Loanwords in Serbian

Most Serbian words are of native Slavic lexical stock, tracing back to the Proto-Slavic language. There are many loanwords from different languages, reflecting cultural interaction throughout history. Notable loanwords were borrowed from Greek, Latin, Italian, Turkish, Hungarian, Russian, and German.

Overview

It is estimated that there are 900–1,200 Greek,[1] 88–188 German,[2] and an uncertain high number of Turkish loanwords[3] in modern Serbian.

History

Proto-Slavic

Main article: Proto-Slavic

Ancient Greek words in Proto-Slavic are identified through phonetic features, some related to Greek phonetic history, others possibly Scythian-Sarmatian or Gothic mediations.[4] Ancient Greek, non-mediated words are korablja (ark), koliba (cottage, hut), and supposedly trem (porch); Scythian mediations are luk (onion), haluga (fence), koš (basket), talog (dregs), kurva (whore); supposedly Gothic mediations are crkva (church) and daska (plank).[5] There exists loanwords in Proto-Slavic from non-Indo-European languages. Among Turanian (Ural-Altaic) lexemes, estimated to have been adopted between the 3rd and 7th century, surviving into modern Serbian are čaša (cup), knjiga (book), kovčeg (chest), krčag (pitcher), sablja (sabre).[6] Adoptions from Avaric in the 6th–7th centuries are the titles ban and župan, and klobuk (a type of hat).[7] South Slavic was also influenced by Bulgar since their arrival in the eastern Balkans in the 7th century, e.g. beleg (landmark), beočug (shackle), bubreg (kidney), pašenog (co-brother-in-law), tojaga (bludgeon).[8]

Old Serbian

The South Slavic languages were greatly influenced by Greek beginning in the Early Middle Ages, through translation of Byzantine works, leaving religious, philosophical and psychological terms.[9] Late medieval speech had very few loanwords, rather replacing Greek words with calques for linguistical purity.[9] German linguist Vasmer (1944) recorded 1,000 Greek words in Serbian, most of which were addressed in the Old Serbian form.[10] Today, it is estimated that 900–1,200 Grecisms (grecizmi) exist in Serbian, more than 400 being in the church-religious section.[1] In the economical section, apart from Greek, many words in Old Serbian were Romance.[9] In mining, the majority of words were Germanic, arriving with Saxons.[9]

Modern history

The Ottoman conquest began a linguistical contact between Turkish and South Slavic; Turkish influence grew stronger after the 15th century.[3] Besides Turkish loanwords, also many Arabic (such as alat, "tool", sat, "time, clock") and Persian (čarape, "socks", šećer, "sugar") words entered via Turkish, called "Orientalisms" (orijentalizmi).[3] Also, many Greek words entered via Turkish.[3] Words for hitherto unknown sciences, businesses, industries, technologies and professions were brought by the Ottoman Empire.[3] Christian villagers brought urban vocabulary from their travels to Islamic culture cities.[11] Many Turkish loanwords are no longer considered loanwords.[12]

Contemporary history

Foreign loanwords are becoming more frequent in sports terminology.[13]

Comparison with other Serbo-Croatian variants

The differences between Serbian and Croatian is mainly reflected in loanwords.[14] Bosnian has the most Turkish loanwords of all Serbo-Croatian variants.[3]

Purism

Serbo-Croatian vocabulary is of mixed origin, with words borrowed from Greek, Latin, Italian, Turkish, Hungarian, and more recently Russian, Czech and German. Most loanwords have entered Serbian without resistance, while on the other hand in Croatian, linguistic purism was adopted as a policy during Austria-Hungary (against presumed Germanization) and later in Yugoslavia (against presumed Serbian domination). In Croatia, the term "Serbisms" is used for characteristically Serbian words,[15] unwanted during World War II and the Yugoslav wars, many of which have been replaced by neologisms.[16]

List

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
  • alas, "river fisherman", from Hungarian
  • alat, "tools", from Turkish
  • ašov, "shovel, spade", from Hungarian
  • avlija, "yard", from Greek via Turkish
  • baksuz, "bad luck", from Turkish
  • bakšiš, "tip", from Turkish
  • barut, "gunpowder", from Turkish
  • baš, "very", "just, right", from Turkish
  • biber, "pepper", from Greek via Turkish
  • bitanga, "rascal, rogue", from Hungarian bitang
  • brak, "marriage", from Russian
  • bubreg, "kidney", from Turkish böbrek
  • budala, "fool", from Turkish
  • bumbar, "bumblebee", from Turkish
  • bunar, "water well", from Turkish
  • bunda, "fur coat", from Hungarian
  • burazer, "bro", from Turkish
  • burma, "wedding ring", from Turkish
  • bre, interjection, from Turkish or Greek
  • čak, "even" (adv), "albeit", from Turkish
  • čamac, "small boat", from Turkish
  • ćao, greeting, from Italian ciao
  • časopis, "magazine", from Czech
  • ćelav, "bald", from Turkish kel
  • ćevapi, a grilled meat dish, from Turkish kebab
  • čelik, "steel", from Turkish çelik
  • cipele, "shoes", from Hungarian cipellő
  • čizma, "boot", from Turkish çizme
  • čoban, "shepherd", from Turkish çoban
  • ćorav, "blind", from Turkish kör
  • čorba, "soup", from Turkish çorba
  • crkva, "church", from Greek kyriakón
  • čudovište, "monster", from Russian
  • ćufte, "meatballs", from Turkish
  • ćuprija, "bridge", from Greek via Turkish
  • cvekla, "beet", from Greek
  • daska, "plank", from Greek
  • drum, "road", from Greek drómos
  • đak, "student, pupil", from Greek diákos
  • đakon, "deacon", from Greek diákonos
  • đubre, "garbage", from Greek kópros via Turkish
  • episkop, "bishop", from Greek épískopos
  • guma, "rubber", from Greek kómmi
  • hartija, "paper", from Greek chartí
  • hiljada, "a thousand", from Greek khiliás
  • jeftin, "inexpensive, cheap", from Greek
  • jok, "no", from Ottoman Turkish yok colloquial
  • kada, "bathtub", from Greek kádos
  • kamata, "interest", from Greek kámatos
  • karanfil, "carnation", from Greek via Turkish
  • kasarna, "barracks", from French caserne
  • kesten, "chestnut", from Greek kástana via Turkish
  • klisura, "gorge", from Greek kleisoúra
  • koliba, "cottage", from Greek
  • koljivo, "wheat", from Greek
  • komad, "piece, parcel", from Greek kommátion
  • korablja, "ark", from Greek
  • koš, "basket", from Greek
  • kravata, "necktie", from French cravate
  • krevet, "bed", from Greek kreváti via Turkish
  • kutija, "box", from Greek koutí
  • kurva, "whore", from Greek
  • lapsus, "lapse", from Latin
  • ličnost, "individual, personality", from Russian
  • livada, "meadow", from Greek livádi
  • lopov, "thief", from Hungarian
  • luk, "onion", from Ancient Greek
  • majstor, "master, repairman", from German meister
  • miris, "smell", from Greek mýron
  • nafta, "petroleum", from Greek náphtha
  • nagrada, "reward, prize", from Russian
  • pantalone, "trousers", from Italian
  • patos, "floor", from Greek pátos
  • peškir, "towel", from Turkish
  • pita, "pie", from Greek píta
  • podrum, "basement", from Turkish
  • pop, "priest", from Greek papás
  • putir, "chalice", from Greek potḗr
  • rovit, "weak", from Greek
  • sidro, "anchor", from Greek sídiros
  • šnajder, "tailor", from German schneider
  • soba, "room", from Hungarian
  • somun, "loaf", from Greek via Turkish
  • stanovništvo, "population", from Czech
  • sunđer, "sponge", from Greek via Turkish
  • talas, "wind wave", from Greek thálassa
  • tiganj, "pan, skillet", from Greek tigáni
  • trpeza, "table", from Greek
  • usled, "due to", from Russian
  • varoš, "town, borough", from Hungarian

References

  1. 1 2 Vlajić-Popović 2009, p. 387.
  2. ↑ Alanović 2014, p. 118.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Nomachi 2015, p. 48.
  4. ↑ Vlajić-Popović 2015, p. 156.
  5. ↑ Vlajić-Popović 2015, p. 157.
  6. ↑ Radić 2015, p. 134.
  7. ↑ Radić 2015, pp. 134–135.
  8. ↑ Radić 2015, p. 135.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Ivić 1995.
  10. ↑ Vlajić-Popović 2009, p. 379.
  11. ↑ Nomachi 2015, pp. 48–49.
  12. ↑ Nomachi 2015, p. 49.
  13. ↑ Milić, Mira; Sokić, Radmila (1998). "Reči stranog porekla u sportskoj terminologiji u srpskom jeziku". Facta universitatis. University of Novi Sad. 1 (5).
  14. ↑ Mønnesland 1973, p. 197.
  15. ↑ Lečić 2014.
  16. ↑ Klajn 2008.

Sources

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