Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/-yni

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

Resultant from the fossilization of the feminine agentive suffix *-ni (“one”) to v-stem *-y. In rare cases, the original v-stem noun has survived, e.g. *smoky (“fig”) +‎ *-ni → *smokyni (“fig fruit”).

Nominative singular *-yni (with a hard consonant), genitive *-ynję (with a soft consonant) reflects Proto-Indo-European proterokinetic *ʹ-ih₂, *-yéh₂-s, and is a cognate inflectional class as found in Sanskrit देवी (devī́, “goddess”) (genitive देव्या (devyāḥ)), Ancient Greek Μοῦσα (Moûsa, “Muse”) (genitive Μούσης (Moúsēs)), Gothic 𐌼𐌰𐍅𐌹 (mawi, “girl”) (genitive 𐌼𐌰𐌿𐌾𐍉𐍃 (maujōs)) and Lithuanian martì (“daughter in law”) (genitive marčiõs).

Already during the Balto-Slavic period these nouns almost completely merged with jā-stems, but kept the separate nominative singular ending. In Late Common Slavic this was leveled out, and already in Old Church Slavonic nominative singular is attested spelled with the soft consonant, following the rest of the paradigm.

Suffix

*-yni f

1. Denominal, forming feminine noun forms. Equivalent of English -ess.

   *bogъ (“god”) → *bogyni (“goddess”)

   *gospodъ (“lord, master”) → *gospodyni (“mistress”)

   *orbъ (“slave, servant”) → *orbyni (“female slave, maid”)

   *sǫsědь (“neighbor”) → *sǫsědyni (“female neighbor”)

2. Deadjectival, forming feminine nouns denoting a carrier of the specified property, state or condition.

   *prostъ (“simple, straight; free”) → *prostyni (“freedom, liberty”)

   *svętъ (“holy”) → *svętyni (“holiness, sacredness”)

   *bolgъ (“mild, gentle”) → *bolgyni (“prosperity, welfare”)

   *pustъ (“barren, empty”) → *pustyni (“wasteland”)

Declension

Declension of *-yni (ī-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*-yni	*-yňi	*-yňę̇
genitive	*-yňę̇	*-yňu	*-yňь
dative	*-yňi	*-yňama	*-yňamъ
accusative	*-yňǫ	*-yňi	*-yňę̇
instrumental	*-yňejǫ, *-yňǫ**	*-yňama	*-yňami
locative	*-yňi	*-yňu	*-yňasъ, *-yňaxъ*
vocative	*-yňe	*-yňi	*-yňę̇

^* -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

• *-ica (probably)

Proto-Slavic terms suffixed with *-yni

Related terms

• *-i m
• *-ninъ m
• *jьnъ (“other, someone else”) (pronoun)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: -ꙑни (-yni)
    • Belarusian: -іня (-inja), -ыня (-ynja)
    • Russian: -иня (-inja), -ыня (-ynja)
    • Ukrainian: -иня (-ynja)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Cyrillic: -ꙑн҄и (-ynʹi)

    Glagolitic: -ⱏⰹⱀⰻ (-yni)

  • Bulgarian: -иня (-inja)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: -иња

    Latin script: -inja

  • Slovene: -inja
• West Slavic:
  • Old Czech: -yni, -yně
    • Czech: -yně
  • Kashubian: -ëni
  • Old Polish: -yni
    • Polish: -ini, -yni
  • Old Slovak: -yňa
    • Pannonian Rusyn: -иня (-inja)
    • Slovak: -yňa

References

• Šekli, Matej (2012) “Besedotvorni pomeni samostalniških izpeljank v praslovanščini”, in Philological Studies‎^[1] (in Slovene), volume 10, number 1, Skopje, Perm, Ljubljana, Zagreb, pages 115–32
• Ranko Matasović (2008), Poredbenopovijesna gramatika hrvatskog jezika, Matica hrvatska: Zagreb, page 199f
• Eugeniusz Gòłąbk (2013), Wielki słownik polsko-kaszubski, Zrzeszenie Kaszubsko-Pomorskie: Gdańsk, page 136