Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/-ьca

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 earlier *-ьka, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *-ikaʔ, from .

Suffix

*-ьca f

1. Denominal, forms diminutives.

   *myšь (“mouse”) → *myšьca (“a small mouse; muscle”)

   *vьrvь (“rope”) → *vьrvьca (“cord, string”)

2. Deverbal (from the stem), forms agent nouns.

   *ubiti (“to kill”) → *ubьjьca (“killer”)

   *ědti > *ěsti (“to eat”) → *ědьca (“eater”)

3. Structural formant, without a base noun to synchronically derive from.

   *ovьca (“sheep”)

Declension

Declension of *-ьca (soft a-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*-ьca	*-ьci	*-ьcę̇
genitive	*-ьcę̇	*-ьcu	*-ьcь
dative	*-ьci	*-ьcama	*-ьcamъ
accusative	*-ьcǫ	*-ьci	*-ьcę̇
instrumental	*-ьcejǫ, *-ьcǫ**	*-ьcama	*-ьcami
locative	*-ьci	*-ьcu	*-ьcasъ, *-ьcaxъ*
vocative	*-ьce	*-ьci	*-ьcę̇

^* -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).

Derived terms

Proto-Slavic terms suffixed with *-ьca

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: -ьца (-ĭca)
    • Belarusian: -ца (-ca)
    • Russian: -ца (-ca)
    • Ukrainian: -ця́ (-cjá)

• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Cyrillic: -ьца (-ĭca)

    Glagolitic: -ⱐⱌⰰ (-ĭca)

  • Bulgarian: -ца́ (-cá)
  • Macedonian: -ца (-ca)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: -ца

    Latin script: -ca

  • Slovene: -ca

• West Slavic:
  • Czech: -ca
  • Polish: -ca
  • Slovak: -ca
  • Sorbian:
    • Lower Sorbian: -ca
    • Upper Sorbian: -ca

Further reading

• Šekli, Matej (2012) “Besedotvorni pomeni samostalniških izpeljank v praslovanščini”, in Philological Studies‎^[1] (in Slovene), volume 10, number 1, Skopje, Perm, Ljubljana, Zagreb, pages 115–32