Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/skoba

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 reconstructions

• *sъkoba

Etymology

Main proposals:

• Meillet, Leskien: Related to dialectal Russian ко́бень (kóbenʹ, “hook”), Lithuanian sánkaba/sùkaba (“clasp”), kabė (“clasp”), kablỹs (“hook”) (from Lithuanian kabėti (“to hang”)), Latvian kablis (“hook”), probably from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kebʰ- (“to hook, to hold, to fasten”). Further akin to Sanskrit स्कम्भ (skambhá, “pole”) (with nasal infix).
• Miklošič, Uhlenbeck: From Proto-Indo-European *(s)keb- (“to shape”), *(s)kemb- (“to bend”), related to Proto-Germanic *skapą (“shape”), *humpaz (“hump”), Latin scamnum (“bench”), Ancient Greek κόμβος (kómbos, “node”), Proto-Celtic *kambos (“twisted, crooked”), possibly Proto-Germanic *skup- (“barn, shop”).
• Less likely from Proto-Indo-European *skabʰ- (“to scratch, to carve”), related to Proto-Slavic *skobľь, *skobľa (“cutting tool, scraper”), Lithuanian skabýti (“to delve”). Further related to Ancient Greek σκᾰ́φος (skáphos, “hull of a ship”), σκάφη (skáphē, “bowl, tube”), Latin scobis (“wood chip”). Compare dialectal Bulgarian ско́ба (skóba, “wide chisel”), Romanian scoabă (“adze”) (a Slavic borrowing).

Noun

*skobà f

1. bracket, shackle, cramp
2. clasp, buckle

Inflection

Declension of *skobà (hard a-stem, accent paradigm c)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*skobà	*skȍbě	*skȍby
genitive	*skobý	*skobù	*skòbъ
dative	*skobě̀	*skobàma	*skobàmъ
accusative	*skȍbǫ	*skȍbě	*skȍby
instrumental	*skobojǫ́	*skobàma	*skobàmi
locative	*skȍbě	*skobù	*skobàsъ, *skobàxъ*
vocative	*skobo	*skȍbě	*skȍby

^* -asъ is the expected Balto-Slavic form but is found only in some Old Czech documents; -axъ is found everywhere else and is formed by analogy with other locative plurals in -xъ.

Derived terms

• *skobъka, *skobica (diminutive)
• *skoblъ, *skobla (“clasp”)
  • Polish: skobel, skóbl
  • Sorbian:
    • Lower Sorbian: skobla
    • Upper Sorbian: skobla
• *skobaľь, *skobařь, *skobьrъ (“chub, nase (fish)”) (in South Slavic)

Related terms

• *skobľati (“to carve, to delve with a tool”)
• *ščebьňь (“gravel, rubble”)
• *xobotъ (“proboscis”)

Descendants

• Old East Slavic: скоба (skoba)
  • Belarusian: скаба́ (skabá)
  • Russian: скоба́ (skobá)
  • Ukrainian: ско́ба (skóba), dial. скоба́ (skobá)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Old Cyrillic script: скоба (skoba)

    Glagolitic script: ⱄⰽⱁⰱⰰ (skoba)

  • Bulgarian: ско́ба (skóba)
  • Macedonian: ско́ба (skóba)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: ско̏ба

    Latin script: skȍba

  • Slovene: skȯ́bа (tonal orthography)
• West Slavic:
  • Czech: skoba
  • Slovak: skoba

• Non-Slavic:
  • → Romanian: scoabă (“crampon”)
  • → Hungarian: eszkába

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “скоба”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Racheva, M., Todorov, T. A., editors (2002), “скоба¹”, in Български етимологичен речник (in Bulgarian), volume 6 (пỳскам – словàр²), Sofia: Prof. Marin Drinov Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 760
• “kabėti”, in Lietuvių kalbos etimologinio žodyno duomenų bazė, 2007–2012