bažnīnčė

Samogitian

Alternative forms

• bažnīčė

Etymology

Borrowed from Old East Slavic божница (božnica, “church, capel”), probably specifically from the dialectal form бозьница (bozĭnica), ultimately from Proto-Slavic *bogъ (“god”) or *božьnъ (“divine”). Cognate to Latvian baznīca, baznice, Lithuanian bažnyčia.

Noun

bažnīnčė f

1. church

Usage notes

• Both forms bažnīnčė and bažnīčė, the latter of which is more etymological, are in use. Note however that there is no Lithuanian variant equivalent *bažnynčia.

References

• “Žemaičių Žodynas”, in Žemaičių žemė‎^[1], number 86 (overall work in Lithuanian), 2012 April, page 17: “Bažnīnčė — bažnyčia”