< Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic
Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/kopati
 | 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
Reflects the iterative Proto-Balto-Slavic *kаpā́ˀtei, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kep-. Parallel to Proto-Slavic *skopiti (“to castrate”) > Old Church Slavonic скопити (skopiti). Cognate with Latvian kapât (“to chop, hew”), Lithuanian kapóti (“to chop, hew”) and akin to Old Prussian enkopts (“buried”).
Per ESSJa, possibly superseded an earlier *kòp(je)ti (pres. 1p. sg. *kòpľǫ, attested in Slovene, Polish, Czech), cognate with Lithuanian kàpti (“to chop”), Ancient Greek κόπτω (kóptō, “to beat, to hit”).
Verb
*kopàti impf (perfective *kopnǫti)[1][2][3]
- to dig
Conjugation
Conjugation of *kopati, *kopa, *kopľetь (impf., -a/j-, s-aorist, accent paradigm a)
Suffix: *-ati
| Verbal noun | Infinitive | Supine | L-participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| *kopanьje | *kopati | *kopatъ | *kopalъ |
| Participles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tense | Past | Present |
| Passive | *kopanъ | *kopľemъ |
| Active | *kopavъ | *kopľę |
| Aorist | Present | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Person | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
| Singular | *kopaxъ | *kopa | *kopa | *kopľǫ | *kopľeši | *kopľetь |
| Dual | *kopaxově | *kopasta | *kopaste | *kopľevě | *kopľeta | *kopľete |
| Plural | *kopaxomъ | *kopaste | *kopašę | *kopľemъ | *kopľete | *kopľǫtь |
| Imperfect | Imperative | |||||
| Person | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
| Singular | *kopaaxъ | *kopaaše | *kopaaše | — | *kopľi | *kopľi |
| Dual | *kopaaxově | *kopaašeta | *kopaašete | *kopľivě | *kopľita | — |
| Plural | *kopaaxomъ | *kopaašete | *kopaaxǫ | *kopľimъ | *kopľite | — |
Conjugation of *kopati, *kopa, *kopajetь (impf., -a-, s-aorist, accent paradigm a)
Suffix: *-ati
| Verbal noun | Infinitive | Supine | L-participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| *kopanьje | *kopati | *kopatъ | *kopalъ |
| Participles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tense | Past | Present |
| Passive | *kopanъ | *kopajemъ |
| Active | *kopavъ | *kopaję |
| Aorist | Present | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Person | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
| Singular | *kopaxъ | *kopa | *kopa | *kopajǫ | *kopaješi | *kopajetь |
| Dual | *kopaxově | *kopasta | *kopaste | *kopajevě | *kopajeta | *kopajete |
| Plural | *kopaxomъ | *kopaste | *kopašę | *kopajemъ | *kopajete | *kopajǫtь |
| Imperfect | Imperative | |||||
| Person | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
| Singular | *kopaaxъ | *kopaaše | *kopaaše | — | *kopaji | *kopaji |
| Dual | *kopaaxově | *kopaašeta | *kopaašete | *kopajivě | *kopajita | — |
| Plural | *kopaaxomъ | *kopaašete | *kopaaxǫ | *kopajimъ | *kopajite | — |
Derived terms
- *jьzkopati (“to dig up”)
- *otъkopati (“to dig out”)
- *vykopati (“to unearth”)
- *orzkopati (“to excavate”)
- *perkopati (“to dig again”)
- *vъkopati (“to imbed”)
- *okopati (“to trench”)
- *zakopati (“to bury”)
- *kopnǫti (“to shovel”)
- *kopačь (“digger”)
- *kopъ
- *kopьcь (“heap”)
- *jьzkopъ (“earthwork”)
- *okopъ (“ditch”)
- *orzkopъka (“excavation”)
- *kopyto (“hoof”)
- *kopylo (“young boy”)
- *kopa (“heap”)
- *kopьje (“spear”)
Related terms
- *čьpľjěti (“to scrape”)
- *čěpati (“to chop, to peck”)
- *čěpatъ (“gnarly”)
- *čepъ (“tap”) (possibly)
- *čepakъ (“lid”)
- *čepьcь (“cap”)
- *čepъka (“cluster”)
Descendants
- East Slavic:
- Old East Slavic: копати (kopati)
- Belarusian: капа́ць (kapácʹ)
- Russian: копа́ть (kopátʹ)
- Ukrainian: копа́ти (kopáty)
- Old East Slavic: копати (kopati)
- South Slavic:
- Old Church Slavonic:
- Old Cyrillic: копати (kopati)
- Glagolitic: ⰽⱁⱂⰰⱅⰻ (kopati)
- Bulgarian: копа́я (kopája) (standard), ко́пам (kópam) (colloquial)
- Macedonian: копа (kopa)
- Serbo-Croatian:
- Cyrillic: ко̀пати
- Latin: kòpati
- Chakavian (Vrgada): kopȁti
- Chakavian (Orbanići): kopȁt
- Slovene: kópati, kopáti (tonal orthography)
- Old Church Slavonic:
- West Slavic:
- Old Czech: kopati
- Czech: kopat
- Bohemian (Chod dialect): kopát
- Czech: kopat
- Kashubian: kòpac
- Polish: kopać
- Slovak: kopať
- Sorbian:
- Upper Sorbian: kopać
- Lower Sorbian: kopaś
- Old Czech: kopati
Further reading
- Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), “копать”, in Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), transl. and suppl. by Oleg Trubachyov, Moscow: Progress
- Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1984), “*kopati”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological Dictionary of Slavic Languages] (in Russian), issue 11 (*konьcь – *kotьna(ja)), Moscow: Nauka, page 18
- Georgiev V. I., editor (1979), “копая, копвам, копна”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 2, Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, page 610
References
- Derksen, Rick (2008), “*kopàti”, in Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 4), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 233: “v. ‘dig’”
- Olander, Thomas (2001), “kopati: kopajǫ kopajetь”, in Common Slavic accentological word list, Copenhagen: Editiones Olander: “a grave (PR 134)”
- Snoj, Marko (2016), “kopáti”, in Slovenski etimološki slovar3 (in Slovene), https://fran.si: “*kopa̋ti”