Etymologically
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мёртвый

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Pronunciation

  • [ˈmʲɵrtvɨj][1]

Forms

мёртвый (mjórtvyj) (comparative (по)мертве́е or (по)мертве́й or мертве́е мёртвого, adverb мертво́ or мёртво or за́мертво or на́мертво)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old East Slavic мьртвъ (mĭrtvŭ), from Proto-Slavic *mьrtvъ (“dead”).[2][1][3] The other Slavic languages have Ukrainian мертвий (mertvýj), Old Church Slavonic мрътвъ (mrŭtvŭ), Bulgarian мъртъв (mǎrtǎv), Czech mrtvý and Polish martwy.[2][4]

The Indo-European participle Proto-Indo-European *mr̥tós (“dead”) became the Slavic adjective by analogy with *živъ (“alive”), as Latin mortuus did in Latin;[2][5][4] an older form without ⟨-v-⟩ survives in Old Church Slavonic оумрьтие (umrĭtie).[2] Tsyganenko instead sees two Indo-European suffixes, ⟨-t-⟩ and ⟨-u̯-⟩, combined in *mr̥tu̯os.[6] Shansky and Bobrova derive the adjective with the suffix ⟨-в-⟩ from a lost ⟨мьртъ⟩ “dead”.[7] The root is *mer- (“to die”), also in мереть, смерть and мор.[8][1][2] Cognates include Sanskrit मृत (mṛtá, “dead”), Ancient Greek βροτός (brotós, “mortal”) and Old Armenian մարդ (mard, “man”).[2][1] In Russian the stressed /e/ became /o/, written ⟨ё⟩.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Chernykh dates Old Russian мьртвъ, мьртвый from the 11th century.[8] The oldest dated quotation in SDRJa is from the Stichirarion of 1156–1163: „На земли убо положена быста яко мьртва” “they two were laid on the ground as if dead”.[9]

Semantic evolution

Old Russian мертву быти meant “to die”: in 1187, says the Novgorod First Chronicle, a thunderbolt struck and 2 человѣка быста мьрътва “two men were dead”.[10] Мертвое тѣло was both a body into which God had not yet breathed a soul (12th century) and a corpse (1382).[10] In the Pskov famine of 1230 dogs ate the dead in the streets яко скотъ мертвый “like dead cattle”.[10] An 18th-century proverb says Живая собака лучше мертваго льва “A living dog is better than a dead lion”.[11]

The figurative senses “lifeless, still” (мёртвый сезон “the dead season”) and “useless” (мёртвый капитал “idle capital”) are modern.[12][13] Мёртвый хватает живого is a translation of the French legal maxim le mort saisit le vif.[12] In slang the word means “dead drunk” and, of goods, “hard to sell”.[14]

Timeline

  • 11th century – Old Russian мьртвъ, мьртвый.[8]
  • 1156–1163 – яко мьртва “as if dead” in the Stichirarion of 1156–1163.[9]
  • 1187 – быста мьрътва “were dead” in the Novgorod First Chronicle.[10]
  • 1382 – телеса мертвых “the bodies of the dead” in the Moscow chronicle.[10]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. dead: no longer alive, in whom life has ceased.[13][15][1]
  2. Without life or movement; lifeless, silent: мёртвая тишина “dead silence”; of light or colour, pale and dull.[13][12][16]
  3. Of no use, idle: мёртвый груз “dead weight”.[13]
  4. Withered, of plants; barren, of land.[5][16]

Noun

  1. A dead person, a corpse.[12][15][1]

Word family

  • мертвец
  • мертветь
  • мертвечина
  • мертвенный
  • замертво
  • намертво
  • омертветь
  • умертвить
  • смерть
  • умереть
  • мереть
  • мор
  • Old East Slavic мьртвъ (mĭrtvŭ)

Usage notes

The short forms are мёртв, мертва́, мёртво or мертво́.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka, transl. and suppl. by O. N. Trubačev, 4 vols., Moskva: Progress, p. 2, 606
  3. ^ Derksen, Rick (2008), Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 4, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 342
  4. ^ a b Shansky, N. M.; Zhuravlev, A. F. (eds.) (1963–2007), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka [Этимологический словарь русского языка], vols. 1–10 (A–M), Moskva: Izdatel'stvo Moskovskogo universiteta, p. 10, s.v. мертвый
  5. ^ a b Shaposhnikov, A. K. (2010), Ètimologičeskij slovar' sovremennogo russkogo jazyka [Этимологический словарь современного русского языка], 2 vols., Moskva: Flinta / Nauka, p. 1, 516
  6. ^ a b Tsyganenko, G. P. (1989), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka [Этимологический словарь русского языка], 2nd ed., Kiev: Radjans'ka škola, p. s.v. мёртвый
  7. ^ Shansky, N. M.; Bobrova, T. A. (2004), Škol'nyj ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka [Школьный этимологический словарь русского языка], 7th ed., Moskva: Drofa, p. s.v. мертвый
  8. ^ a b c Chernykh, P. Ya. (1993), Istoriko-ètimologičeskij slovar' sovremennogo russkogo jazyka [Историко-этимологический словарь современного русского языка], 2 vols., Moskva: Russkij jazyk, p. 1, s.v. мёртвый
  9. ^ a b Avanesov, R. I. et al. (eds.) (1988–), Slovar' drevnerusskogo jazyka (XI–XIV vv.) [Словарь древнерусского языка (XI–XIV вв.)], vols. 1–13, Moskva: Russkij jazyk / Azbukovnik, p. 5, 97
  10. ^ a b c d e Barkhudarov, S. G. et al. (eds.) (1975–), Slovar' russkogo jazyka XI–XVII vv. [Словарь русского языка XI–XVII вв.], vols. 1–31, Moskva: Nauka / Azbukovnik / Lexrus, p. 9, 106
  11. ^ Sorokin, Yu. S. et al. (eds.) (1984–), Slovar' russkogo jazyka XVIII veka [Словарь русского языка XVIII века], vols. 1–24, Leningrad / Sankt-Peterburg: Nauka, p. s.v. мертвый
  12. ^ a b c d Ushakov, D. N. (ed.) (1935–1940), Tolkovyj slovar' russkogo jazyka [Толковый словарь русского языка], 4 vols., Moskva: Sovetskaja ènciklopedija / OGIZ, p. s.v. мёртвый
  13. ^ a b c d e Ozhegov, S. I.; Shvedova, N. Yu. (1997), Tolkovyj slovar' russkogo jazyka [Толковый словарь русского языка], 4th ed., Moskva: Azbukovnik, p. s.v. мёртвый
  14. ^ Elistratov, V. S. (2000), Slovar' russkogo argo [Словарь русского арго], Moskva: Russkie slovari, p. s.v. мёртвый
  15. ^ a b Evgen'eva, A. P. (ed.) (1981–1984), Slovar' russkogo jazyka v četyrex tomax [Словарь русского языка в 4 тт.] (MAS), 2nd ed., Moskva: Russkij jazyk, p. s.v. мёртвый
  16. ^ a b Efremova, T. F. (2000), Novyj slovar' russkogo jazyka. Tolkovo-slovoobrazovatel'nyj [Новый словарь русского языка. Толково-словообразовательный], 2 vols., Moskva: Russkij jazyk, p. s.v. мёртвый