Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/dъlgъ

This Proto-Slavic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Slavic

Etymology

Related to Gothic 𐌳𐌿𐌻𐌲𐍃 (dulgs, “debt”):

Most Slavists (Vasmer, Trubačev, Snoj) presume native origin, because of the mobile accent (untypical for Germanic loanwords). Machek proposes Slavic origin for the Gothic term. Others usually consider genetic kinship between the two, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰelgʰ-.
Germanists (Stender-Petersen, favoured by Pronk-Tiethoff) consider it a Gothic loanword[1], since other financial terminology in early Slavic was mostly of Germanic origin: e.g. Proto-Slavic *myto (“tax”), *lixva (“interest”), *pěnędzь (“coin”), *kupiti (“to purchase”). Lehmann speculates that both Gothic and Slavic terms may be Celtic loanwords.

Noun

*dъ̑lgъ m[2][3][4][1]

debt

Inflection

Though it is traditionally reconstructed as a hard o-stem, Pronk-Tiethoff suggests that *dъlgъ was probably a u-stem instead: “the word is syllabic and has the root structure CъRC-, it shows u-stem endings in Old Church Slavic, as well as, e.g., the ‘second locative’ v dolgú in Russian, and the adjective formation R dolgovój. It has accentuation of the type Stang identifies with the Proto-Slavic u-stems.”

Declension of *dъ̃lgъ (hard o-stem, accent paradigm b)

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	*dъ̃lgъ	*dъlgà	*dъldzì
Accusative	*dъ̃lgъ	*dъlgà	*dъlgỳ
Genitive	*dъlgà	*dъlgù	*dъ̃lgъ
Locative	*dъldzě̀	*dъlgù	*dъ̃ldzěxъ
Dative	*dъlgù	*dъlgòma	*dъlgòmъ
Instrumental	dъlgъ̀mь, dъlgòmь^*	*dъlgòma	*dъ̃lgy
Vocative	*dъlže	*dъlgà	*dъldzì

^* -ъmь in North Slavic, -omь in South Slavic.

Declension of *dъ̑lgъ (hard o-stem, accent paradigm c)

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	*dъ̑lgъ	*dъ̑lga	*dъ̑ldzi
Accusative	*dъ̑lgъ	*dъ̑lga	*dъ̑lgy
Genitive	*dъ̑lga	*dъlgù	*dъ̃lgъ
Locative	*dъ̑ldzě	*dъlgù	*dъldzě̃xъ
Dative	*dъ̑lgu	*dъlgomà	*dъlgòmъ
Instrumental	dъ̑lgъmь, dъ̑lgomь^*	*dъlgomà	*dъlgý
Vocative	*dъlže	*dъ̑lga	*dъ̑ldzi

^* -ъmь in North Slavic, -omь in South Slavic.

Declension of *dъ̑lgъ (u-stem, accent paradigm c)

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	*dъ̑lgъ	*dъ̑lgy	*dъ̑lgove
Accusative	*dъ̑lgъ	*dъ̑lgy	*dъ̑lgy
Genitive	*dъ̑lgu	*dъlgovù	*dъlgòvъ
Locative	*dъlgú	*dъlgovù	*dъ̑lgъxъ
Dative	*dъ̑lgovi	*dъlgъmà	*dъ̑lgъmъ
Instrumental	*dъ̑lgъmь	*dъlgъmà	*dъlgъmì
Vocative	*dъlgu	*dъ̑lgy	*dъ̑lgove

Derived terms

*dъlžiti (“to own”)
*dъlžьnъ (“obligated”)
- *dъlžьnikъ (“debtor”)

Descendants

East Slavic:
- Old East Slavic: дългъ (dŭlgŭ), долгъ (dolgŭ), длъгъ (dlŭgŭ), дълъгъ (dŭlŭgŭ)
  - Old Ruthenian: довгъ (dovh), долгъ (dolh), дулгъ (dulh)
    - Belarusian: доўг (doŭh)
    - Rusyn: довг (dovh)
    - Ukrainian: довг (dovh) (dialectal)
  - Russian: долг (dolg), доло́г (dológ) (dial. Soyana, Arkhangelsk Oblast)
South Slavic:
- Old Church Slavonic:
  Old Cyrillic: дългъ (dŭlgŭ), длъгъ (dlŭgŭ)
  Glagolitic: ⰴⱏⰾⰳⱏ (dŭlgŭ), ⰴⰾⱏⰳⱏ (dlŭgŭ)
  - Church Slavonic (Russian recension): дългъ (dŭlgŭ), длъгъ (dlŭgŭ), дълъгъ (dŭlŭgŭ), долгъ (dolgŭ)
  - Church Slavonic (Serbian recension): дльгъ (dlĭgŭ, “sin”)
- Bulgarian: дълг (dǎlg), dialectal длъг (dlǎg)
- Macedonian: долг (dolg)
- Serbo-Croatian:
  Cyrillic: ду̑г
  Latin: dȗg
- Slovene: dȏłg (tonal orthography)
- → Hungarian: dolog
West Slavic:
- Old Czech: dluh
  - Czech: dluh
- Polabian: dåug
- Polish: dług
- Slovak: dlh
- Slovincian: dlʉ̇́g
- Sorbian:
  - Lower Sorbian: dług
  - Upper Sorbian: dołh

References

Pronk-Tiethoff, Saskia E. (2013) The Germanic loanwords in Proto-Slavic‎ (in English), Amsterdam - New York: Rodopi, →ISBN, page 142: “PSl. *dъlgъ ‘debt’ (m. o-stem) [AP C]”
Derksen, Rick (2008), “*dъ̑lgъ”, in Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 4), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 129: “m. o (c) ‘debt’”
Olander, Thomas (2001), “dъlgъ dъlga”, in Common Slavic accentological word list, Copenhagen: Editiones Olander: “c (SA 81, 187; PR 137; MP 16)”
Snoj, Marko (2016), “dolg”, in Slovenski etimološki slovar³ (in Slovene), https://fran.si: “Pslovan. *dь̑lgъ ali *dъ̑lgъ”