Etymologically
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око

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Forms

око (oko) n, s-stem, Glagolitic ⱁⰽⱁ[1] Genitive очесе or ока, plural очеса, dual очи (an i-stem form).[2][3][1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Slavic *oko (“eye”), a word of all the Slavic languages, an s-stem neuter with o-stem forms beside it and an i-stem dual.[2][4][1][5] The same word is Russian око (óko) (archaic and poetic), Bulgarian око (okó), Serbo-Croatian ȍko, Slovene okọ̑, Czech oko, Polish oko and Upper Sorbian woko.[2][4] In many of them the plural has taken figurative senses such as loop, mesh of a net, bud, round hole or spring.[2]

It goes back through Proto-Balto-Slavic *ak- to Proto-Indo-European *h₃ókʷs (“eye”).[1][4] ESJS takes as the oldest form a root noun, kept in Ancient Greek ὤψ (ṓps, “eye, face”), and in dual forms of which the Slavic dual and Lithuanian akì are the most archaic.[2][6] Cognates are akìs (“eye”), Latvian acs, Old Prussian ackis (“eyes”), Ancient Greek ὄσσε (ósse, “the two eyes”), Latin oculus and Gothic 𐌰𐌿𐌲𐍉 (augō), whose n-stem was probably reshaped after the word for “ear”.[2][4][5] The Slavic s-stem is isolated, but its s may be the same suffix as in the Sanskrit word for “eye”.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Gospels око translates Ancient Greek ὀφθαλμός (ophthalmós, “eye”): свѣтильникъ тѣлоу естъ око “the lamp of the body is the eye” (Mt 6, 22 Zogr Mar As Sav Ostr).[7][3] In the parable of the mote and the beam the manuscripts mix the stems: ꙇз очесе твоего in the Zographensis and the Marianus, изъ ока in the Assemanianus (Mt 7, 5).[7]

Semantic evolution

Figuratively the word means sight or gaze, and it renders Ancient Greek ὄμμα (ómma), Ancient Greek ὄψις (ópsis), Ancient Greek βλέμμα (blémma) and, in the Codex Suprasliensis, Ancient Greek βλέφαρον (blépharon, “eyelid”).[7][3][7] ESJS records the phrases прѣдъ очима “in appearance”, своима очима “with one's own eyes” and мьгновениѥ ока “a moment, the twinkling of an eye”.[2] Съ ѥдинѣмь окомь renders Ancient Greek μονόφθαλμος (monóphthalmos, “one-eyed”).[3]

Later Church Slavonic used очи also for the face (Ez 23, 40), as Dyachenko notes.[8] In Russian око is now archaic and poetic, the ordinary word being Russian глаз (glaz).[2][4]

Timeline

  • End of the 9th – beginning of the 10th century – око renders ὀφθαλμός and ὄμμα in the Euchologium Sinaiticum.[9]
  • 14th century – the Serbian Athonite translation of Gregory of Nyssa uses it for ὀφθαλμός.[9]
  • 1882–1885 – Giltebrandt lists every New Testament use of the word in Church Slavonic.[10]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (anatomy) eye; for ὀφθαλμός, ὄμμα.[7][3][1]
  2. sight, vision, gaze; for ὄψις, βλέμμα.[7][1][2]
  3. An eyelid; for βλέφαρον.[7]

Word family

  • безочьство
  • безоковати
  • мъногоочитъ
  • очивисть
  • очесьнъ

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Havlová, Eva; Erhart, Adolf; Janyšková, Ilona (eds.) (1989–2022), Etymologický slovník jazyka staroslověnského, 21 fascicles, Praha: Academia / Brno: Tribun EU, p. 579
  3. ^ a b c d e 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
  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, p. 365
  5. ^ a b Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka, transl. and suppl. by O. N. Trubačev, 4 vols., Moskva: Progress, p. 3, 128–129
  6. ^ Sadnik, Linda; Aitzetmüller, Rudolf (1955), Handwörterbuch zu den altkirchenslavischen Texten, Heidelberg: Winter / 's-Gravenhage: Mouton, p. 277
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Kurz, Josef; Hauptová, Zoe (eds.) (1958–1997), Slovník jazyka staroslověnského / Lexicon linguae palaeoslovenicae, 4 vols. + supplements, Praha: Academia; digital ed. gorazd.org
  8. ^ D'jačenko, Grigorij (1899), Polnyj cerkovno-slavjanskij slovar', Moskva
  9. ^ a b SlaVaComp Metaglossar Griechisch–Kirchenslavisch, Universität Freiburg, slavistik-portal.de
  10. ^ Gil'tebrandt, P. A. (1882–1885), Spravočnyj i ob''jasnitel'nyj slovar' k Novomu Zavetu, 6 vols., Sankt-Peterburg