# All Slavic languages: African and its diminutive



## Encolpius

Hello, how do you say *African *and its *diminutive *(actually "little African") in your languages? If the diminutive form is possible at all? Thanks. 

*Czech*: Afričan - Afričánek


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## Sobakus

*Russian*: африк*а*нец - no diminutive, since this suffix is at least partially borrowed and doesn't form diminutives, in the standard language any way.


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## oveka

*Ukrainian*: африканч*а*


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## ahvalj

Sobakus said:


> *Russian*: африк*а*нец - no diminutive, since this suffix is at least partially borrowed and doesn't form diminutives, in the standard language any way.


Африканчик https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=африканчик&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8


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## Sobakus

ahvalj said:


> Африканчик https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=африканчик&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8



Well, that got me doubting, I've also found 14 pages of _американчик_ and even more of _итальянчик_. Haven't met such usage myself before though, so it feels neologistic to me, and the mere 155 results only strengthen this feeling.


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## ahvalj

As with other diminutives, this is an open pattern, and people form these words when necessary. I didn't hear _африканчик_ either, just I knew they would exist.


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## francisgranada

Slovak:

_Afričan_, for the diminutive _Afričanko _sounds the best to me.


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## Милан

*Serbian:*
Афринакац-Африканчић /Afrikanac-Afrikančić


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## M_L_P

In Slovene: Afričan - Afričanček


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## DarkChild

Bulgarian: африканец (afrikanets) - африканче (afrikanche)

Generally, any word has a diminutive. There are even compound diminutives e.g. африканченце (afrikanchentse)


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## Thomas1

In Polish:
Afrykanin, Afrykańczyk -- African

Perhaps, "Afrykaninek" could formally be a diminutive of "Afrykanin", but I can't remember if I've ever come across it. You could also play with other diminutive suffixes to form diminutives of both "Afrykanin" and "Afrykańczyk", but I'm not sure there's one well-established.


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## DeeDol

francisgranada said:


> Slovak:
> 
> _Afričan_, for the diminutive _Afričanko _sounds the best to me.



I'd like to add that I've never heard anyone use the word "Afričanko" and I think it does not really exist. We don't use diminutives of nationalities, maybe with the exception of literature, where almost anything is possible


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## francisgranada

DeeDol said:


> ...We don't use diminutives of nationalities ...


This is valid for other languages too, I believe. However, there are familiy names that derive from such diminutives, e.g. Slováček, Poliaček, Rusko, ... I've tried to create a diminutive from the theorical possibilities ("Afričanček", "Afričaník" ...) and as result, _Afričanko_ sounds the most acceptable to me (I've found it also in Google).


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## Maroseika

Russian Masc. diminutive африканчик is really rarely used, but Fem. one - *африканочка *- is used rather wide.


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## nimak

DarkChild said:


> Bulgarian: африканец (afrikanets) - африканче (afrikanche)



Same in *Macedonian*.

African = африкански (afrikanski) [af 'rikanski]
African (_male_) = Африканец (Afrikanec) [af 'rikanɛt͡s]
African (_female_) = Африканка (Afrikanka) [af 'rikaŋka]
African (_diminutive, male and female_) = Африканче (Afrikanče) [af 'rikant͡ʃɛ]


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## jasio

Thomas1 said:


> Perhaps, "Afrykaninek" could formally be a diminutive of "Afrykanin", but I can't remember if I've ever come across it.


https://www.salon24.pl/u/jakelo/386365,julian-tuwim-bambo-wersja-poprawna-bo-poprawiona ;-)

Hint: this is a politically correct version of an old poem for children, about a Negro child (Murzynek Bambo) with the word announced by some 'offensive' (despite the feelings of the majority, which has always considered it neutral), being replaced with a created word for a "little African" - albeit technically the latter refers to all people from Africa, not necessarily subsaharan.


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