Славен
Serbo-Croatian edit
Alternative forms edit
- Сло̀ве̄н (now chiefly Serbian, Ekavian)
- Сло̀вје̄н (now chiefly Serbian, Ijekavian)
- Сло̀вӣн (archaic, Ikavian)
Etymology edit
Ultimately from Proto-Slavic *slověninъ, but, unlike the alternative forms, not directly inherited. The -a- vowel in the first syllable apparently derives from Russian Church Slavonic or Russian славяни́н (slavjanín), perhaps with influence from сла̏ва by folk etymology.[1]
Pronunciation edit
Proper noun edit
Сла̀ве̄н m (Latin spelling Slàvēn)
Usage notes edit
Until the 18th century, the form of this word with -o- in the first syllable was almost universal throughout the Serbo-Croatian-speaking area (with varying reflexes of yat). The form with -a- seems to have originated in Slavonic-Serbian and spread under the influence of Pan-Slavism during the 19th century. By the 20th century, the form with -a- became the most common form in Croatia and all but disappeared from Serbia, effectively reversing the early 19th-century distribution of the two forms.
Declension edit
References edit
- ^ * Skok, Petar (1971–1974) “Славен”, in Etimologijski rječnik hrvatskoga ili srpskoga jezika [Etymological Dictionary of the Croatian or Serbian Language] (in Serbo-Croatian), volumes 1–4 (A – Ž), Zagreb: JAZU