Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/ęga

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 1

From Proto-Balto-Slavic *inˀgāˀ (per Trubačev (ESSJa), probably deverbal), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂enǵʰ- (“to press, to tighten”). Cognate with Proto-Germanic *inkô (“ache”), *angazaz (“worry, grief, anxiety”) and akin to Latvian îgns (“surly, morose”), Lithuanian ìngas (“lazy, idle”).

Noun

*ęga f

1. sore, anguish (physical condition)
2. dread, terror (psychological condition)

   Synonym: *užasъ

Alternative forms

• *jędzà, *ęza (via progressive (third) palatalization)

Declension

Declension of *ęga (hard a-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*ęga	*ędzě	*ęgy
genitive	*ęgy	*ęgu	*ęgъ
dative	*ędzě	*ęgama	*ęgamъ
accusative	*ęgǫ	*ędzě	*ęgy
instrumental	*ęgojǫ, *ęgǫ**	*ęgama	*ęgami
locative	*ędzě	*ęgu	*ęgasъ, *ęgaxъ*
vocative	*ęgo	*ędzě	*ęgy

^* -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

• *ęgati (“to force, to compel, to come quickly”)
• *ęziti (causative, probably post-Common Slavic)
• *ęzavъ, *ęzivъ (“plagued, infected”)
• *ęzьnъ (“painful”) (probably post-Common Slavic)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: ѧзѧ (jęzę), ꙗзѧ (jazę, “ulcer”)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Old Cyrillic script: ѧꙃа (ędza)

    Glagolitic script: ⱔⰷⰰ (ędza)

  • Bulgarian: еза́ (ezá), енза́ (enzá) (dialectal)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: је́за

    Latin script: jéza

  • Slovene: jéza (tonal orthography)

Further reading

• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1979), “*ęga / *ęza”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), numbers 6 (*e – *golva), Moscow: Nauka, page 68
• Georgiev, Vladimir I., editor (1971), “еза¹”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 1 (А – З), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 481

Etymology 2

Likely identical to Etymology 1, with South Slavic descendants borrowing the pronunciation of East Slavic (as both lack the effects of third palatalization).

Fringe hypotheses proposed as alternatives:

• Iljinsky (ИОРЯС): Of expressive origin, akin to dial. Russian яга́ть (jagátʹ), яжи́ть (jažítʹ, “to shriek, to make noise”). Doubted by Vasmer, Sobolevsky.
• Berneker: Reflecting instead *jěga (possibly akin to Latin aeger (“sick”) or the same as Proto-Balto-Slavic *jḗˀgāˀ (“capacity, power”)) and further related to Russian егоза́ (jegozá, “bundle of nerves”), я́глый (jáglyj, “vigorous”). Formally incompatible with the West Slavic descendants. Doubted by Vasmer.

Noun

*ęga f

1. (Slavic mythology) personification of calamity, death, diseases (typically depicted as a hex or an evil old woman)

Usage notes

More often referred to as *baba ęga ~ *ędzi baba (see there for further descendants). The term is nonetheless used on its own in West Slavic and Ukrainian with the more general meaning “evil old woman” or “witch, hex”.

Declension

Declension of *ęga (hard a-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*ęga	*ędzě	*ęgy
genitive	*ęgy	*ęgu	*ęgъ
dative	*ędzě	*ęgama	*ęgamъ
accusative	*ęgǫ	*ędzě	*ęgy
instrumental	*ęgojǫ, *ęgǫ**	*ęgama	*ęgami
locative	*ędzě	*ęgu	*ęgasъ, *ęgaxъ*
vocative	*ęgo	*ędzě	*ęgy

^* -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).

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • ⇒ Russian: яга́я (jagája, “evil spirit”) (in mythology)
  • Ukrainian: я́зя (jázja, “witch”)
• West Slavic:
  • Old Czech: jězě
    • Czech: jezinka (“forest witch”); jaza (“evil old lady”) (dialectal)
  • Kashubian: jidza, jãdza, jãza
  • Polish: jędza (“hex, witch”)
  • ⇒ Silesian: jyndzōna

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “яга́”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Melnychuk, O. S., editor (2012), “язя”, in Етимологічний словник української мови [Etymological Dictionary of the Ukrainian Language] (in Ukrainian), volume 6 (У – Я), Kyiv: Naukova Dumka, →ISBN, page 539