Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/korvajь

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

Either from *korva (“cow”) +‎ *-jь or less likely from Pre-Slavic *korvъ (“curved”) +‎ *-ajь, effectively cognate with Latin curvus. The lemma is found mainly throughout East and South Slavic. West Slavic only employs the synonym Proto-Slavic *kolačь.

The etymology from *korva is based on the assumption that kravais are given to the bride during wedding as a symbol of fertility (associated with cows).

Noun

*korvajь m

1. ritual bread (usually circular)

   Synonyms: *kolačь, *pogača

2. loaf

Declension

Declension of *korvajь (soft o-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*korvajь	*korvaja	*korvaji
genitive	*korvaja	*korvaju	*korvajь
dative	*korvaju	*korvajema	*korvajemъ
accusative	*korvajь	*korvaja	*korvaję̇
instrumental	*korvajьmь, *korvajemь*	*korvajema	*korvaji
locative	*korvaji	*korvaju	*korvajixъ
vocative	*korvaju	*korvaja	*korvaji

^* -ьmь in North Slavic, -emь in South Slavic.

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: короваи (korovai)
    • Old Ruthenian: корова́й (korováj)
      • Ukrainian: корова́й (korováj)
        • → Polish: korowaj
    • Russian: карава́й (karaváj)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic: краваи (kravai)
  • Bulgarian: крава́й (kraváj)
  • Macedonian: кравај (kravaj)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: кра̀ва̄ј

    Latin script: kràvāj

  • Slovene: kravȃj, krávaj
• West Slavic:
  • Slovak: krajec

Further reading

• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1984), “*korvajь”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), numbers 11 (*konьcь – *kotьna(ja)), Moscow: Nauka, page 112
• Georgiev, Vladimir I., editor (1979), “кравай”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 2 (и – крепя̀), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Pubg. House, page 701