Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/rěka

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 *raikāˀ, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃royH-keh₂, from *h₃reyH-, extension of *h₃er-. Equivalent to *rě- +‎ *-ka.

Indo-European cognates include Latin rīvus (“brook, stream”), Middle Irish rían (“river, way”), Old Irish ríathor (“torrent”), Sanskrit रय (ráya), रीयते (rī́yate), रीति (rītí), रेतस् (rétas), Gaulish *Rēnos, Albanian ritë, Old English rīþ, English rithe (dial.), Middle Low German rîn.

Noun

*rě̄kà or *rěkà f

1. river

Inflection

Declension of *rě̄kà (hard a-stem, accent paradigm b)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*rě̄kà	*rě̃cě	*rě̄kỳ
genitive	*rě̄kỳ	*rě̄kù	*rě̃kъ
dative	*rě̄cě̀	*rě̄kàma	*rě̄kàmъ
accusative	*rě̄kǫ̀	*rě̃cě	*rě̄kỳ
instrumental	*rě̄kòjǫ, *rě̃kǫ**	*rě̄kàma	*rě̄kàmī
locative	*rě̄cě̀	*rě̄kù	*rě̄kàsъ, *rě̄kàxъ*
vocative	*rěko	*rě̃cě	*rě̄kỳ

^* -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).

Declension of *rěkà (hard a-stem, accent paradigm c)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*rěkà	*rě̑cě	*rě̑ky
genitive	*rěký	*rěkù	*rě̃kъ
dative	*rěcě̀	*rěkàma	*rěkàmъ
accusative	*rě̑kǫ	*rě̑cě	*rě̑ky
instrumental	*rěkojǫ́	*rěkàma	*rěkàmi
locative	*rě̑cě	*rěkù	*rěkàsъ, *rěkàxъ*
vocative	*rěko	*rě̑cě	*rě̑ky

^* -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.

Related terms

• *rějati
• *rinǫti (“push, shove”)
• *rojь (“swarm”)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: рѣка (rěka)
    • Belarusian: рака́ (raká)
    • Russian: река́ (reká)
    • Ukrainian: ріка́ (riká)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Cyrillic: рѣка (rěka)

    Glagolitic: ⱃⱑⰽⰰ (rěka)

    • Bulgarian: река́ (reká), ря́ка (rjáka) (dialectal)
  • Macedonian: река (reka)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: ре́ка, рије́ка

    Latin: réka, rijéka

  • Slovene: rẹ́ka (tonal orthography)
• West Slavic:
  • Old Czech: řěka
    • Czech: řeka
  • Old Polish: rzeka
    • Polish: rzeka
    • Silesian: rzyka
  • Old Slovak: rieka, réka, ríka
    • Pannonian Rusyn: рика (rika)
    • Slovak: rieka
  • Polabian: rekă
  • Pomeranian:
    • Kashubian: rzéka
    • Slovincian: rzéka
  • Sorbian:
    • Upper Sorbian: rěka
    • Lower Sorbian: rěka

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), “река”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Chernykh, P. Ja. (1999), “река”, in Историко-этимологический словарь русского языка [Historical-Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), 3rd edition, volume 2 (панцирь – ящур), Moscow: Russian Lang., →ISBN, page 108
• Šanskij, N. M. (2004), “река”, in Školʹnyj etimologičeskij slovarʹ russkovo jazyka [School Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Drofa