Etymologically
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сердце

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Pronunciation

  • [ˈsʲert͡s(ː)ə][1]

Forms

се́рдце (sérdce) n inan (genitive се́рдца, nominative plural сердца́, genitive plural серде́ц, relational adjective серде́чный, diminutive серде́чко)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old East Slavic сьрдьце (sĭrdĭce), from Proto-Slavic *sьrdьce (“heart”).[2][1][3] The other Slavic forms are Old Church Slavonic срьдьце (srĭdĭce) (for Ancient Greek καρδία (kardía)), Ukrainian серце (serce), Bulgarian сърце́ (sărcé), Serbo-Croatian ср̏це (sȑce), Czech srdce and Polish serce.[2] The modern form arose when the jers were lost and the strong ⟨ь⟩ became ⟨е⟩; the ⟨д⟩ is no longer pronounced.[4][5]

Vasmer takes the Proto-Slavic form to be *sьrdьko, with the diminutive suffix ⟨-ko-⟩, as in солнце;[2] Chernykh doubts that the suffix is a diminutive.[6] The plain root noun survives in compounds such as Old Church Slavonic милосрьдъ (milosrĭdŭ, “merciful”) and in сердобольный.[2] The root continues Proto-Indo-European *ḱérd (“heart”).[7][1] Its cognates are Lithuanian širdis, Latvian sirds, Old Prussian seyr, Ancient Greek κῆρ (kêr), Latin cor, Old Irish cride and Hittite kard, and English heart.[2][7][1] середина and середа come from the same root with another vowel grade.[2][6]

Chernykh suggests that the older sense was “that which is inside”, whence “seat of the soul”.[6][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Ostromir Gospel of 1056–1057 has окаменилъ есть срьдьця ихъ ... и не разумѣють срьдьцьмь “he has hardened their hearts... and they do not understand with their heart”.[8] The word meant the inner self as well as the organ from the start: Chernykh gives Old Russian “inside”, “heart”, “spirit”, “soul” and “mind”.[6][7]

Semantic evolution

Old Russian used сьрдьце for the centre or depths of something: the Izbornik of 1073 speaks of being въ срьдьци земльнѣемь “in the heart of the earth”.[9] It also meant the core of a plant, in the 13th-century Life of Sava: сердца трьстяная “the hearts of reeds”.[9] From the 16th century it is also anger: a document of 1594 tells of soldiers who отъ великого сердца “in great fury” spared none of the Turks, and въ сердцахъ “in anger” is recorded in 1636.[9] The Lay of Igor's Campaign praises Igor who поостри сердца своего мужествомъ “whetted his heart with courage”.[8] Shaposhnikov dates сердце in dictionaries from 1704.[7]

The modern dictionaries add the figurative “centre, most important place” (the heart of a country or city) and the heart symbol.[10] Dialects also have a masculine сёрдце.[11]

Timeline

  • 1056–1057 – срьдьця “hearts” in the Ostromir Gospel.[8]
  • 1073 – въ срьдьци земльнѣемь “in the heart of the earth” in the Izbornik of 1073.[9]
  • 13th century – сердца трьстяная “the hearts of reeds” in the Life of Sava.[9]
  • 1377 – удари Итларя в сердце “struck Itlar in the heart” in the Laurentian Chronicle, under 1095.[9]
  • 1594 – “fury, anger” in a diplomatic document.[9]
  • 1636 – въ сердцахъ “in anger”.[9]
  • 1704 – first dictionary record of сердце.[7]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The heart, the central organ of the circulation.[10][1]
  2. (figurative) The heart as the seat of the soul, feelings and moods: с открытым сердцем “openly, sincerely”.[10]
  3. (figurative) The centre or most important place of something.[10]
  4. The heart symbol, a figure split at the top and pointed at the bottom.[10]
  5. (colloquial, in some phrases) anger, irritation: в сердцах “in a temper”, сорвать сердце на ком-либо “to vent one's anger on someone”.[10][1]

Word family

  • сердечный
  • сердечко
  • сердцевина
  • бессердечный
  • милосердие
  • милосердный
  • сердобольный
  • предсердие
  • сердцеед
  • серчать
  • сердитый
  • сердить
  • середина
  • средний
  • усердие
  • Old East Slavic сьрдьце (sĭrdĭce)

Usage notes

The cluster ⟨рдц⟩ is pronounced /rc/.[10] The plural is сердца́, genitive серде́ц.[10] Common phrases are положа руку на сердце “frankly” and от всего сердца “wholeheartedly”.[10]

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. 3, 605–606
  3. ^ Derksen, Rick (2008), Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 4, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 485
  4. ^ Tsyganenko, G. P. (1989), Ètimologičeskij slovar' russkogo jazyka [Этимологический словарь русского языка], 2nd ed., Kiev: Radjans'ka škola, p. s.v. сердце
  5. ^ Ushakov, D. N. (ed.) (1935–1940), Tolkovyj slovar' russkogo jazyka [Толковый словарь русского языка], 4 vols., Moskva: Sovetskaja ènciklopedija / OGIZ, p. s.v. сердце
  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. сердце
  7. ^ a b c d e f Shaposhnikov, A. K. (2010), Ètimologičeskij slovar' sovremennogo russkogo jazyka [Этимологический словарь современного русского языка], 2 vols., Moskva: Flinta / Nauka, p. 2, 317
  8. ^ a b c Vinogradova, V. L. (1965–1984), Slovar'-spravočnik «Slova o polku Igoreve» [Словарь-справочник «Слова о полку Игореве»], 6 vols., Moskva / Leningrad: Nauka, p. s.v. сердце
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h 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. 24, 78
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i Ozhegov, S. I.; Shvedova, N. Yu. (1997), Tolkovyj slovar' russkogo jazyka [Толковый словарь русского языка], 4th ed., Moskva: Azbukovnik, p. s.v. сердце
  11. ^ Filin, F. P.; Sorokoletov, F. P.; Myznikov, S. A. (eds.) (1965–), Slovar' russkix narodnyx govorov [Словарь русских народных говоров], vols. 1–51, Moskva / Leningrad / Sankt-Peterburg: Nauka, p. 37, 189