obec

Czech

Etymology

Inherited from Old Czech obec, from Proto-Slavic *obьťь.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈobɛt͡s]

• audio

  (file)

Noun

obec f

1. municipality, village, locality, community

Declension

Declension of obec (soft zero-ending feminine reducible)

	singular	plural
nominative	obec	obce
genitive	obce	obcí
dative	obci	obcím
accusative	obec	obce
vocative	obci	obce
locative	obci	obcích
instrumental	obcí	obcemi

Derived terms

• obcovat
• občan
• občina
• obecenstvo
• obecní
• obecný

 

Further reading

• obec in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
• obec in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989
• obec in Internetová jazyková příručka

Old Czech

Alternative forms

• obcě

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *obьťь.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (13^th CE) /ˈobɛt͡s/
• IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /ˈobɛt͡s/

Noun

obec f

1. community (society of people living together in a certain territory)
   1. community of the same religious faith, especially a Christian one
2. common people, laity (as opposed to people)
3. estate (layers of the population participating in power in a feudal state)
4. municipal assembly (collective of people settled in the village and participating in its self-administration)
5. Hussite military-power group (revolutionary attempt to create Hussite state power)
6. (in translations of Latin) state, empire
7. municipality (territorial district of the municipal)
8. common property belonging to everyone

Declension

Declension of obec (soft a-stem reducible)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	obec	obci	obcě
genitive	obcě	obcú	obcí
dative	obci	obcěma	obciem
accusative	obcu	obci	obcě
vocative	obce	obci	obcě
locative	obci	obcú	obcích
instrumental	obcú	obcěma	obcěmi

This table shows the most common forms around the 13th century.
See also Appendix:Old Czech nouns and Appendix:Old Czech pronunciation.

Declension of obec (i-stem reducible)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	obec	obci	obci
genitive	obci	obcú	obcí
dative	obci	obecma	obcem
accusative	obec	obci	obci
vocative	obci	obci	obci
locative	obci	obcú	obcech
instrumental	obcú	obecma	obecmi

This table shows the most common forms around the 13th century.
See also Appendix:Old Czech nouns and Appendix:Old Czech pronunciation.

Descendants

• Czech: obec
• → Old Polish: obec
  • Polish: obec

References

• Jan Gebauer (1903–1916) “obec”, in Slovník staročeský (in Czech), Prague: Česká grafická společnost "unie", Česká akademie císaře Františka Josefa pro vědy, slovesnost a umění

Old Polish

Etymology

Borrowed from Old Czech obec. Doublet of obiec, an inherited form. First attested in 1439.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (10^th–15^th CE) /ɔbɛt͡s/
• IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /ɔbɛt͡s/

Noun

obec f

1. a vestigial institution of land law consisting in appointing in customary cases, e.g. when nobility is reprimanded, a group of witnesses with an unblemished reputation, long settled in a given area

   Synonym: obiec

   • 1878-1889 [1439], Archiwum Komisji Historycznej‎^[1], volume III, page 343:

     Nobilis Andreas produxit... duos nobiles... post patrem, item produxit nobilem Petrum... et Martinum... post matrem, item produxit duos tercios... de communibus al. s obcze... Iurauerunt primi et sequentes..., quod... Andreas... est nobilis

     [Nobilis Andreas produxit... duos nobiles... post patrem, item produxit nobilem Petrum... et Martinum... post matrem, item produxit duos tercios... de communibus al. z obce... Iurauerunt primi et sequentes..., quod... Andreas... est nobilis]

Descendants

• Polish: obec

References

• Bańkowski, Andrzej (2000) “obec”, in Etymologiczny słownik języka polskiego [Etymological Dictionary of the Polish Language] (in Polish)
• B. Sieradzka-Baziur, editor (2011–2015), “obec”, in Słownik pojęciowy języka staropolskiego [Conceptual Dictionary of Old Polish] (in Polish), Kraków: IJP PAN, →ISBN

Old Slovak

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *obьťь.

Noun

obec f

1. a trade, labour, interest, religious or animal community, society
2. the common people (the lower social classe)
3. broader committee of town, village or guild self-government; elected board of directors
4. territorial area of urban or village self-government
5. a village (the smallest economic-administrative unit)
6. empire, state
7. common property (which belongs to all)
8. the whole

Derived terms

adjectives

• obecný

 

Related terms

nouns

• obecenstvo n

 

Descendants

• Slovak: obec

References

• Majtán, Milan et al., editors (1991–2008), “obec”, in Historický slovník slovenského jazyka [Historical Dictionary of the Slovak Language] (in Slovak), volumes 1–7 (A – Ž), Bratislava: VEDA, →OCLC

Polish

Etymology

Inherited from Old Polish obec. Displaced and doublet of obiec, an inherited form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.bɛt͡s/
• (Middle Polish) IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.bɛt͡s/
• Rhymes: -ɔbɛt͡s
• Syllabification: o‧bec

Noun

obec f

1. (obsolete) community; group; gathering

   Synonym: (Middle Polish) obiec

Declension

Declension of obec

	singular	plural
nominative	obec	obcy
genitive	obcy	obcy
dative	obcy	obcom
accusative	obec	obcy
instrumental	obcą	obcami
locative	obcy	obcach
vocative	obcy	obcy

Derived terms

preposition

• wobec

 

Related terms

adjecetive

• obecny

 

adverb

• obecnie

 

noun

• obecność

 

Further reading

• Maria Renata Mayenowa, Stanisław Rospond, Witold Taszycki, Stefan Hrabec, Władysław Kuraszkiewicz (2010-2023) “obec, obiec”, in Słownik Polszczyzny XVI Wieku [A Dictionary of 16th Century Polish]
• Samuel Bogumił Linde (1807–1814) “obec”, in Słownik języka polskiego‎^[2]
• Aleksander Zdanowicz (1861) “obec”, in Słownik języka polskiego, Wilno 1861‎^[3]
• J. Karłowicz, A. Kryński, W. Niedźwiedzki, editors (1904), “obec”, in Słownik języka polskiego‎^[4] (in Polish), volume 3, Warsaw, page 447

Slovak

Etymology

Inherited from Old Slovak obec.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈɔbet͡s]

Noun

obec f

1. municipality

Declension

Declension of obec

	singular	plural
nominative	obec	obce
genitive	obce	obcí
dative	obci	obciam
accusative	obec	obce
locative	obci	obciach
instrumental	obcou	obcami

Derived terms

adjectives

• obecný

 

nouns

• obecenstvo n

 

Further reading

• “obec”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2024