Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/aje

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

From Proto-Balto-Slavic *ṓja, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ōwyóm (“egg”).

Noun

*ȃje or *ājè n

1. egg (amniote embryo with protective shell)

Declension

Per Derksen, Dybo, Jasanoff, Nikolaev, Olander, Zamyatina:

Declension of *ȃje (soft o-stem, accent paradigm c)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*ȃje	*ȃji	*ajà
genitive	*ȃja	*ajù	*ãjь
dative	*ȃju	*ajemà	*ajémъ
accusative	*ȃje	*ȃji	*ajà
instrumental	*ȃjьmь, *ȃjemь*	*ajemà	*ají
locative	*ȃji	*ajù	*ajíxъ
vocative	*ȃje	*ȃji	*ajà

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

Per Snoj:

Declension of *ājè (soft o-stem, accent paradigm b)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*ājè	*ãji	*ãja
genitive	*ājà	*aju	*ãjь
dative	*ājù	*ajema	*ãjemъ
accusative	*ājè	*ãji	*ãja
instrumental	*ājь̀mь, *ājèmь*	*ajema	*ãji
locative	*ājì	*aju	*ãjixъ
vocative	*ājè	*ãji	*ãja

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

Derived terms

• *ajьce, *ajьko (“egg”)
  • *ajьčice (diminutive)
  • *ajьčęstъ (“egg-like, egg-shaped”)
  • *ajьčьjь (“pertaining to egg”)
  • *ajьčьnъ (“egg-related”)
    • *ajьčьna (“eggness”)
    • *ajьčьnikъ (“egg product”)
    • *ajьčьnica (“egg dish”)
• *ajatъ, *ajitъ (“ovate”)
• *ajьnъ (“egg-related”)
  • *ajina (“eggshell”)
  • *ajьno (“amnion”)
  • *ajьnikъ (“egg product”)

See also

• *jьkra (“roe”) (anamniote embryo without protective shell)

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: аѥ (aje)
    • Ukrainian: я́йо (jájo), айо (ajo) (dialectal)
  • Old Novgorodian: аѥ (aje)
    • ⇒ Old Novgorodian: аѥсова m (ajesova, “carries the egg”) (vulgar)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic: аѥ (aje)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: ја́је

    Latin script: jáje

• West Slavic:
  • Polabian: joji
  • Polish: jajo; jaje (obsolete); ajo (babytalk)
    • Kashubian: jajo (rare)
  • Pomeranian:
    • Kashubian: jaje; jajé (“testes”)
    • Slovincian: jajê
  • Sorbian:
    • Upper Sorbian: jejo, wejo
    • Lower Sorbian: jajo

Further reading

• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1974), “*aje”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков (in Russian), numbers 1 (*a – *besědьlivъ), Moscow: Nauka, page 61