речь

Forms

речь (rečʹ) f inan (genitive ре́чи, nominative plural ре́чи, genitive plural рече́й, relational adjective речево́й)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old East Slavic рѣчь (rěčĭ), from Proto-Slavic *rěčь (“speech”).^[1][2][3] The word is common Slavic: Old Church Slavonic рѣчь (rěčĭ) (translating Ancient Greek ῥῆμα (rhêma) and λόγος (lógos)), Ukrainian річ (rič), Belarusian рэч (reč, “thing”), Bulgarian реч (reč), Serbo-Croatian riječ (“word”), Slovene reč (“thing”), Czech řeč (“speech”), Slovak reč, Polish rzecz (“thing”) and Upper Sorbian rěč (“speech, language”).^[2]

It is the lengthened grade of the root of the verb *reťi (“to say”) (compare рок and the archaic реку “I say”),^[2][1] formed with the ending ⟨-ь⟩ from the stem of *rekǫ (“I say”);^[4] the /k/ became /č/ before the front vowel.^[5] Chernykh gives the Indo-European root as Proto-Indo-European *rēk-.^[6] Outside Slavic the closest words are Tocharian A rake (“word”) and Tocharian B reki (“word”);^[2][4] Shaposhnikov adds Old Irish reimm (“cry”).^[4] Shansky and Bobrova take the root to be imitative, of the same origin as рычать, comparing Latvian rēkt (“to shout, roar”) and Latin raccō (“to roar like a tiger”), with an original sense “to roar, shout”.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Izbornik of 1073 uses it for “language”: „по съставомъ еврѣискы рѣчи” “according to the structure of the Hebrew language”.^[8] Chernykh records it in Old Russian and Old Church Slavonic from the 11th century in the senses “word, speech, conversation, matter”.^[6]

Semantic evolution

Old Russian рѣчь had a wide range: language (the chronicle says of the Polyane under the year 898 that „словеньскаа рѣч(ь) бѣ” “the language was Slavonic”), voice and manner of speaking, conversation and negotiations, and in grammar a word or word form.^[8] Sreznevsky's materials also give “accusation”, “testimony”, “dispute”, “thing” and “property”,^[9] and Chernykh dates the sense “thing” from the 14th century.^[6] The 17th-century singers' phrase пѣть на рѣчь meant to sing church chants as the words are spoken, without the inserted vowels of the old notation.^[8]

The sense “thing” in the early 18th-century writings of Kurakin is probably due to Polish rzecz (“thing”).^[2] The name Речь Посполитая for Poland, and sometimes for Venice, in Feofan Prokopovich and in decrees of 1696 and 1699, is from Rzecz pospolita (“republic”), a calque of Latin rēs pūblica (“public affair”).^[2]

Timeline

• 1073 – рѣчи “language” in the Izbornik of 1073.^[8]
• 898 (in the chronicle) – словеньскаа рѣчь “the Slavonic language”.^[8]
• 1335 (in the chronicle) – рѣчь “negotiations” with the Novgorodians, in the First Novgorod Chronicle.^[8]
• 14th century – рѣчь “thing”.^[6]
• 1696 – Речь Посполитая in a decree.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. The faculty of speech; speaking: дар речи “the gift of speech”.^[10][11]
2. A variety or style of language: разговорная речь “colloquial speech”.^[10][12]
3. Spoken language, language as heard: русская речь “Russian speech”.^[10][11]
4. Manner of speaking, pronunciation.^[12][13]
5. What is said; talk, conversation.^[10][1]
6. A public speech, an address, or its text.^[4][13]

Word family

• речевой
• речистый
• речёвка
• красноречие
• просторечие
• противоречие

Related words

• речение
• изречь
• изрекать
• наречь
• нарекать
• противоречить
• рок
• урок
• срок
• пророк
• Old East Slavic рѣчь (rěčĭ)
• Old Church Slavonic рещи (rešti)

Usage notes

An archaic bookish verb речь (реку, речёшь) “to say” has the same spelling; it is the verb from which the noun was made, and it lives on in изречь and наречь.^[14][1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka, transl. and suppl. by O. N. Trubačev, 4 vols., Moskva: Progress, p. 3, 478
3. ^ Derksen, Rick (2008), Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 4, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 434
4. ^ a b c d Shaposhnikov, A. K. (2010), Ètimologičeskij slovar' sovremennogo russkogo jazyka [Этимологический словарь современного русского языка], 2 vols., Moskva: Flinta / Nauka, p. 2, 279
5. ^ Tsyganenko, G. P. (1989), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka [Этимологический словарь русского языка], 2nd ed., Kiev: Radjans'ka škola, p. s.v. речь
6. ^ a b c d Chernykh, P. Ya. (1993), Istoriko-ètimologičeskij slovar' sovremennogo russkogo jazyka [Историко-этимологический словарь современного русского языка], 2 vols., Moskva: Russkij jazyk, p. 2, s.v. речь
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. речь
8. ^ a b c d e f 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. 22, 152
9. ^ Sreznevsky, I. I. (1893–1912), Materialy dlja slovarja drevne-russkago jazyka po pis'mennym pamjatnikam [Материалы для словаря древнерусского языка по письменным памятникам], 3 vols., Sankt-Peterburg: Imperatorskaja Akademija nauk, p. 3, s.v. рѣчь
10. ^ a b c d Ozhegov, S. I.; Shvedova, N. Yu. (1997), Tolkovyj slovar' russkogo jazyka [Толковый словарь русского языка], 4th ed., Moskva: Azbukovnik, p. s.v. речь
11. ^ 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. речь
12. ^ a b Ushakov, D. N. (ed.) (1935–1940), Tolkovyj slovar' russkogo jazyka [Толковый словарь русского языка], 4 vols., Moskva: Sovetskaja ènciklopedija / OGIZ, p. s.v. речь
13. ^ 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. речь
14. ^ Preobrazhensky, A. G. (1910–1914), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka [Этимологический словарь русского языка], 2 vols. (A–T; vol. 3, T–Ja, 1949), Moskva: Lissner & Sovko, p. 2, 199