балия
Bulgarian
editEtymology
editAn old ī-stem agent noun from Old Church Slavonic балии (balii), reanalyzed with the suffix -ия (-ija). Probably related to Bulgarian ба́я (bája, “to cast charms”).
Pronunciation
editNoun
editба́лия • (bálija) m (feminine ба́лийца)
Usage notes
editThe term (along with its synonyms) nowadays is used specifically for old-time healers, which use charms and folk medicine. The technical term for (professional) healer is лека́р (lekár) (native) or до́ктор (dóktor), меди́к (medík) (borrowings).
Declension
editDeclension of ба́лия
Derived terms
edit- ба́лийство (bálijstvo), балу́ване (balúvane, “enchantry”) (archaic)
- ба́лност (bálnost, “healing charm”) (archaic)
Related terms
edit- ба́йка (bájka, “enchanter”) (dialectal)
- ба́сня (básnja, “fable”)
- ба́ба (bába, “grandmother, old wise woman”)
References
edit- балии in Исторически речник на българския език, Sofia University "St. Clement Ohridsky"