дъва

Forms

дъва (dŭva)^[1] Masculine дъва, feminine and neuter дъвѣ; genitive and locative дъвою, dative and instrumental дъвѣма.^[2][3][4] The weak jer is often lost or written ь: два, дьва.^[5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Slavic *dъva (“two”), with the feminine and neuter *dъvě, a word of all the Slavic languages.^[6][4][1] The same word is Russian два (dva), Bulgarian два (dva), Serbo-Croatian dvȃ, Slovene dvȃ, Czech dva, Polish dwa, Polabian dåvo and Upper Sorbian dwaj.^[6][4][7][8]

It comes through Proto-Balto-Slavic *duwō from the Indo-European dual Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁, with the feminine and neuter *dwoih₁.^[1][4][6] Cognates are Lithuanian dù (feminine dvì), Latvian divi, Old Prussian dwai, Ancient Greek δύο (dúo) and δύω (dúō), Latin duo, Gothic 𐍄𐍅𐌰𐌹 (twai), Old Irish dá and Albanian dy.^[6][4][7][8] The collective дъвои probably has an Indo-European base too, as Greek δοιοί (doioí) shows.^[6] ESJS also records Erhart's attempt to split the Indo-European form into two elements, as a relic of counting in pairs.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Gospels of the Codex Zographensis, the Codex Marianus and the Codex Assemanianus use it for Ancient Greek δύο (dúo): никъто же рабъ не можетъ дъвѣма господьма работати “no servant can serve two masters” (Mt 6, 24).^[5][3] SNSP counts more than 200 instances in the oldest manuscripts.^[5]

Semantic evolution

Besides the plain number, the canonical texts use дъва for a pair, Ancient Greek ζεῦγος (zeûgos), as in дъва кагрьличишта “a pair of turtledoves” (L 2, 24).^[3][5] It builds the higher numerals: дъва на десѧте “twelve”, дъва десѧти “twenty”, дъвѣ сътѣ “two hundred” and дъвѣ тꙑсѫшти “two thousand”.^[3][5] Distributive по дъвѣма and дъва нъ дъва mean two by two (L 10, 1 and Mc 6, 7), and дъва дъва in Genesis (Gn 7, 9) copies the Greek δύο δύο, itself a word-for-word rendering of the Hebrew;^[3] дъва кратꙑ means twice, for δίς.^[3]

ESSJa records Old Russian and Russian Church Slavonic дъва and два from the Ostromir Gospel on.^[8] Later translations kept it: a Serbian text from the Rila Monastery renders δύο by дъва and by дъвои.^[9]

Timeline

• End of the 9th – beginning of the 10th century – the Euchologium Sinaiticum uses дъва in the numeral for δώδεκα, twelve.^[9]
• 14th century – the Athonite Serbian translation of Gregory of Nyssa uses it for δύο.^[9]
• Up to the early 15th century – a Serbian text from the Rila Monastery renders δύο by дъва and дъвои.^[9]

Meanings

Numeral

1. two; for δύο.^[3][5][1]
2. A pair, couple; for ζεῦγος.^[3][5]
3. In compound numerals: дъва на десѧте twelve, for δώδεκα;^[3][5] дъва десѧти twenty, for εἴκοσι.^[3][5]
4. (distributive) по дъвѣма, дъва нъ дъва: two by two, in twos; for ἀνὰ δύο, δύο δύο.^[3][5]
5. дъва кратꙑ: twice; for δίς.^[3]

Word family

• дъвои
• дъвашьдꙑ
• дъвократꙑ
• дъвоженьць

Related words

• оба
• Russian два (dva)

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ Swan, Oscar E. (2008), Old Church Slavic Glossary, Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh; digital ed. with N. H. Reimer, Old Church Slavonic Dictionary
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Kurz, Josef; Hauptová, Zoe (eds.) (1958–1997), Slovník jazyka staroslověnského / Lexicon linguae palaeoslovenicae, 4 vols. + supplements, Praha: Academia; digital ed. gorazd.org
4. ^ a b c d e Derksen, Rick (2008), Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 4, Leiden / Boston: Brill
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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
6. ^ a b c d e f Havlová, Eva; Erhart, Adolf; Janyšková, Ilona (eds.) (1989–2022), Etymologický slovník jazyka staroslověnského, 21 fascicles, Praha: Academia / Brno: Tribun EU
7. ^ a b Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka, transl. and suppl. by O. N. Trubačev, 4 vols., Moskva: Progress, p. 1, 486
8. ^ a b c 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. 5, 185
9. ^ a b c d SlaVaComp Metaglossar Griechisch–Kirchenslavisch, Universität Freiburg, slavistik-portal.de