Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/baba

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

*bàba i vъnùkъ (sense 1)

*bàby (sense 6)

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Balto-Slavic *bā́ˀbāˀ, from nursery language.

Noun

*bàba f

2. grandmother

   Synonyms: *babъka, *babica, *ova

3. old woman

   Synonyms: *babъka, *babica

   1. → (figuratively) various objects used for hammering in, inserting, plugging
   2. → (figuratively) various objects used as a base, support (like a backrest)
   3. → (figuratively) various objects used for linking, connecting, binding together
   4. → (figuratively) various small, worthless items
   5. → (figuratively) heap of hay, grain; sheaf
   6. → babka (a type of ceremonial bread)

      Synonyms: *babъka, *babica

   7. → (figuratively) names of various species of mushrooms
   8. → (possibly) great white pelican (any bird of the genus Pelecanus onocrotalus)
4. woman

   Synonyms: *babъka, *babica, *žena

5. midwife

   Synonyms: *babъka, *babica

6. sorceress, witch, hex

   Synonyms: *vědьma, *čarovьnica

   *baba ęga ― Baba Yaga

   *ęga baba ― Baba Yaga

   1. → (figuratively) names of various butterflies
   2. → (figuratively) names of various plants
8. (North Slavic, astronomy, in the plural) Pleiades (star cluster)

   Synonym: *babъky

Declension

Declension of *bàba (hard a-stem, accent paradigm a)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*bàba	*bàbě	*bàby
genitive	*bàby	*bàbu	*bàbъ
dative	*bàbě	*bàbama	*bàbamъ
accusative	*bàbǫ	*bàbě	*bàby
instrumental	*bàbojǫ, *bàbǭ**	*bàbama	*bàbamī
locative	*bàbě	*bàbu	*bàbasъ, *bàbaxъ*
vocative	*bàbo	*bàbě	*bàby

^* -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

nouns

• *babakъ m (“womanizer”)
• *babica f (hypocoristic)
• *babina f (“inheritance from grandmother”)
• *babiťь m (“womanizer”)
• *babizna f (“inheritance from grandmother”)
• *babьcь m
• *babьnikъ m
• *babura f
• *baburъ m
• *babuxa f (“old woman”)
• *babъka f (hypocoristic)
• *babъkъ m
• *babyka f
• *kudibaba f
• *prababa f (“great-grandmother”)

 

verbs

• *baběti impf (“to become an old woman”)
• *babiti impf (“to assist in childbirth”)

 

adjectives

• *babinъ (“pertaining to old woman”)
• *babьjь (“pertaining to old woman”)
• *babьskъ (“pertaining to old woman”)

 

Related terms

nouns

• *babuša f (“old woman”)
• *babušьka f (“granny”)

 

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: ба́ба (bába)
    • Old Ruthenian: ба́ба (bába)
      • Belarusian: ба́ба (bába)
      • Carpathian Rusyn: баба (baba)
      • Ukrainian: ба́ба (bába)
    • Russian: ба́ба (bába)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Old Cyrillic script: баба (baba)

    Glagolitic script: ⰱⰰⰱⰰ (baba)

  • Bulgarian: ба́ба (bába)
  • Macedonian: ба́ба (bába)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: ба̏ба

    Latin script: bȁba

    • Chakavian (Novi): bȁba (“midwife”)
    • Chakavian (Vrgada): bȁba (“grandmother, midwife”)
  • Slovene: bába (tonal orthography)
• West Slavic:
  • Old Czech: bába, baba
    • Czech: bába, baba
  • Polabian: babă, bobo, bobă
  • Old Polish: baba
    • Polish: baba
    • Silesian: baba
  • Pomeranian:
    • Kashubian: baba
    • Slovincian: baba
  • Slovak: baba
  • Sorbian:
    • Lower Sorbian: baba
    • Upper Sorbian: baba

• Non-Slavic:
  • → Aromanian: babã
  • → Greek: βαβά (vavá), βάβα (váva)
  • → Hungarian: bába
  • → Latgalian: baba, buoba
  • → Livvi: buabo
  • → Middle High German: bābe, bōbe
  • → Romanian: babă
  • → Yiddish: באָבע (bobe)
    • → English: bubbe

See also

Proto-Slavic family terms

*sěmьja, *rodina (“family”)	Male	Female
parent	*otъ, *otьcь (“father”) nursery: *tata	*mati (“mother”) nursery: *mama
sibling	*bratrъ (“brother”)	*sestra (“sister”)
child	*synъ (“son”)	*dъťi (“daughter”)
grandparent	– (“grandfather”) nursery: *dědъ; *nana	*ova (“grandmother”) nursery: *baba; *nena
grandchild	*vъnukъ (“grandson”)	*vъnuka (“granddaughter”)
stepparent	*otьčimъ (“stepfather”)	*maťexa (“stepmother”)
stepchild	*pastorъkъ (“stepson”)	*pastorъka (“stepdaughter”)
father's sibling	*strъjь (“paternal uncle”) nursery: *dada; *lola	– (“paternal aunt”) nursery: *teta; *lelja
mother's sibling	*ujь (“maternal uncle”) nursery: *dada; *lola	– (“maternal aunt”) nursery: *teta; *lelja
sibling's child	*netьjь (“nephew”)	*nestera (“niece”)
spouse	*mǫžь (“husband”)	*žena (“wife”)
parent of wife	*tьstь (“father-in-law (wife's father)”)	*tьšča (“mother-in-law (wife's mother)”)
parent of husband	*svekrъ (“father-in-law (husband's father)”)	*svekry (“mother-in-law (husband's father)”)
sibling of wife	*šurь (“brother-in-law (wife's brother)”)	*svěstь, *svьstь (“sister-in-law (wife's sister)”)
sibling of husband	*děverь (“brother-in-law (husband's brother)”)	*zъly (“sister-in-law (husband's sister)”)
spouse of child	*zętь (“son-in-law (daughter's husband)”)	*snъxa (“daughter-in-law (son's wife)”)
spouse of husband's brother	–	*ętry (“sister-in-law (husband's brother's wife)”)

Further reading

• “boba”, in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė [Lithuanian etymological dictionary database], 2007–2012
• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “баба”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress