Where does “товарищь” come from?
товарищь (Old East Slavic) comes from Proto-Slavic tovarišь, from Proto-Slavic tovarъ, from Proto-Turkic *tabar — livestock, cattle.
Ancestry of “товарищь”, step by step
товарищь traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Proto-Slavic tovarišь
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proto-Slavic | tovarišь | — |
| 2 | Proto-Slavic | tovarъ | loading |
| 3 | Proto-Turkic | *tabar | livestock, cattle |
via Proto-Slavic *tovariščь
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proto-Slavic | *tovariščь | friend, comrade, companion |