Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/slověninъ

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

With *-ěninъ (“-ian, inhabitant of”) suffixed to the root of *Slovǫta (“the Dnieper”) or another, similar river name; compare Russian Слуя (Sluja), Polish Sława, Sławica, Serbo-Croatian Slavnica. The suffix *-ěninъ/*-janinъ is added only to geographical/territorial terms and place names, making it hard to assume other etymologies. Further etymology unclear. (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?)

It could also derive from some place name, although such name is not attested (sometimes the hypothetical name *Slovy is mentioned), but compare Lithuanian village Šlavė́nai (phonetically identical to *slověne pl) on the river Šlavė̃.

Obsolete and alternative etymologies

• From *slovo (“word; speech”), literally, “man of own speech, man who speak the same language”;
• From *sluti, *slovǫ (“to express in words, to utter”), literally, “man whose language is understandable”;
• From *slava (“glory, fame”), literally, “man of a famous tribe”;
• From Ancient Greek Σκλαβηνός / Σθλαβηνός (Sklabēnós) rather than the reverse, speculatively with an original meaning “prisoner of war, captive, slave”, from the verb σκῡλάω (skūláō), alternative form of σκῡλεύω (skūleúō, “to strip or despoil a slain enemy”), but, in addition to being a highly irregular derivation within Greek (the internal ῡ (ū) should not disappear, and β (b) for *w is unexplained), this contradicts the historical chronology of the semantic development and is furthermore unlikely to have become the Slavs' autonym;
• L. Masing, A. Stender-Petersen: borrowed from an unattested Germanic or specifically Gothic word for Slavic peoples, meaning “people whose language is not understandable”, from hypothetical Proto-Germanic *slawaną (“to be quiet”) (whence Gothic 𐍃𐌻𐌰𐍅𐌰𐌽 (slawan)), similar to Proto-Slavic *němьcь (“Teuton, German”), from *němъ (“mute”);
• Z. Gołąb: from Proto-Indo-European *swebʰen (from *swé (“self”)), with a dissimilation of w - bʰ to l - bʰ (compare *svoboda : *sloboda) and influenced by *slovo (“word; speech”) by folk etymology;
• J. J. Mikkola: from Proto-Indo-European *leh₂wos (“people”) with mobile *s-, cognate with Ancient Greek λᾱός (lāós, “people; soldier”)

Noun

*slověninъ m (feminine *slověnъka, related adjective *slověnьskъ) needs accents

1. Slav

Declension

Declension of *slověninъ

Case	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	*slověninъ	*slověnina	*slověne
Accusative	*slověninъ	*slověnina	*slověni
Genitive	*slověninа	*slověninu	*slověnъ
Locative	*slověnině	*slověninu	*slověnьxъ
Dative	*slověninu	*slověninoma	*slověnьmъ
Instrumental	*slověninomь	*slověninoma	*slověnьmi
Vocative	*slověnine	*slověnina	*slověne

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: словѣни́нъ (slověnínŭ)
    • Old Ruthenian: словꙗни́нъ (slovjanín), славꙗни́нъ (slavjanín), словѣни́нъ (slověnín)
      • Belarusian: славяні́н (slavjanín)
      • Carpathian Rusyn: Славяни́н (Slavjanýn)
      • Ukrainian: слов'яни́н (slovʺjanýn)
      • → Pannonian Rusyn: (possibly via Carpathian Rusyn) Славян (Slavjan)
    • Russian: славяни́н (slavjanín), слове́н (slovén, “Ilmen Slav”), (obsolete) словяни́н (slovjanín)
      • → Serbo-Croatian:

        Cyrillic script: Сла̀ве̄н

        Latin script: Slàvēn

• South Slavic:
  • Church Slavonic: (Russian recension) славѧни́нъ (slavęnínŭ), словени́нъ (slovenínŭ)
  • Bulgarian: славя́нин (slavjánin)
  • Macedonian: Словен (Sloven)
  • → Romanian: slovean
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: Сло̀вје̄н, Сло̀ве̄н

    Latin script: Slòvjēn, Slòvēn

  • Slovene: Slován
    • ⇒ Slovene: Slovẹ́nec (“Slovene”) (tonal orthography)
• West Slavic:
  • Old Czech: Slověnín, Slovan (later)
    • Czech: Slovan
  • Old Polish: Słowianin
    • Polish: Słowianin
    • Silesian: Słowianin
  • Old Slovak: *Slovan
    • Slovak: Slovan
      • ⇒ Slovak: Slovák (“Slovak”)
  • Pomeranian:
    • Kashubian: Słowión
    • ⇒ Slovincian: Slôwjinc (“Slovincian”)
  • Sorbian:
    • Lower Sorbian: Słowjan
    • Upper Sorbian: Słowjan

• Non-Slavic:
  • → Byzantine Greek: Σθλαβηνός (Sthlabēnós), Σκλαβηνός (Sklabēnós), Σκλᾰ́βος (Sklắbos) (see there for further descendants)

Further reading

• Rejzek, Jiří (2001), “Slovan”, in Český etymologický slovník [Czech Etymological Dictionary] (in Czech), 1st edition, Voznice: LEDA, →ISBN, page 613
• Snoj, Marko (2016), “slovẹ́nski”, in Slovenski etimološki slovar [Slovenian Etymology Dictionary] (in Slovene), 3rd edition, https://fran.si
• Vasmer, Max (1972), “славянин”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), volumes 3 (Муза – Сят), Moscow: Progress, page 664
• Janyšková, Ilona, editor (2008), “Slověninъ”, in Etymologický slovník jazyka staroslověnského [Etymological Dictionary of the Old Church Slavonic Language] (in Czech), numbers 14 (sice – sгъdobolja), Prague: Academia, →ISBN, page 838
• Melnychuk, O. S., editor (1982–2012), “слов'янин”, in Етимологічний словник української мови [Etymological Dictionary of the Ukrainian Language] (in Ukrainian), Kyiv: Naukova dumka
• Racheva, M., Todorov, T. A., editors (2002), “славянин”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 6 (пỳскам – словàр²), Sofia: Prof. Marin Drinov Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 834
• Ballester, Xaverio (2019), “Slověninъ, o del etnónimo de los eslavos”, in Francesco Benozzo, editor, Quaderni di Semantica (in Spanish), volume 5
• Mesiarkin, Adam (2017), “The name of the slavs: etymology and meaning”, in Studia Slavic et Balcania Petropolitana, number 1, →DOI, page 3
• Curta, Florin (2011), “Sklaviniai and ethnic adjectives: a clarification”, in Byzantion Nea Hellás, volume 30, page 85
• Trubachyov, Oleg (1982), “Из исследований по праславянскому словообразованию: генезис модели на -ěninъ, -*janinъ”, in Этимология 1980, Moscow, page 3
• Masing, Leonhard (1921), “2. Slověne”, in Prace lingwistyczne ofiarowane Janowi Baudouinowi de Courtenay dla uczczenia jego działalności naukowe‎^[3], Kraków: Drukarnia Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego pod zarządem J. Filipowskiego, pages 87-89
• Stender-Petersen, Adolf (1927), Slavisch-germanische Lehnwortkunde, Göteborg, page 181
• Gołąb, Zbigniew (1992), The origins of the Slavs: a linguist's view, Slavica Publishers, →ISBN, page 181
• Mikkola, J. J. (1902), “Объ имени славянъ”, in Русский филологический вестник, volume 48, numbers 3-4, page 273
• Sławski, Franciszek (1988), Leszek Bednarczuk, editor, Języki indoeuropejskie, volume 2, Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN, →ISBN, page 909
• Rozwadowski, Jan Michał (1961), Wybór pism, volume 2, Warszawa, page 327