vьdovà

vьdovà Grammatical information: f. ā Accent paradigm: b Proto-Slavic meaning: `widow'

Old Church Slavic:

vъdova `widow' [f ā];

vъdovica `widow' [f jā] \{1\}

Russian:

vdová `widow' [f ā], vdovú [Accs]

Czech:

vdova `widow' [f ā]

Slovak:

vdova `widow' [f ā]

Polish:

wdowa `widow' [f ā]

Serbo-Croatian:

udòvica `widow' [f jā];

Čak. udovȉca (Vrgada, Orbanići) `widow' [f jā]

Slovene:

vdọ̑va `widow' [f ā]

Bulgarian:

vdovíca `widow' [f jā]

Proto-Balto-Slavic reconstruction: u̯ideuH

Old Prussian:

widdewū `widow'

Indo-European reconstruction: h₁uidʰ-(e)uh₂-

Comments: According to Kortlandt (1997: 161), this etymon continues a hysterodynamic uh₂-stem. In his view, the e-grade of the Asg. must have spread to the Nsg at an early stage of Balto-Slavic, i.e. before the development *eu > *ou before a vowel because otherwise the medial front vowel of OPr. widdewū is hard to explain.

Other cognates:

Skt. vidhávā- (RV+) `widow' [f];

Gk. ἠίθεος `unmarried youth'

;

Lat. uidua `widow' [f];

OIr. fedb `widow' [f];

Go. widuwo `widow' [f]

Notes:

\{1\} Variants with ь are rare in both vъdova (1 : 12) and its more frequent synonym vъdovica (3 : 35).