Slav Definition

släv
noun
A member of any of a group of Slavic-speaking peoples of E, SE, and central Europe, generally divided into Eastern Slavs, Southern Slavs, and Western Slavs.
Webster's New World
(UK, birdwatching) The Slavonian grebe.
Wiktionary
abbreviation
Slavic.
Webster's New World
adjective
Webster's New World
pronoun

Alternative form of Slavey.

Wiktionary

Other Word Forms of Slav

Noun

Singular:
Slav
Plural:
slavs

Origin of Slav

  • Commonly thought to derive from Proto-Slavic *slovo (“word"), thus meaning "those who speak meaningfully" and contrasting with *nÄ›mÑŒcÑŒ (“foreigner", literally “dumb/mute person"). However, that word is an s-stem and thus the inflectional stem of that word is *sloves-, so it cannot be the direct origin as it would lead to an expected form *slovesÄ›ni (compare Russian словесность (slovesnost')). Thus the most likely origin is the verb *sluti (“to be known"). Both words ultimately derive from Proto-Indo-European *ḱlew- (“fame").

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English sclave, from Medieval Latin sclavus or Sclavus, from Byzantine Greek Σκλάβος (Sklábos), from earlier Σκλαβῆνος (SklabÄ“nos), plural Σκλαβῆνοι (SklabÄ“noi), from Proto-Slavic *slovÄ›nji, *slovÄ›ne (“those who speak meaningfully"), singular *slovÄ›ninÑŠ. Compare Old Church Slavonic словѣни (slovÄ›ni), словѣнє (slovÄ›ne, “Thessalonian Slavs"), Old East Slavic словѣне (slovÄ›ne, “Slavs near Novgorod").

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English Sclave from Medieval Latin Sclāvus from Late Greek Sklabos alteration of Old Slavic Slověninŭ

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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