# All Slavic languages: Music



## Mac_Linguist

What is the older Slavic word for "music"?

I've heard, from Russians, _гласьба_ and _гудьба _(I think the latter applies to instrumental music only).

Does anyone have anything to add?


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## tkekte

Eehh, I've never seen гласьба or гудьба in Russian. Hudba means music in Czech, and glasba is Slovenian, I think.


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## Thomas1

Russians have музыка as well as we do, _i.e. _muzyka.


Tom


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## Irbis

Yes, we have "glasba" in Slovenian.


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## Athaulf

In standard Croatian, the preferred word for _music_ is _glazba_. However, in everyday language, this word is sounds rather bookish and most people use _muzika_.


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## Jana337

We have both _hudba_ and _muzika_, the latter being somewhat colloquial.


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## kid TJ

Irbis said:


> Yes, we have "glasba" in Slovenian.


We also say "muzika" quite often (well, in Ljubljana (not sure for other parts of Slovenia) we shorten it in: "muska" when we say it - but this is very very colloquial of course). But I just looked in the dictionary and the word "muzika" is also in it.


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## cajzl

The Czech word *hudba* is a relatively recent invention (XIX. century). It was regularly derived from the verb *hudu*, inf. *housti* (< O.Cz. *hústi*).

Proto-Slavic: *gądą*, inf. *gąsti *(< gąd-ti)
Polish: *gędę*, inf. *gąść*
...

(ą = nasal o)


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## Maryne

Hello, in Serbian is Muzika while in croation is Glazba.Bye Maryne


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## Mac_Linguist

Does anyone, then, know the origin of the word _glasba_? I know it comes from the Slavic _glas_ ("voice"), but when was it first used in Slovene (and Croatian)?

What have purists proposed in your language as a replacement?

And, does anyone know anything about _гласьба_ and _гудьба _in Russian? I've seen them used on Russian Slavic mythology sites.



cajzl said:


> It was regularly derived from the verb *hudu*, inf. *housti* (< O.Cz. *hústi*).



Yes. _Housti _and _hráti_.


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## Mac_Linguist

What about the Czech (?) word _hlasba_? Vokabular lists the archaic Serbian _glazba_ (as well as Croatian) as coming from Czech.

A Google search lists very few, mostly unrelated results with two or three from Slovakia.


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## Irbis

I can find glasba (and also muzika) in Pleteršnik's Slovenian-German dictionary from 1895. I don't have etymological dictonary to check there.


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## werrr

cajzl said:


> The Czech word *hudba* is a relatively recent invention (XIX. century).


Only in its modern meaning, the word itself is definitely older. Formerly it was used only for the string music or string instruments.



> It was regularly derived from the verb *hudu*, inf. *housti* (< O.Cz. *hústi*).
> 
> Proto-Slavic: *gądą*, inf. *gąsti *(< gąd-ti)
> Polish: *gędę*, inf. *gąść*
> ...
> 
> (ą = nasal o)


Which is all derived from Proto-Slavic “gosl” (= string).



			
				Mac_Linguist said:
			
		

> What about the Czech (?) word hlasba? Vokabular lists the archaic Serbian glazba (as well as Croatian) as coming from Czech.


I never noticed it in (old) Czech nor (old) Slovak.


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## Tolovaj_Mataj

Irbis said:


> I can find glasba (and also muzika) in Pleteršnik's Slovenian-German dictionary from 1895. I don't have etymological dictonary to check there.


I have it. There's no entry for _glasba_, only for _glas _(from 16th cent.). 

_Muzika_ was taken from German _Musik_ or from Italian _musica_ in 17th cent., so the dictionary says

_Godba_ derives from the verb _gosti_ (16th cent.), which still means to play on the string instrument. But the word godba has widen its meaning nowadays to a group of musicians who play instruments.


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## Thomas1

cajzl said:


> The Czech word *hudba* is a relatively recent invention (XIX. century). It was regularly derived from the verb *hudu*, inf. *housti* (< O.Cz. *hústi*).
> 
> Proto-Slavic: *gądą*, inf. *gąsti *(< gąd-ti)
> Polish: *gędę*, inf. *gąść*
> ...
> 
> (ą = nasal o)


I must admit I've never come across this word, it's not even in the fullest dictionary I know. Anyway, I looked it up in a dictionary of Old Polish and it has its entry there, it means to sing/play.

Tom


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## Athaulf

werrr said:


> cajzl said:
> 
> 
> 
> The Czech word *hudba* is a relatively recent invention (XIX. century). It was regularly derived from the verb *hudu*, inf. *housti* (< O.Cz. *hústi*).
> 
> Proto-Slavic: *gądą*, inf. *gąsti *(< gąd-ti)
> Polish: *gędę*, inf. *gąść*
> ...
> 
> (ą = nasal o)
> 
> 
> 
> Which is all derived from Proto-Slavic “gosl” (= string).
Click to expand...


Interestingly, this root has barely changed in the South Slavic languages, in which _gusle_ is the name for a variety of ancient folk string instruments (in Croatian, it was also used for violins and other modern string instruments, but nowadays such usage would be odd). There is also the verb _guslati_.


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