Here’s a new thing I’m doing: typing up my notes from Bulgarian classes, with highlights that might be interesting for you language-nerds out there.
Today we talked about vacations. Here are some interesting words:
Stanyavane=check-in, from nastanyavam (to check in), from the root stan (a campsite) cognate to English “stand,” (through Latin) “state,” “stable,” and (through Persian) the “-stan” in Kazakhstan and many other countries.
Zapazvam=to reserve, literally “for-save”
Otsyadam=to spend the night somewhere, literally “from-sit” (syadam is also cognate to “stan”)
Zadalzhitelno tryabva=one has to. Literally “one obligatorily should” In general, Bulgarian makes no distinction between “one should” (tryabva) and “one has to” (tryabva), but if necessary, this is one way to do it.
Obslyzhvane= service (in a hotel or restaurant). From obsluzhvam/ga obsluzha (to serve), related to usluga (a favor), uslugi (services), sluzhba (duty, service as in military service), and sluga (a servant).
Nedostatak=a con, literally “an insufficiency.” From dostatachno (enough). The opposite is predimstvo (a pro).
Sabor=a village festival, a town fair. From sabiram (to gather)
Pekhlivanin=a strong young man, from Turkish pehlivan (a wrestler)
Bungala=Camping houses. Look at that nice plural neuter ending 🙂 From the name of the Indian region Bengal through English “bungalow.”
Otpusk=a bank holiday literally a “from-release” from puskam (to release, to let go)
Noshtuvka=a night in a hotel (as in, “we’ll spend three nights there”) literally “night-of-thing”
Ot edna strana=on the one hand. Literally “from one side.”
Se sluchva=It happens. Literally “it becomes itself” or “it is become.”
Tune in next week for more exciting notes from my Bulgarian classes!