Where does “душа” come from?

душа (Bulgarian) comes from Old Church Slavonic доуша, from Proto-Slavic duša, from Proto-Slavic *duxja.

душа (Bulgarian): soul the immaterial, spiritual part of a person, often understood as distinct from the body

Definitions

  1. soul the immaterial, spiritual part of a person, often understood as distinct from the body

Ancestry of “душа”, step by step

душа traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Old Church Slavonic доуша

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Church Slavonicдоушаsoul
2Proto-Slavicdušasoul; spirit
3Proto-Slavic*duxja—

via Proto-Slavic dušiti

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Slavicdušitito breathe heavily; to smother, to suffocate, to...
2Proto-Indo-European-éyetiForms causative imperfective verbs from roots;...
3Proto-Indo-European-yetiCreates transitive imperfective verbs from roots
Every word from Proto-Slavic *duxja →Every word from Proto-Slavic duša →Every word from Old Church Slavonic доуша →