Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/niknǫti

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

Per Derksen, from the root of *nicь (“lying face downwards”), from Proto-Indo-European *ni-h₃kʷo- with the Slavic progressive palatalization, from the root *ní. Cognate with Sanskrit नि (ni, “downwards”), नीचा (nīcā́, “downwards”).^[1]

Per Vasmer, there are two etymologically separate verbs here, one with the approximate meaning "to droop, to wilt" and coming from the root of *nicь as above, and another with the approximate meaning "to arise, to penetrate" from a different root:^[2]

The former is cognate with Lithuanian nỹkti (“to disappear, perish”) and Latin nikt (“to suffer; to wear out”).^[3]
The latter is cognate with Lithuanian ni̇̀kti (“to glow”) (1sg. ninkù, 1sg. past nikaũ), įni̇̀kti į̇̃ dárbą (“to plunge headlong into work”), apni̇̀kti (“to attack”), etc., as well as Old Prussian neikaut (“to walk, to wander”), Latvian niktiês (“to impose oneself”), nikns (“fierce, wicked”), nàiks (“fierce, wicked, angry, quick”), and Ancient Greek νεῖκος (neîkos, “quarrel, dispute”), νεικέω (neikéō, “to quarrel, to attack”), νῑ́κη (nī́kē, “victory”), νῑκάω (nīkáō, “to win”).

Verb

*niknǫti^[4]^[5]

to arise

Inflection

Conjugation of *niknǫti, *niče, *niknetь (?, -C/n-, _/ox-aorist, accent paradigm ?)

Verbal noun	Infinitive	Supine	L-participle
*ničenьje	*niknǫti	*niknǫtъ	*niklъ

	Participles
Tense	Past	Present
Passive	*ničenъ	*niknomъ
Active	*nikъ	*nikny

	Aorist			Present
Person	1st	2nd	3rd	1st	2nd	3rd
Singular	*nik(ox)ъ	*niče	*niče	*niknǫ	*nikneši	*niknetь
Dual	*nik(ox)ově	*nik(e/os)ta	*nik(e/os)te	*niknevě	*nikneta	*niknete
Plural	*nik(ox)omъ	*nik(e/os)te	nikǫ, nikošę	*niknemъ	*niknete	*niknǫtь
	Imperfect			Imperative
Person	1st	2nd	3rd	1st	2nd	3rd
Singular	*nikněaxъ	*nikněaše	*nikněaše	—	*nikni	*nikni
Dual	*nikněaxově	*nikněašeta	*nikněašete	*nikněvě	*nikněta	—
Plural	*nikněaxomъ	*nikněašete	*nikněaxǫ	*nikněmъ	*nikněte	—

Aorist *nikeste ⇒ *ničeste, ...

Related terms

*nicati, *nikati (“to arise”)
*nicь (“lying face downwards”)
*ničati (“to bend, to stoop”)
*nizъ (“down, below”)

Descendants

East Slavic:
- Old East Slavic: никнꙋти (niknuti, “to appear, to arise”)
  - Belarusian: ні́кнуць (níknucʹ, “to droop, to wilt, (dialectal) to disappear”)
  - Russian: ни́кнуть (níknutʹ, “to droop”)
  - Ukrainian: ни́кнути (nýknuty, “to droop, to wilt, (dialectal) to disappear”)
South Slavic:
- Old Church Slavonic: никнѫти (niknǫti, “to appear, to arise”)
- Bulgarian: ни́кна (níkna, “to germinate, to sprout”)
- Macedonian: никне (nikne, “to grow, to come”)
- Serbo-Croatian:
  Cyrillic script: ни̏кнути (“to appear, to arise”), 1sg. ни̏кне̄м
  
  Latin: nȉknuti (“to appear, to arise”), 1sg. nȉknēm
- Slovene: níkniti (“to germinate, to sprout, to disappear”) (tonal orthography), 1sg. nȋknem (tonal orthography)
West Slavic:
- Old Czech: -niknúti (attested only in compounds)
  - Czech: (rare) niknout (“to germinate, to sprout, to bow, to disappear”)
- Old Polish: niknąć (“to pass, to disappear”)
  - Polish: niknąć (“to disappear, to be lost”)
- Slovincian: njyknõc (“to disappear, to vanish”)

References

^ Derksen, Rick (2008), “*niknǫti”, in Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 4), Leiden; Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 353
^ Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), “-ни́кнуть”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
^ Smoczyński, Wojciech (2007), “nỹkti”, in Słownik etymologiczny języka litewskiego [Etymological Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language]‎^[1] (in Polish), Vilnius: Vilnius University, pages 425-6
^ Chernykh, P. Ja. (1999), “ни́кнуть”, in Историко-этимологический словарь русского языка [Historical-Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), 3rd edition, volume 1 (а – пантомима), Moscow: Russian Lang., →ISBN, page 573
^ Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1999), “*niknǫti”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), numbers 25 (*neroditi – *novotьnъ(jь)), Moscow: Nauka, →ISBN, page 114

[1] Derksen, Rick (2008), “*niknǫti”, in Etymological Dictionary of the Slavic Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 4), Leiden; Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 353

[2] Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), “-ни́кнуть”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress

[3] Smoczyński, Wojciech (2007), “nỹkti”, in Słownik etymologiczny języka litewskiego [Etymological Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language]‎^[1] (in Polish), Vilnius: Vilnius University, pages 425-6

[4] Chernykh, P. Ja. (1999), “ни́кнуть”, in Историко-этимологический словарь русского языка [Historical-Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), 3rd edition, volume 1 (а – пантомима), Moscow: Russian Lang., →ISBN, page 573

[5] Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1999), “*niknǫti”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), numbers 25 (*neroditi – *novotьnъ(jь)), Moscow: Nauka, →ISBN, page 114

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