съборъ

Forms

съборъ (sŭborŭ) m, o-stem^[1] Later manuscripts also write сборъ and зборъ.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Slavic *sъborъ (“meeting, gathering, assembly”), formed from *sъ(n)- and *borъ.^[1] Vasmer derives it from the verb "to gather, take", OCS бьрати.^[3] The same word is Russian сбор (sbor), Ukrainian збір (zbir), Serbo-Croatian zbȍr, Czech sbor and Polish zbór.^[1]

*bьrati is from Proto-Balto-Slavic *bírāˀtei and Proto-Indo-European *bʰéreti (“to be carrying”), from *bʰer-.^[1] Sadnik and Aitzetmüller give as cognates Ancient Greek φέρω (phérō, “to carry”) and Latin ferō (“to carry”).^[4]

In the sense of a church gathering the word follows Greek: Vasmer calls it in the end a calque of Ancient Greek συναγωγή (sunagōgḗ, “gathering, synagogue”),^[5] and Schumann counts its use for the Greek word in the sense "church", as a building and as an institution, as a semantic loan, the original sense being "assembly".^[6] From Church Slavonic the word passed into Russian собор (sobor, “council, cathedral”), which was in turn taken into Polish sobór.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Codex Zographensis has it for Ancient Greek συνέδριον (sunédrion, “council”) in the trial of Christ: събърашѧ сѧ старьци л҄юдьсциі… на съборъ своі "the elders of the people gathered… in their council" (L 22, 66), where the Codex Marianus has сънмь.^[2]

Semantic evolution

The SJS gives first the sense "assembly", for σύλλογος, συναγωγή, συνέδριον, σύνοδος, ἐκκλησία and δῆμος, with special uses for a council, a church synod (σύνοδος, in the Nomocanon), a liturgical assembly or service and a feast (σύναξις), and for a body or fellowship of people.^[2] A second sense is the place of assembly, the market-place (for Ancient Greek ἀγορά (agorá), A 16, 19), a tribunal, and the synagogue as a building (Euch 40b 4).^[2] The SNSP counts 54 instances in the oldest manuscripts.^[7] Schumann notes the sense "church" in the Codex Suprasliensis (Supr 347, 2), against the older "assembly" of the Savvina kniga (Mt 26, 59).^[6] In Russian the Church Slavonic word became Russian собор (sobor) "council, cathedral", beside the native сбор (sbor) "gathering".^[5]

Timeline

• End of the 9th – beginning of the 10th to the 11th century – the early translations use it for ἐκκλησία, δῆμος, ὄχλος and ἀγορά.^[8]
• 14th century – the Serbian Athonite translation of Gregory of Nyssa uses it for δῆμος.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. assembly, gathering, meeting; for σύλλογος, συναγωγή, ἐκκλησία.^[2][7][1]
2. A council, advisory assembly; for συνέδριον.^[2][1]
3. A church synod; for σύνοδος.^[2]
4. (liturgy) A liturgical assembly, service, feast; for σύναξις.^[2]
5. A body, company, fellowship of people; for ὁμήγυρις, χορός.^[2][7]
6. A meeting place, market-place, tribunal; for ἀγορά.^[2]
7. A synagogue or church building; for συναγωγή.^[2][6]

Word family

• съборьникъ
• съборьнъ

Related words

• събьрати
• бьрати
• Russian собор (sobor)

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 k Kurz, Josef; Hauptová, Zoe (eds.) (1958–1997), Slovník jazyka staroslověnského / Lexicon linguae palaeoslovenicae, 4 vols. + supplements, Praha: Academia; digital ed. gorazd.org
3. ^ Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka, transl. and suppl. by O. N. Trubačev, 4 vols., Moskva: Progress, p. 3, 568
4. ^ Sadnik, Linda; Aitzetmüller, Rudolf (1955), Handwörterbuch zu den altkirchenslavischen Texten, Heidelberg: Winter / 's-Gravenhage: Mouton, p. 214
5. ^ a b c Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka, transl. and suppl. by O. N. Trubačev, 4 vols., Moskva: Progress, p. 3, 704
6. ^ a b c Schumann, Kurt (1958), Die griechischen Lehnbildungen und Lehnbedeutungen im Altbulgarischen, Veröffentlichungen der Abteilung für slavische Sprachen und Literaturen des Osteuropa-Instituts an der Freien Universität Berlin 16, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, p. 55
7. ^ a b c 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 SlaVaComp Metaglossar Griechisch–Kirchenslavisch, Universität Freiburg, slavistik-portal.de