What is the lexical meaning of the word "daughter" and its origin?

Few people are familiar with the lexical meaning of the word “daughter”. Yes, this is not surprising, because it is obsolete. It is possible to meet him today, perhaps, only in the literature. For example, it is found in the Bible. It will be even more interesting to consider the meaning of the word "daughter" and its origin.

Outdated Token

The meaning of the word "daughter" in the explanatory dictionary says that it is characterized as:

  • Church Slavonic;
  • outdated;
  • ironic;
  • used in high style.

Moreover, in all cases it is interpreted as a "daughter".

Petrov's daughter

So, for example, the Russian Empress Elizabeth was called the “daughter of Petrov,” which is an example of high style. And in our time, when a girl is addressed in this way, it means irony. For example, “My daughter, have you forgotten to do your homework? So father teased Katerina when he was in a good mood. ”

It will be interesting to consider one more nuance in the meaning of the word "daughter".

In the dictionary of Church Slavonic

You can read the following explanation there. Daughter, designating "daughter", when used together with the proper names of cities and husbands, indicates the place of residence or origin. For example, when “the daughter of Abrahaml” is said, the female person is meant, which comes from the family of Abraham.

When a word is used in the singular with the name of a people or city, such a phrase means the people or city itself. So, in the Bible are used - "daughter of Jerusalem" (Zion, Israel) as well as the expression "daughter of my people." The first means "Jerusalem" (Zion, Israel), and the second - "my people."

Further, for a better understanding of the meaning of the word "daughter", we turn to the origin of the term.

Etymology

The word is rooted in the Pre-Slavic language, formed from the form dokťi, from which, among other things, come:

  • Old Russian “daughters”, formed from “dychi”, later, in the 15-16 centuries, transformed into a “daughter”;
  • Old Slavonic "dashti", in the genitive case - "dashter";
  • Russian "daughter";
  • Ukrainian "daughter", "daughter";
  • Bulgarian "diescher";
  • Serbo-Croatian kħi, in the genitive case - kħ̏pi;
  • Slovenian hčȋ, in the genitive case - hčere;
  • Ancient Bohemian dci;
  • Czech dcera;
  • Slovak dcéra;
  • Polish cora and córka;

Is related:

  • Lithuanian duktė - “daughter” and podukrė - “stepdaughter”;
  • Old Prussian duckti and poducre, which means "daughter" and "stepdaughter", respectively;
  • ancient Indian duhitā;
  • Avestan dugǝdar;
  • Armenian dustr;
  • Greek θυγάτηρ;
  • Gothic daúhtar;
  • New High German Tochter.

According to etymologists, the Old Slavonic form dates back to the ancient Indian dṓgdhi, which means "milk", "milk". They also include here:

  • Russian Church Slavonic "daughter-in-law" in the meaning of "niece";
  • ancient Indian ac̨vatarás, which translates as "mule";
  • Latin matertera denoting aunt.

Next, we will directly examine the meaning of the word “daughter”, which is “daughter” that has replaced it in modern speech.

Hues of interpretation

Daughter of the soviet people

In the dictionary, the meaning of “daughter” is given in two versions.

  1. Female person identified with respect to mother and father. Example: “Andrei Sergeyevich treated his five-year-old daughter Alina, who was a late child, with great love and even with trepidation.”
  2. When used in high style, this is a person related to the female sex, which is considered as a product of a certain community, for example, a national one. Example: “Valentina Tereshkova, as the daughter of the Soviet people, who accomplished the feat, was met with enthusiasm throughout the world.”

If a girl is step-mother for one of the spouses, born in a previous marriage, then for him she will be a stepdaughter. When the child is step-mother and for the husband and for the wife and is brought up in their family, then the term "adopted daughter" is used.

In addition to the context of kinship, this word is also used in social:

Fairy godmother and cinderella
  • the godfather is the one that is accepted from the font by the godmother and father;
  • spiritual - a parishioner, considered in relation to the confessor;
  • seated - bride in relation to the seated father and mother.

Thus, the word studied is obsolete, but its meaning remains the same and in a new form it continues to live in our days.

Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/C41534/


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