) → *sivъ (“gray”)

3. Deverbal, forming past imperfect participles

   *byti (“to be”) → *byvъ (“former”)

   *stojati (“to stand”) → *stojěvъ (“who used to be situated, stood”)

4. (Extension) Denominal or deadjectivcal, forming possessive, pertaining or more expressive versions of the original adjective

   Appended to stems in *-ъ, yielding *-ovъ (see there for examples)

   Appended to stems in *-a, yielding *-avъ (see there for examples)

   Appended to stems in *-ь, yielding *-ivъ (see there for examples)

Declension

Indefinite declension of *-vъ (hard)

singular	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	*-vъ	*-va	*-vo
genitive	*-va	*-vy	*-va
dative	*-vu	*-vě	*-vu
accusative	*-vъ	*-vǫ	*-vo
instrumental	*-vomь	*-vojǫ	*-vomь
locative	*-vě	*-vě	*-vě
vocative	*-ve	*-vo	*-vo
dual	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	*-va	*-vě	*-vě
genitive	*-vu	*-vu	*-vu
dative	*-voma	*-vama	*-voma
accusative	*-va	*-vě	*-vě
instrumental	*-voma	*-vama	*-voma
locative	*-vu	*-vu	*-vu
vocative	*-va	*-vě	*-vě
plural	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	*-vi	*-vy	*-va
genitive	*-vъ	*-vъ	*-vъ
dative	*-vomъ	*-vamъ	*-vomъ
accusative	*-vy	*-vy	*-va
instrumental	*-vy	*-vami	*-vy
locative	*-věxъ	*-vaxъ	*-věxъ
vocative	*-vi	*-vy	*-va

Definite declension of *-vъ (hard)

singular	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	*-vъjь	*-vaja	*-voje
genitive	*-vajego	*-vyję̇	*-vajego
dative	*-vujemu	*-věji	*-vujemu
accusative	*-vъjь	*-vǫjǫ	*-voje
instrumental	*-vyjimь	*-vǫjǫ	*-vyjimь
locative	*-vějemь	*-věji	*-vějemь
vocative	*-vъjь	*-vaja	*-voje
dual	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	*-vaja	*-věji	*-věji
genitive	*-vuju	*-vuju	*-vuju
dative	*-vyjima	*-vyjima	*-vyjima
accusative	*-vaja	*-věji	*-věji
instrumental	*-vyjima	*-vyjima	*-vyjima
locative	*-vuju	*-vuju	*-vuju
vocative	*-vaja	*-věji	*-věji
plural	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	*-viji	*-vyję̇	*-vaja
genitive	*-vъjixъ	*-vъjixъ	*-vъjixъ
dative	*-vyjimъ	*-vyjimъ	*-vyjimъ
accusative	*-vyję̇	*-vyję̇	*-vaja
instrumental	*-vyjimi	*-vyjimi	*-vyjimi
locative	*-vyjixъ	*-vyjixъ	*-vyjixъ
vocative	*-viji	*-vyję̇	*-vaja

Suffix 2

*-vъ m

1. Deverbal, forming "factive" action nouns from imperfect verbs

   *grěti (“to heat, to shine”) → *grěvъ (“warming, shining”)

   *pěti (“to sing”) → *pěvъ (“couplet, refrain (of a song)”)

   *zijati (“to gape”) → *zěvъ (“gullet, pharynx”)

   *po (“on”) + *kryti (“to hide, to cover”) → *pokryvъ (“roof, ceiling”)

   *ryti (“to dig”) → *ryvъ (“burst”)

2. Deverbal, forming abstract or collective nouns from verbs

   *glijati (“to mix clay and water”) → *glěvъ (“slime”)

   *gňiti (“to gnaw”) → *gněvъ (“anger”)

   possibly *merti (“to die”) → *morvъ (“ant”) (former i-stem)

   *verti (“to turn, to curve”) → *vьrvь (“rope”) (i-stem)

   *dьržati (“to hold”) → *dьržava (“state”) (ā-stem)

   *piti (“to drink”) → *pivo (“beverage”)

3. From abstract nouns in *-st-, forms abstract neutral nouns. Equivalent to *-ьstvo (see there for examples)
4. From causative verbs in *-iti, forms resultant or instrumental neutral nouns. Equivalent to *-ivo (see there for examples)

Declension

Declension of *-vъ (hard o-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*-vъ	*-va	*-vi
genitive	*-va	*-vu	*-vъ
dative	*-vu	*-voma	*-vomъ
accusative	*-vъ	*-va	*-vy
instrumental	*-vъmь, *-vomь*	*-voma	*-vy
locative	*-vě	*-vu	*-věxъ
vocative	*-ve	*-va	*-vi

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

Derived terms

Proto-Slavic terms suffixed with *-vъ

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: -въ (-vŭ)
    • Belarusian: -в (-v)
    • Russian: -в (-v), -вый (-vyj)
    • Ukrainian: -в (-v), -вий (-vyj)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Cyrillic: -въ (-vŭ)

    Glagolitic: -ⰲⱏ (-vŭ)

  • Bulgarian: -в (-v)
  • Macedonian: -в (-v)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: -в

    Latin script: -v

  • Slovene: -v
• West Slavic:
  • Czech: -ví
  • Polish: -wy
  • Slovak: -v

Further reading

• Duridunov et al. (1991): "Наставки на -v-" in Граматика на Старобългарския език (in Bulgarian), Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, p. 178
• J. Halla-aho (2006): "u-stem adjectives" in Problems of Proto-Slavic Historical Nominal Morphology, University of Helsenki, p. 89