Etymologically
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благъ

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Forms

благъ (blagŭ)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Slavic *bolgъ (“good”).[2][3][1][4] The same word is Bulgarian благ (blag, “good, gentle, sweet”), Serbo-Croatian blȃg, Slovene blȃg (“noble, benevolent”), Czech blahý (“blessed, blissful”) and Polish błogi (“blissful, happy”): South Slavic has the senses good, mild and kind, West Slavic blessed and happy, while East Slavic has native forms only in adverbs such as Russian болого (bólogo, “well”).[2][3][5]

Its further origin is unclear, and ESJS weighs three explanations.[2] Trautmann derived it from the root Proto-Indo-European *bʰel- (“to shine”), assuming a shift from shining to dear and good, which makes it a relative of Latin fulgeō (“to flash”) and Ancient Greek φλέγω (phlégō, “to burn”).[2][5] Vasmer and Sadnik–Aitzetmüller allow this, but find the meaning a difficulty.[5][6][2] Fick compared Avestan words for welcoming and for a religious rite, a view Berneker and Vasmer accept, while Sadnik and Aitzetmüller reject it because the r of the Iranian words is original.[2][5][6] Berneker also thought of a link with the comparative болии, greater, from a root meaning strong;[2][6][5] Vaillant held this for certain and Sadnik and Aitzetmüller find it the likeliest, whereas Vasmer rejects it on phonetic grounds.[2][6][5] ESJS also rejects Němec's idea of a back-formation from блажити.[2]

Some scholars reconstruct a separate *blagъ (“bad, weak”) for words such as Polish błahy (“trifling”), but ESJS derives these, and Lithuanian blogas (“bad”), from a negative sense the Church Slavonic word took in Russian.[2][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Gospel manuscripts use благъ for Ancient Greek ἀγαθός (agathós, “good”), as in ѣко слъньце свое сиѣетъ на зълꙑ ꙇ благꙑ “for he makes his sun rise on the evil and the good” (Mt 5, 45 Zogr Mar).[7][8] The Greek–OCS index of the SJS counts it for ἀγαθός 18 times in the Codex Zographensis, 21 in the Marianus, 17 in the Assemanianus, 14 in the Savvina kniga and 13 in the Psalterium Sinaiticum.[8]

Semantic evolution

The canonical texts use the adjective for good and right (добромь сръдьцемь ꙇ благомь “with a good and honest heart”, L 8, 15), for holy, in дастъ дꙋхъ благъ for πνεῦμα ἅγιον (L 11, 13), where the Marianus has свѧтъ, for kind and gracious, for beneficial and useful, for pleasant, as in ꙇго мое благо “my yoke is easy” (Mt 11, 30), and for excellent.[8][7] Its neuter благо became a noun, “the good, property”, and the interjection благоже is a calque of Ancient Greek εὖγε (eûge).[2] As the first part of compounds благо- usually renders Ancient Greek εὐ- (eu-), as in благословити for Ancient Greek εὐλογέω (eulogéō) and благодарити for Ancient Greek εὐχαριστέω (eukharistéō), and such compounds spread from Church Slavonic into the South and East Slavic languages and into Romanian.[2]

Russian благой (blagój) and благо (blágo) are Church Slavonic loans beside the native болого.[5] In Old Russian the word also took a negative sense, which ESJS explains as a popular reading of the epithet благꙑи the church gave to the holy fools, whose conduct was often hard to bear, and the word then passed in this sense into Belarusian, Ukrainian and Polish.[2] Miklosich records благъ дьнь for a feast day in a Glagolitic text, beside Slovene and Croatian blagdan.[9] In Bulgarian благо came to mean food forbidden in Lent.[5] Giltebrandt's dictionary of the Church Slavonic New Testament glosses it as good, and for χρηστός also as light.[10]

Timeline

  • End of the 9th – beginning of the 10th century – the Euchologium Sinaiticum uses благъ for ἀγαθός, καλός, χρηστός and εὐσεβής.[11]
  • 1882–1885 – Giltebrandt lists the New Testament uses of the word in Church Slavonic.[10]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. good, right; for ἀγαθός, καλός, εὐσεβής.[8][7][1]
  2. holy; for ἅγιος.[8]
  3. kind, gracious, benevolent; for χρηστός, ἄφθονος.[8][12]
  4. beneficial, useful; for εὔχρηστος.[8]
  5. pleasant, easy to bear; for χρηστός, ἀστεῖος.[8][7][1]
  6. excellent, splendid; for τίμιος.[8]

Word family

  • благо
  • благоволити
  • благовольнъ
  • благоврѣменьнъ
  • благовъгодьнъ
  • благовѣрие
  • благовѣрьнъ
  • благовѣствовати
  • благовѣстити
  • благовѣщати
  • благодавьць
  • благодарие
  • благодарити
  • благодатель
  • благодати
  • Russian благой (blagój)
  • Russian болого (bólogo)

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Havlová, Eva; Erhart, Adolf; Janyšková, Ilona (eds.) (1989–2022), Etymologický slovník jazyka staroslověnského, 21 fascicles, Praha: Academia / Brno: Tribun EU, p. 64–65
  3. ^ a b Derksen, Rick (2008), Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 4, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 51
  4. ^ Trubačev, Oleg N.; Žuravlev, Anatolij F.; Varbot, Žanna Ž. (eds.) (1974–2021), Ètimologičeskij slovar' slavjanskix jazykov: praslavjanskij leksičeskij fond, vols. 1–42, Moskva: Nauka, p. 2, 174
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka, transl. and suppl. by O. N. Trubačev, 4 vols., Moskva: Progress, p. 1, 188
  6. ^ a b c d Sadnik, Linda; Aitzetmüller, Rudolf (1955), Handwörterbuch zu den altkirchenslavischen Texten, Heidelberg: Winter / 's-Gravenhage: Mouton, p. 215
  7. ^ a b c d Slovník nejstarších staroslověnských památek (digital ed., Gorazd, Slovanský ústav AV ČR, gorazd.org); cf. Cejtlin, R. M.; Večerka, R.; Blagova, É. (eds.) (1994), Staroslavjanskij slovar' (po rukopisjam X–XI vekov), Moskva: Russkij jazyk
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Kurz, Josef; Hauptová, Zoe (eds.) (1958–1997), Slovník jazyka staroslověnského / Lexicon linguae palaeoslovenicae, 4 vols. + supplements, Praha: Academia; digital ed. gorazd.org
  9. ^ Miklosich, Franz (1862–1865), Lexicon palaeoslovenico-graeco-latinum emendatum auctum, Vindobonae: Braumüller
  10. ^ a b Gil'tebrandt, P. A. (1882–1885), Spravočnyj i ob''jasnitel'nyj slovar' k Novomu Zavetu, 6 vols., Sankt-Peterburg
  11. ^ SlaVaComp Metaglossar Griechisch–Kirchenslavisch, Universität Freiburg, slavistik-portal.de
  12. ^ Sadnik, Linda; Aitzetmüller, Rudolf (1955), Handwörterbuch zu den altkirchenslavischen Texten, Heidelberg: Winter / 's-Gravenhage: Mouton