Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/zveno

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

Alternative reconstructions

• *zъveno (Smoczyński)

Etymology

Dubious. At a surface level, resembles an instrumental noun of hypothetical *zuti ~ *zъvati +‎ *-eno, however, no attested root with this structure correlates semantically with *zveno. Proposed alternatives within the scholarly discourse include:

• Per Mikkola: Metathesis of an earlier *zenvo (or perhaps *znevo) from Proto-Indo-European *ǵónu ~ *ǵnéws (“knee”).
• Per Vaillant, Smoczyński: Perhaps a substantivation of a relic adjective *zy (“fish”) (unattested) +‎ *-enъ, near cognate with Lithuanian žuvìnis (“of fish”), žvýnė (“fish dish”), Latvian zviņi (“of fish”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰǵʰu-).

Noun

*zvenò n

1. junction, nexus, link (East, South Slavic)
2. wheel rim (West Slavic)

Inflection

Declension of *zvenò (hard o-stem, accent paradigm b)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*zvenò	*zvèně	*zvenà
genitive	*zvenà	*zvenù	*zvènъ
dative	*zvenù	*zvenòma	*zvenòmъ
accusative	*zvenò	*zvèně	*zvenà
instrumental	*zvenъ̀mь, *zvenòmь*	*zvenòma	*zvèny
locative	*zveně̀	*zvenù	*zvèněxъ
vocative	*zvenò	*zvèně	*zvenà

^* -ъmь in North Slavic, -omь in South Slavic.

In Polabian:

Declension of *zveno (s-stem, accent paradigm b)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*zveno	*zvenèsi	*zvenèsā
genitive	*zvenèse	*zvenèsu	*zvenèsъ
dative	*zvenèsi	*zvenèsьma	*zvenèsьmъ
accusative	*zveno	*zvenèsi	*zvenèsā
instrumental	*zvenèsьmь	*zvenèsьma	*zvenèsȳ
locative	*zvenèse	*zvenèsu	*zvenèsьxъ
vocative	*zveno	*zvenèsi	*zvenèsā

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Russian: звено́ (zvenó)
  • Ukrainian: звено́ (zvenó)
• South Slavic:
  • Bulgarian: звено́ (zvenó) (possibly a Russian borrowing)
• West Slavic:
  • Polabian: zvenü
  • Old Polish: zwono
    • Polish: dzwono, dzwonko (pl)
  • Sorbian:

    Lower Sorbian: zwjeno

    Upper Sorbian: zwjeno

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “звено”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Georgiev, Vladimir I., editor (1971), “звено”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volumes 1 (А – З), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 622
• “žuvis”, in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė [Lithuanian etymological dictionary database], 2007–2012