Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/vorbь

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

Either of onomatopoeic origin from the same root as Proto-Slavic *verva (“fuss, noise”), *verskъ (“scream”) or probably from Proto-Indo-European *(s)werbʰ- (“to peck, to scratch”), akin to Lithuanian žvìrblis (“sparrow”) , Latvian zvirbulis (“sparrow”), virblis (“eagle”) (dialectal). If correct, the Baltic forms would reflect the s-mobile form of the root.

Noun

*võrbь m

1. sparrow

Declension

Declension of *võrbь (i-stem, accent paradigm b)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*võrbь	*vōrbì	*võrbьjē, *võrbľē*
genitive	*võrbi	*võrbьju, *vorbľu*	*vōrbь̀jь, *võrbi*
dative	*vōrbì	*võrbьma	*vōrbь̀mъ
accusative	*võrbь	*vōrbì	*vōrbì
instrumental	*vōrbь̀mь	*võrbьma	*võrbьmī
locative	*võrbi	*võrbьju, *vorbľu*	*vōrbь̀xъ
vocative	*vorbi	*vōrbì	*võrbьjē, *võrbľē*

^* 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

• *vorbьjь
• *vorbьľь
• *vorbьcь, *vorbokъ, *vorbьčę (diminutive)

Related terms

• *svorbъ (“itch”)
• *rębъ (“speckled, spotted”)
  • *arębъ (“partridge”)

Descendants

The primary i-stem is attested only indirectly, e.g. in Ukrainian вороб'я́ pl (vorobʺjá) (dialectal) and in loanwords:

• East Slavic:
  • Old Ukrainian: воробѧ́ n (vorobjá, “sparrow”) (< *võrbь + *-ę)
    • Ukrainian: гороб'я́ n (horobʺjá); вороб'я́ n (vorobʺjá) (dialectal)
• West Slavic:
  • Sorbian:
    • Upper Sorbian: wrobl

• → Romanian: vrabie
• → Hungarian: veréb

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “воробей”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• горобець in Горох.ua (Етимологія)
• Georgiev, Vladimir I., editor (1971), “врабче”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volumes 1 (А – З), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 178