Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/běda

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

Opinions alternate between:

• Meyer (in context to Albanian be): Via earlier *báidāˀ from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeydʰ- (“to cajole, force, compel”), cognate with Albanian be f (“oath”), Latin foedus (“treaty”). Probably also akin to Lithuanian baĩdas (“scare”) (per Martynov). Lyapunov (ИОРЯС XXXI) further interprets the etymon as *bojati (“to fear”) +‎ *-da (locative suffix). In contrast, Milleit views it as a deverbial from *běditi (“to compel, to coerce”) (doubted by Trubačev).
• Derksen, Smoczyński: Cognate with Lithuanian bėdà (“misfortune, guilt”), Latvian bēda (“misfortune, guilt”), presumably from *bḗdāˀ, perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *bʰedʰ- (“to oppress”). Further akin to Lithuanian bãdas (“hunger”), Latvian bads (“hunger”), possibly Sanskrit बाधा (bādhā, “hardship, suffering”).

Convergence of the two sources cannot be excluded either.

Noun

*bě̄dà f

1. trouble, misery, misfortune
2. adversity, calamity
3. (by extension) poverty, need

Declension

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

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*bě̄dà	*bě̃dě	*bě̄dỳ
genitive	*bě̄dỳ	*bě̄dù	*bě̃dъ
dative	*bě̄dě̀	*bě̄dàma	*bě̄dàmъ
accusative	*bě̄dǫ̀	*bě̃dě	*bě̄dỳ
instrumental	*bě̄dòjǫ, *bě̃dǫ**	*bě̄dàma	*bě̄dàmī
locative	*bě̄dě̀	*bě̄dù	*bě̄dàsъ, *bě̄dàxъ*
vocative	*bědo	*bě̃dě	*bě̄dỳ

^* -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

• *bědica, *bědъka (diminutive)
• *bědьnъ (“poor”)
• *bědьstvьje (“calamity”)
• *bědunъ (“wretch”)

Related terms

• *běditi (“to compel, to coerce, to defeat; to persuade, to slander, to cuss”)
• *obida (“unfairness”) (not certain)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: бѣда (běda)
    • Old Ruthenian: бѣда́ (bědá), бида́ (bidá)
      • Belarusian: бяда́ (bjadá)
      • Ukrainian: біда́ (bidá)
    • Russian: беда́ (bedá)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Old Cyrillic script: бѣда (běda)

    Glagolitic script: ⰱⱑⰴⰰ (běda)

  • Bulgarian: беда́ (bedá)
  • Macedonian: бе́да (béda)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: бе́да, бије́да

    Latin script: béda, bijéda

  • Slovene: bẹ́da (tonal orthography)
• West Slavic:
  • Czech: bída (“poverty, misery”), běda (“woe!”)
  • Kashubian: biéda
  • Old Polish: biada
    • Polish: bieda (“poverty”), biada (“woe”)
  • Slovak: bieda, beda
  • Sorbian:
    • Upper Sorbian: běda
    • Lower Sorbian: běda

Further reading

• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1975), “*běda”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), numbers 2 (*bez – *bratrъ), Moscow: Nauka, page 54
• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “беда”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Georgiev, Vladimir I., editor (1971), “беда”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volumes 1 (А – З), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 39
• “bėda”, in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė [Lithuanian etymological dictionary database], 2007–2012
• “baidyti”, in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė [Lithuanian etymological dictionary database], 2007–2012
• Eric P. Hamp (1985) “Indo-European *bheHi-, Latin foedus, and Balto-Slavic”, in Indogermanische Forschungen, pages 66-69