Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/xotěti

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

Alternative forms

*xъtěti

Etymology

From or related to *xvatati (“to grasp, catch, grab”). For semantics shift compare Lithuanian grė́bti (“to seize, grasp, grab”) : Latvian gribēt (“to want”).

Reconstruction notes

Kortlandt[1] suggests that the verb was generalized from the archaic optative (athematic and ablauting, with secondary endings). According to him, the indicative was innovated and was assigned fixed accent (ind. 1p. sg. *xòťǫ : 1p. pl. *xòťemъ) while the imperative, which continues the PIE optative, had the inherited mobile accent (imp. 1p. sg. *xȍťǫ : 1p. pl. *xoťímъ).

Verb

*xъtě̀ti impf[1][2][3]

to want, to wish
to be about to

Conjugation

This verb is found in two variants, with *xot- and *xъt-. The inflection probably contained both stems in alternation; however, the original distribution is disputed. In modern languages, the two stems are treated as separate lemmas.

Conjugation of *xotěti, *xotě, *xoťetь (impf., irregular -ě/i-, s-aorist, accent paradigm ?)

Suffix: *-ěti

Verbal noun	Infinitive	Supine	L-participle
*xotěnьje	*xotěti	*xotětъ	*xotělъ

	Participles
Tense	Past	Present
Passive	*xotěnъ	*xotimъ
Active	*xotěvъ	*xotę

	Aorist			Present
Person	1st	2nd	3rd	1st	2nd	3rd
Singular	*xotěxъ	*xotě	*xotě	*xoťǫ	*xoť(eš)i	*xoťetь
Dual	*xotěxově	*xotěsta	*xotěste	*xoťevě	*xoťeta	*xoťete
Plural	*xotěxomъ	*xotěste	*xotěšę	*xoťemъ	*xoťete	*xotętь
	Imperfect			Imperative
Person	1st	2nd	3rd	1st	2nd	3rd
Singular	*xotěaxъ	*xotěaše	*xotěaše	—	*xoťi	*xoťi
Dual	*xotěaxově	*xotěašeta	*xotěašete	*xoťivě	*xoťita	—
Plural	*xotěaxomъ	*xotěašete	*xotěaxǫ	*xoťimъ	*xoťite	—

In most languages levelled out into:

Conjugation of *xotěti, *xotě, *xoťetь (impf., -ě/j-, s-aorist, accent paradigm ?)

Verbal noun	Infinitive	Supine	L-participle
*xotěnьje	*xotěti	*xotětъ	*xotělъ

	Participles
Tense	Past	Present
Passive	*xotěnъ	*xoťemъ
Active	*xotěvъ	*xoťę

	Aorist			Present
Person	1st	2nd	3rd	1st	2nd	3rd
Singular	*xotěxъ	*xotě	*xotě	*xoťǫ	*xoťeši	*xoťetь
Dual	*xotěxově	*xotěsta	*xotěste	*xoťevě	*xoťeta	*xoťete
Plural	*xotěxomъ	*xotěste	*xotěšę	*xoťemъ	*xoťete	*xoťǫtь
	Imperfect			Imperative
Person	1st	2nd	3rd	1st	2nd	3rd
Singular	*xotěaxъ	*xotěaše	*xotěaše	—	*xoťi	*xoťi
Dual	*xotěaxově	*xotěašeta	*xotěašete	*xoťivě	*xoťita	—
Plural	*xotěaxomъ	*xotěašete	*xotěaxǫ	*xoťimъ	*xoťite	—

Related terms

*poxota (“avidity”)
*xǫtь (“will, desire, willingness”)
*xutь (“lust”)

Descendants

West Slavic and Bulgarian, Macedonian have generalized the stem *xъt-, while East Slavic has generalized *xot-. Ukrainian and Slovene preserve both as independent verbs, but only the latter form is standard and still widely used. Serbo-Croatian preserves both stems alternating within a single paradigm; possibly an archaism.

East Slavic:
- Old East Slavic: хотѣти (xotěti)
  - Old Ruthenian: хотѣ́ти (xotě́ti)
    - Belarusian: хаце́ць (xacjécʹ)
    - Rusyn: хотї́ти (xotjíty)
    - Ukrainian: хоті́ти (xotíty)
  - Russian: хоте́ть (xotétʹ)
South Slavic:
- Old Church Slavonic: хотѣти (xotěti), хътѣти (xŭtěti)
- Bulgarian: ща (šta), ще (šte)
- Macedonian: ќе (ḱe), неќе (neḱe)
- Serbo-Croatian:
  Cyrillic: хте̏ти, хтје̏ти (pres. хоћу, хоћеш, etc.; auxiliary ћу, ћеш, etc.)
  Latin: htȅti, htjȅti (pres. hoću, hoćeš, etc.; auxiliary ću, ćes, etc.)
- Slovene: hotẹ́ti, htẹ́ti (tonal orthography)
West Slavic:
- Old Czech: chtieti
  - Czech: chtít
    - Moravian (Mistřice): chťet
- Kashubian: chcec
- Polabian: *tet
- Old Polish: chcieć, chocieć, kcieć, ścieć
  - Polish: chcieć
- Slovak: chcieť
- Slovincian: cìe̯c
- Sorbian:
  - Upper Sorbian: chcyć
  - Lower Sorbian: kśěś

References

Kortlandt, Frederik (1978), “Towards a reconstruction of the Balto-Slavic verbal system”, in Lingua‎, volume 49: “2. Slavic xoštǫ and PIE optative”
Olander, Thomas (2001), “xotěti: xotjǫ xotjetь”, in Common Slavic accentological word list, Copenhagen: Editiones Olander: “b (prs., ipv.) / c (andre former) ville (PR 137, 139)”
Snoj, Marko (2016), “hoteti”, in Slovenski etimološki slovar³ (in Slovene), https://fran.si: “Pslovan. verjetno *xъtě̋ti, sed. *x(v)ot'ǫ̋”