Dual

The historical forms of the Indo-European dual are only three forms: one for the nominative , accusative and vocal cases, one for the genitive and local ( prepositional ) and one for the dative , depositional and instrumental .

However, in the Avestan language there is a distinction between the forms of the genitive and the local dual. This, as well as the presence in two Indo-European languages ​​of two types of endings for the dative and instrumental dual, make us suggest that in the Indo-European language the forms of the genitive and local, as well as the dative and instrumental, differed from each other and only in separate languages ​​coincided. Moreover, the difference between the genitive and the local is preserved in the Zend language, and the various forms of the dative and instrumental are distributed in different separate languages ​​(see “ Dative case ”). These assumptions have only a certain degree of probability and cannot be proved.

Indo-European numeral * H₁oḱtōu “eight” is a dual form from the base that has not reached us * H₁oḱtō , cf. in Kartvelian languages : cargo. ოთხი [ otxi ], Lazsk. otxo four.

In the Tokhar language, in addition to the dual, there is a separate pair number, which naturally expressed the pairs that arose, for example, two hands, two eyes, etc.

The dual number existed in the Old Russian language (as in other Slavic languages), but early (the 13th century) it began to be replaced by the plural. In the XIV century, the correct use of the dual forms is still common, but there are already various secondary forms nearby, indicating the oblivion of the primary meaning of the primordial forms of the dual.

The numeral "two", g. R. "Two" (dr.-Russian. Dva, dvѣ) retained the typical endings of the Old Russian dual: - a, and -ѣ. These endings, as well as -i, were used in almost all cases, except for a very small group of words of the ancient declension to the short -u (see below). In the proto-Slavic dialect of the Indo-European parent language, the dual number was formed in some cases - by lengthening the vowel basis, in others - by joining the ending i; according to the phonetic laws of the Proto-Slavic language, a long * -ō in declension -o turned into * -a (* stolō> tables), diphthong * -ai in declension to -a, and equally diphthong * -oi in words of a secondary kind of declension to * - about - in ѣ (* genai> womenѣ), long * -ū - in-s (* sūnū> sons), long * -ī - in-s (* noktī> nights).

Dual Nouns

In the nominative case:

• The ending -a was used for the masculine words of the ancient basis on -o (now I declination): two brothers, tables (for the soft type, that is, after the soft consonant - I: two princes ),
• Words of the middle kind of the same declension and words of the base on -a, that is, the current II declension, ended with a solid type in ѣ, in soft in -i: dvѣ lѣtѣ, mori, sister, dvitsi .
• In the remaining declensions there was an ending -and: lights, nights, mothers, daughters, stones, sѣmeni, bukovy .
• The exception was only a few words of the ancient basis for short u, the dual number of which was: sons, honey, feasts (with the plural: son, honey, feast ); subsequently, this form supplanted the ancient plural.

When declensing nouns, in the dative and instrumental cases the ending -ma was assigned, and in the genitive and local endings -u (after the soft consonant -u), firsthand ("firsthand"), first cousin ("double native"):

The basis for -o (now II declination)

I-V-Sv kind, horse, lѣtѣ, mori

R.-M. kind, horse, summer, sea

D.-T. rhodoma, horse, summer, sea

Short-u basis

I-V.-Sv. honeys

R.-M. honey

D.-TV. medma

Based on -a (now I declination)

I-V.-Sv. sister, will, dovici

R.-M. sister, will, dovitsu

D.-TV. sister, volyama, dovitsama

Based on -i (now III declination)

I-V.-Sv. nights

R.-M. sleepover

D.-TV. night

Consonant basis

I-V.-Sv. stones, wheels, change

R.-M. stone, wheel, change

D.-TV. stones, wheels, sѣmenma

The foundation for long -u

I-V.-Sv. letters

R.-M. the letter

D.-TV. bukwama

The dual number of pronouns

Personal pronouns sounded like this:

• 1st l .: vѣ
• 2nd l.: You ^{[1] [2]} (wah)
• 3rd l. : m. - me, w. R. and cf. R. - and. Subsequently: m. - she, w. R. and cf. R. - heѣ (similar to the corresponding demonstrative pronoun ).

The forms of the feminine and neuter gender of all pronouns in the dual number coincided.

The pronoun of 1 person in the accusative case had a different form of the nominative: on.

E-Sv. (personal) vѣ, va, i, and; (indicate) that, tѣ; she, heѣ; si, these
B. (personal) at - // -
R.-M. (personal) naya; vayu; ѣu, (indicate) that, it, I sow
D-TV (personal) nama; vama; ima, (indicate) tѣma, onѣma, sѣma,

The dual number of verbs

Present
1st L. nesevѣ, becomeѣ, knowingѣ, praisingѣ
2nd and 3rd lll. carries, becomes, knows, praises

(In the Pre-Slavic and Old Slavonic 3rd person had a special ending, similar to the 2nd l. Plural: carry, become, you know, praise)

Aorist
1st L. nesokhovѣ, stakhovѣ, znakhovѣ, praisesѣ, bykhovѣ
2nd and 3rd lll. misfortune, stast, znast, boastful, quick

(3rd person of the Aorist in the Pre-Slavic and Old Slavonic: misfortune, stast, know, praise, faster)

Imperfect
1st L. nesyakhovѣ, praisesлях, byakhovѣ
2nd and 3rd lll. Bearing, boasting, bust.

(In Old Slavonic:

1st L. nesѣahovѣ, staahovѣ, znakhovѣ, praiseѣahovѣ, bѣakhovѣ
2 l nesѣasheta, staasheta, znashašta, praise šasheta, basheta)
3rd person you don’t, you stasite, you know, praise, you’re bash)

Imperative mood

1st L. nesѣvѣ, stanѣvѣ, knowingѣ, praisingѣ
2nd and 3rd lll. Nesѣta, Stanѣta, Knows, Praises

Currently, in the Russian language there are only a few, few remnants of the dual. The forms of the dual (instead of the plural) number have retained the names of some paired objects: horns, eyes, shores, sleeves, sides, shoulders, knees, muds, ears, eyes, etc. The forms of the quasi-genitive case go back to it (in fact the case of the nominative-accusative-vocal dual) with the names of the numerals: two brothers (as well as three, four brothers , but five brothers ), by the type of which combinations arise, like two wives (but five wives ) with a genitive case. There are two forms of the indirect cases of the numeral: two-x, two-m, two, where the two are the genitive-prepositional of the dual, complicated by the endings of pronouns of the type tex , te-m , etc. two, three, four, where m = the ancient ending of the dative and instrumental dual number -m , softened under the influence of the ending of the creative plural mi (originally there were two , but three ). The numeral is twelve (nominative, accusative, vocal feminine), two hundred (instead of two ste , nominative, accusative, vocal neuter). Some adverbs are like firsthand (the dual pronoun), between (also), etc.

In some proverbs similar forms are preserved: a sparrow sits on a tyn, hopes on a wing (accusative dual), etc. In northern Great Russian dialects, the ending of the dative and instrumental dual -ma is in the role of the ending of the plural: from the foot, from the arm , with a stick . Similar forms are found in the Belarusian and Ukrainian languages. Also in modern Indo-European languages ​​came from the dual forms of numerals Russian. “Both”, “both”, “both, both”, Polish. "Oba" “Both,” etc.

The word between is by origin a local case of the dual number of the Old Slavonic noun mezhda (Russian mezha ). Also, the combination of "two hours" can be called the next double, while the genitive is "cháca" (for example, "from this hour").

• Horse wild svoima hands tied
• The tour was me 2 metal (...) and 2 moose , one trampled underfoot, and the other horned pain.

The teachings of Vladimir Monomakh

• Two suns of darkness, both the crimson slope of the extinct , and the sea of ​​the loader , and with them the young month , Oleg and Svyatoslav, the darkness of the tow.
• You, buoys of Rurich, and Davyde! Do I not howl howl with gilded blood on the blood floating ?

A word about Igor's regiment

• Two brothers are best in spirit. (...) Named is great love and greatness among themselves.
• Many brothers pray for it <"brothers in spirit">, as soon as they reconcile themselves between themselves
• Formerly two husbands of some from the great city of one’s friend .

Kiev Pechersk Paterik

• And ҆ bѣsta ѻ҆ баba nȃga , and ҆dam and their wife ̀ ѡ̀ ҆, and ҆ not shame ст stasѧ .

Genesis , ch. 2, Art. 25.

• The same came є҆mꙋ̀ in the home , the priest’s kꙋ̀ꙋ̀ꙋ̀ꙋ̀ꙋ̀ꙋ̀ѣѣ̑̑҆҆҆҆҆҆҆, and the main one was : ҆ма ҃ ли ли лиѣѣ ли ли ли лиѣ ли ли ли ли ли ли ли ли ли ли ли ли ли ,҆ѐ҆ѐ҆ѐ҆ѐ created; Of the verb є҆мє҆: є҆й, ГДⷭ҇и. Then ̀ touched ѻ҆ ч ч ҆ ҆ ҆ ҃ѧ х по, chapter: by the time of your birth to you. And ѿ Inverstasѧ ѻ҆chi i҆ma : and ҆ prohibition ҆ ма ҆ ҆ ҃ ҃ ъ ҃ѧ, chl: dishonoring , but no one knows. But on the other hand , the proverbial God throughout the whole earth. The same is the one coming , with, brought to him the human being, we are unconscious.

Matthew , chapter 9, art. 28-32

Wilhelm von Humboldt considered the idea of ​​the dual number to be erroneous as being limited only to the concept of the number “two”. According to his idea, the dual number combines the nature of the plural and singular: it is both collectively singular of the number two, while the plural can reduce the set to unity only in certain cases. Thus, the dual number expresses the collectively unique function, the idea of ​​"unity in the multitude."

According to Humboldt, expressed by him in one of his recent works, the unfinished Über den Dualis, the dual is wrong to consider a luxury or an outdated growth on the body of the tongue. From a philosophical point of view, the dual number fits well into the general proportionality of speech formation, multiplying the possible interconnections of words, increasing the scale of the influence of the language and contributing to the philosophical foundations of acuity and brevity of understanding. In this, it has the advantage that any grammatical form has, which differs from the corresponding descriptive expression in the brevity and liveliness of the impact ^[3] .

• Number (linguistics)
• Triple number
• Spider number

• W. von Humboldt, Über den Dualis (Berl., 1828, as well as Gesamm. Werke, vol. VI);
• Silberstein, Über d. Dualis in dem indogerm. Sprachstamm ”(Jahn's Jahrbücher, Suppl. XV, 1849);
• Fr Müller, Der Dual im indogerm. und semit. Sprachgebiet "(B., 1860); Brugmann, Grundriss d. vergl. Grammatik d. indogerm. Sprachen ”(vol. II, 1890), where other literature is also indicated.
• V.V. Ivanov. Historical grammar of the Russian language. M., 1983 or according to some data 1982
• The dual number // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.