Primordial meanings of Old Russian words

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

The Russian language has a rich history. There are cases when Russian words changed their meaning in the most unexpected way: their original meaning could be the opposite of what we are used to.

Freak

Previously, the word had a positive meaning. Initially, this was the name of the first-born male, who later became the head of the family and inherited the father's house, literally - "the one who stands with the clan." The freak was endowed with the best qualities and external beauty, so after a while the word began to mean "beautiful." But along with this, holy people were called "freaks". Later this term began to be applied only to those saints who were not of this world - so the word "freak" began to acquire an increasingly negative meaning.

Ass

Hardly anyone expected, but the word "ass" was not a dirty word and meant "inheritance." Our ancestors thought metaphorically, and the words "front" and "back" were associated with a landmark in time, not in space. So the "ass" is what remains after a person for the future.

Witch

The word "witch" also previously had a positive meaning and meant a wise woman, literally - "a woman who knows." Those who practiced light magic were also called. But gradually the word lost its original meaning and became sharply negative.

Scoundrel

For a long time ago, scoundrels were called people of ordinary origin. The word was borrowed from the Ukrainian language and was entrenched under the influence of Polish. Although "scoundrel" was not a swear word like it is now, it still had a negative connotation. Because the nobles dubbed the commoners "vile people", putting some contempt into this expression.

Hotel

The hotel is a "high road" in Old Church Slavonic. Merchants - guests traveled along the high road. As a rule, they brought various gifts, which later became known as gifts.

Doctor

A doctor is a respected profession, but the word itself was formed from the word "lie". Initially, doctors were called sorcerers who spoke illnesses, and, obviously, often deceived.

The charm

A few centuries ago, "charm" could hardly be called a compliment. The word was formed from the word "flattery" and meant "temptation, seduction, deception." This concept was associated with evil spirits: "seduction by evil spirits", "devilish temptation." And since the devil in the representations of people captivated, as a rule, with pleasures and beautiful visions, then alluring and beautiful things gradually began to be called adorable. This is how the word acquired a positive meaning.

Sale

A sale was a fine for any crime other than murder. The guilty person paid for the sale to the prince, atoning for his crime. Over time, this word began to figure in commodity-money relations and acquired a modern meaning.

A week

The word "week" comes from the combination "do nothing." At first, this was the name of the day off, which we now call Sunday. Later, the meaning of the word changed, but it is still preserved in its original sense in different Slavic languages: Belarusian, Ukrainian.

Coward

The obsolete meaning of the word is "earthquake". "Coward" comes from the word "shake", that's why they called the vibrations of the Earth, and after that they began to call a person who is shaking with fear.

Bastard

This swear word came from the verb "drag" and meant "trash that has been taken away somewhere." After that, they began to call the crowd gathered in one place, and then the people of the lower class - and the word acquired a negative meaning.

Vulgar

The word comes from the verb "let's go" and meant earlier "ancient, primordial, that has gone from ancient times." However, after Peter's reforms, everything primordial began to be considered bad and the word acquired the meaning of "backward, uncultured."

What words surprised you the most?