Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/pьlxъ

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

Uncertain. Supposed to be related to Latvian pele, Lithuanian pelė, Old Prussian pelē, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *peliā (“dormouse”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pelH- (“gray, pale”).

Noun

pьlxъ m

1. dormouse

   → (by extension) rat

Declension

Declension of *pьlxъ (u-stem)

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	*pьlxъ	*pьlxy	*pьlxove
Accusative	*pьlxъ	*pьlxy	*pьlxy
Genitive	*pьlxu	*pьlxovu	*pьlxovъ
Locative	*pьlxu	*pьlxovu	*pьlxъxъ
Dative	*pьlxovi	*pьlxъma	*pьlxъmъ
Instrumental	*pьlxъmь	*pьlxъma	*pьlxъmi
Vocative	*pьlxu	*pьlxy	*pьlxove

Declension of *pьlxъ (hard o-stem)

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	*pьlxъ	*pьlxa	*pьlśi
Accusative	*pьlxъ	*pьlxa	*pьlxy
Genitive	*pьlxa	*pьlxu	*pьlxъ
Locative	*pьlśě	*pьlxu	*pьlśěxъ
Dative	*pьlxu	*pьlxoma	*pьlxomъ
Instrumental	*pьlxъmь, *pьlxomь*	*pьlxoma	*pьlxy
Vocative	*pьlše	*pьlxa	*pьlśi

^* -ъmь in North Slavic, -omь in South Slavic.

Related terms

• *polvъ (“pale yellow”)
• *pelva (“chaff”)
• *poľe (“field”) (possibly)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Belarusian: по́ўх (póŭx)
  • Russian: полчо́к (polčók)
  • Ukrainian: повх (povx)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic: плъхъ (plŭxŭ)
  • Bulgarian: плъх (plǎh, “rat”)
  • Macedonian: полв (polv)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic: пу̏х

    Latin: pȕh

  • Slovene: pọ̄lh
• West Slavic:
  • Old Czech: plch
    • Czech: plch
  • Polish: pilch
  • Slovak: plch
  • Lower Sorbian: pjelch
  • Upper Sorbian: połch
  • → Old High German: bilih
    • Middle High German: bilch
      • German: Bilch

• ⇒ Hungarian: pele
• ⇒ Romanian: pârș

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), “полчо́к”, in Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), translated from German and supplemented by Oleg Trubachyov, Moscow: Progress
• Duridanov I., Račeva M., Todorov T., editor (1996), “плъх”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 5, Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, page 375