kněžie

Old Czech

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *kъnęžьja.

Pronunciation

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

Noun

kněžie f (collective)

1. princes

   Snidu sě vyšehrazská kněžie.

   (please add an English translation of this usage example)

2. priests

Usage notes

• Often used instead of regular plural of kněz. Compare bratřie.
• The attributes are usually feminine singular, but verbs feminine plural. Compare the evolution of neuter plural which is thought to have originated in the feminine gender as well.
• It was later used with plural and dual suffixes and respective agreement. In modern Czech, it's completely grammatically plural masculine.

Declension

Declension of kněžie (sg-only soft a-stem)

	singular
nominative	kněžie
genitive	kněžie
dative	kněží
accusative	kněžú
vocative	kněžie
locative	kněží
instrumental	kněžú

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

Descendants

• Czech: kněží

Further reading

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