Sapovici — Genealogia unei familii lexicale de soi

Author: Anca Mihaela Sapovici

Type: Peer-reviewed journal article

Topic: Etymology of Romanian adjective soios — genealogical lexical family tracing

Summary

Traces the semantic evolution of the Romanian adjective soios (noble breed, good stock) from its Turkish etymon soy (race, lineage), borrowed into Romanian possibly via Greek intermediary. The word shifted from positive connotation (noble, high-breed) in 19th-century texts to pejorative meaning (dirty, uncared-for) in modern Romanian.

Key Arguments

Romanian *soi* derives from Turkish *soy* (race, lineage)
Likely borrowed via spoken Greek (*ngsé*), not directly from Turkish
In 19th-century texts (Ion Ghica, Chibici Revencanu): *soios* = positive, describing noble animals or refined clothing
Modern Romanian: *soios* = dirty, covered in filth, pejorative
Parallel to how Greek loanwords were often re-semanticized after Phanariot period

Named Entities

Turkisms — Turkish loanwords in Romanian
Phanariot period — Phanariot era cultural influence
Romanian-Greek bilingualism — Greek-Romanian linguistic contact

Lexical Family

*soi* — verb, "to cross-breed for better stock"
*soios* — adjective, originally "of good breed" → modern "dirty, neglected"
*soít* — verbal noun

[[sapovici-note-etimologice]] — Etymological notes on Greek-origin Romanian words
[[sapovici-outcome-greek-loanwords]] — The outcome of Greek loanwords in Romanian
[[sapovici-soarta-imprumuturilor]] — The fate of Greek lexical borrowings in Romanian

Status