A Study of the Origins,
Connections and Meanings
of The Indo-European words:
Reeka, Ree, Rea and River
in Language and Mythology
By Odyssey Belchevsky
Abstract: “The
Miracles of the River”
The rivers are
one of the most wonderful creations of nature. They have existed long
before the existence of men.
They are often
things of great beauty. Some are colossal. They have flowed for ever
and have accompanied men since time immemorial. They can be raging
or calm. They are always exciting and inspiring. They run on the surface
of the Earth as the veins run along the human body carrying life giving
blood. People make and dedicate songs to the rivers. Every spring they
swell and gush with ‘new life’as they bring water into
the fields to sustain a host of living things. They “give” to
all living creatures and plants for ever without discrimination.
Could it be possible
that the river influenced men
in creation of their early Mythology as well as helped
in their language creation, building and organizing their existence
and way of life? This should not be a surprise. .The rivers create
natural lines on the surface of the Earth.These natural lines helped
early men to create the concepts of division of land,create ownership,rule,order,and
other concepts in their early existence.The study penetrates to a deeper
level of actually understanding primary Language creation,from nature.
Logical explanations
of how the very existence of the river created
primary language religious and social concepts are given. These
are as follows:
1. The part of the Classical Mythology associated with and created by
the river. This study gives clear explanation of the classical relation
of the Goddess Rea and supreme God Zeus. This part of the study,
confirms the statement of the Ancient philosophers Plato and Herodotus
in Classical Greece, that many of classical gods and their traditions
were received from the’ barbarians’ The barbarians were
the Ancient Europeans-non Greeks, whose speech was not understood
by the Greeks according to the leading expert the German Linguist
and Etymologist Georg Curtius from the Universiry of Leipzig in his
grand study on the Principles of Greek Etymology in the late 19 th
Century.
2.The Concept associated with the Latin words’ regio’ ’ rex’,
which today are present as universal words in all European Languges.In
English these are region, regal, rule, king, regulate- control. This
is the most primary concept for establishing land division borders,
control, ownership and social structure. Over time the concept of
land division and ownership, evolved into the concept of kingdom
and separate countries as they are known today.
3 The Devine existence of’ continual indiscriminant ‘loving
and ‘giving’ of the River to all living creatures on
earth, which explains one of the most fundamental Christian believes
today.
Mother river, (Ma rika, Ma Rea,Maria ) in Classical
times Rea, is the continual giver of life sustaining water that gives
birth to all Life on Earth.
In Classical times Rea gives birth to Zeus, in
Christianity Maria ( Ma Ria ) gives birth to Christ –Jihova
that is Life itself on Earth.
4. The concept that is associated with the words
recital, recite, and their related families, which in this study
is named ‘the mode of speaking concept’.
Introduction
The rivers are
the main ‘suppliers’ of water. They always move. The continuous
flow of water in the river created the basic concept of movement[1].But the ‘primary
function’ of water, is that it creates the basic requirement
for life. It is one of the four basic elements that the world is made
of according to the ancient and most learned man, scientist and philosopher
Aristotle.
The river created
a significant number of important language concepts at the earliest
time of the Primary Language creation. The Macedonian and Slavic Languages
offer the strongest support and the living proofs to the idea that ‘the
creation of the Primary Languages was Conceptual and not random. This
was the long process of language creation directly connected to the
Laws of Nature.
Upon completion
of this study and analysis of the concepts associated with a river,
it become rather easy to see the existence of a remarkable symphony
of Language Concepts and the associated meanings of the Mythological
deity Rea- Rea revealed in all her glory.
This was accomplished
with the use of the Macedonian and Slavic Languages. The vocabulary
associated with this magnificent concept of nature is deeply and permanently
imbedded in the Languages of all Slavic Nations and to a lesser degree
as a ripple effect in the other European Languages.
This study provides
the actual ’ ingredients’ that make up what can be considered
as one of the most significant ‘ time layers’ of Primary
Language Creation in Europe and possibly abroad. The information is
given in a logical manner and is explained as long term permanent influence
from Nature to human. The very fact that the given explanations provide
simple and universal understanding on a number of Universal concepts confirms the validity of
the study as a whole.
Study
1 .Explaining the Mythology associated
with Rea the mother of Zeus-Zevs
Archeology and
history teach us that most of the very early human settlements and
villages were build along or close to steady flowing rivers. This was
of course very practical and logical because in order to ensure existence,
the agriculture work had to be successful and a river had to be nearby.
A simple observation of the large deserts on earth shows that life
in these parts of the planet is very limited and marginal for humans.
So in fact the river /water always was the basic necessity and a requirement
for living-existing. In order to provide convincing and reliable data,
this study goes back to the language of the Homeric period
The Homeric word
forms for river and associated with river ,river flow, flow, run etc.
and the Macedonian/Slavic equivalent are as follows:
Homeric (approx.1500 BC) Macedonian/Slavic English Ref
riako - riako - rieka mountain river Henry George
ree - ree - reeka river, flow Liddell G/E.Lex
reei - reei rici, teci, reci flow, a flow of words 1940 Oxford
Vudati reei -( F)udati reei - vodata rici(teci) running water
errieka - errihka
rie - ruh - rie
Now, how and why
are Rea and Zeus related? Was this relationship just the ‘imagination’ of
the Ancient Europeans ?Or was it based on the logical evolution of
human mind based on the continual observation of their surroundings
and need to understand and record its importance in their language
and daily lives.? All the Mythology books today tell us that Rea gives
birth to Zeus. The true meaning and understanding as well as the importance
of this birth of new life or mother-son relationship is easily explained
with an in-depth study of the Slavic languages.
There is significant
and indestructible information retained in these languages that indicates
that the form/name Zeus – Zevs is phonetically and functionally
connected with the massive root of everything associated with life,
living, existence, propagating, creating new life /offspring with the
ritual of marriage
We also know that
Zeus is the Supreme God and’ rules’ the other gods on the
tallest mountain Holimbo (Xolimbos) > Olympus ² We
all know that life and joy of living is the greatest, most valuable,
important, significant ,precious ,beautiful ,most dear irreplaceable
joy of existence. It is what the whole world and existence on Earth
and possibly everywhere in
the Universe is all about. It is, therefore not unreasonable to propose that God=life
Let us propose that: Supreme God Zeus = life
on Earth, or simply Zeus
= life
It is significant
that the presence of the root-word associated with life in the Macedonian and Slavic Languages is massive. Some of the
forms associated with this root follow:
zi > ziv > zivi > ziti >ziviti > zivota >zitie > zivo > zivos > zivio> zivec
zivee > ,zivil³> ziveel = to live,lived,
have lived ( to exist, existed )
What is very important
however, is the existence of a defined conceptual
relation of this massive number of words in these languages today.
It indicates a long term of language development since primary language
creation. This relation is unparalleled in any other language group
in Europe.
Once this concept
is understood, the true meaning of many other concepts, natural laws
as well as the development of fundamental Christian beliefs and rituals
and other world religions can easily be understood.
In
Macedonian today, and to a lesser extent in the other Slavic Languages,
there is an expression of the most solemn swear of trust and pleading
that goes as follows:
Zi ti Bog, Ziv ti Boga, Ziti
majka; ziti deca; = for the life of God, for the life of your mother;
for the life of your children) etc.This carries with it a very familiar reflection of the expression “ by
Zeus”. The human life, the family- children are the most valuable
entities in our existence.
Also
it is important to indicate that the relationship of and concept of
the woman as directly connected to procreation –offspring –existence
and life propagation is most profoundly expressed and connected in
Macedonian and other Slavic Languages as follows:
zena ,zene,zeni, zeneti >gene> genesis>genetics
Only in these
Languages there is the functional and phonetic/etymological root and
word connection and relation between the following fundamental words:
woman >wife >marriage >creation and
propagation of new life > living>existing.
The woman is the
divine and only entity that bears new life. This relationship brings
new fresh light and reconfirms the meaning of life itself. Now there
is a very large group of related words in most of the Slavonic languages
that are associated with this concept:
Macedonian….. Divos,
divina, divno , deva , devica, devojka , devojce, Divovi
English………All
nature divine young virgin girl-female Gods of Nature
Divos, divina, has the meaning of all living’ God
created Natural world’ untouched by humans from which originated
the word divine. An unmarried virgin woman in Slavic is deva, devica, devojka.She is the divine creation that propagates
human life[2].
Zivos evolves into divos and has retained the meaning of’ all natural creation’. This
is directly related to God and includes
everything existing. Today God is equaled to life and all living. The forms divo>diva> divi>dii
have very close affinity to and provide alternative meaning to the
Latin’dii>die deus’.
What is very significant
is that the form Divos has been found on inscription in the Balkans
on Ancient coins This is inscribed as “qibos = Dibos = divos” This has very close affinity to the Greek
word qeios=qeos which today makes
a very significant part of our Society.
It is important
to note here that in the other European languages the words associated
with Theos> Deos> God, have very shallow etymological and functional
root relationship. The German etymologist Georg Curtius, indicated
a possibility that it could have evolved from the root/ concept related
to divos,but he did not provide a complete
and convincing study mainly due to not considering the Slavic Languages.
He quotes the
Italian etymologist Ascoli who identified’ theos’ with
the Sanskrit root div and divja-s ‘heavenly’ and from div-eo-s arrives at dveos and theos.
divos > dibos > qibos > qeios > qeos
The Slavic group
of words is firmly supported by the Sanskrit words Jiv =Ziv = living
= life
Also according
to the bible , Eve> Ive is the first woman/ life creator and propagator
on earth. ( zive > ive > eve).
All the personal
names with the base of Iva , Eva ,Ivan, have the fundamental base of
the Macedonian personal names Ziva,Zive, Zivan, Zivko ,Zivka.
Furthermore the biblical form’ Evangelie’ or’ Evangelist’ can
be clearly explained with the combination of
eva< z’eva =living ,life) +zelanie =
(z)evanzelanie>zevanzelie >evangelie
zelanie is the old Slavic word for desire long
for, or simply Zeva(n)zjelie= desire for eternal life.
(Also the older form of God in the bible was
given as Jihova (The letter J can be pronounced as Zj>Ž )
this will yield a very close affinity to the Slavic words Zjiva> Zjivota)
In the Homeric writings we have the word/forms
Zi,Ze, Ziti (Zi Zh,Ziti ) ,with
the meaning to live,
to breathe.
These are the characteristcs of Zeus and are
virtually indentical to the Macedonian/Slavic Zi, Ze, Ziti and all
its relations.
This connects
this study to the study of the early European staple food Zito.
Žito (zeeto)
This is the fundamental
staple food that sustains life and feeds the multitudes.
Zito is the general
term for all grains obtained from agriculture in all Slavic Languages.This
word has the base root ‘ži’and
the particle to or ta( as in zita), which
is a modified form of da and do ,that brings us to the fundamental
meaning of dai doi, doe ,nado(e), = feeding nurishing ( Do mater> Demeter)
The grains are
the most magnificent form of staple food that are functionally related
to life –existence, because they were and still are the fundamental
and lasting entity for feeding
the multitudes and sustaining life in general. They are easily preserved
in containers and can last for many years. They can be planted directly
into the soil and will give new crops >new life.
The agriculture that is associated with the grains
was the main trust of the early human society and development of
all aspects of Civilization that we know today. This is again confirmed with the fact that the deity Demeter
in Central Italy was called Zito
In the Macedonian
modern language there is the dialectical form/verb ,noun and adjective
for’ feeding’ ‘ siti ‘’site ‘ sitost,
nasite’ ‘sit’.All these forms belong to the the same
concept. Food or feeding is what sustains life.
3. Concept associated with Fundamental
Christian beliefs
Now to this point,
this study has shown how and why the most important God – Deity
of the Ancient Europeans Zeus is
clearly related to life itself
as the humans know it on Earth. This life is only possible with the
existence and continual supply of water. Now it is very simple to see that this
has been done most efficiently with the magnificent River Ree>Rea >Reeka
The word reka
in Slavic has feminine significance, which again confirms a woman/mother
and therefore
- Rea-
river> woman> mother of life itself>zeevos >zevs>zeus
-
- She
is the mother that’ bears’- creates life on Earth.
This life is conected in all aspects with the Christian God .Water
sustains life
-
Today this concept is reflected in the Christian rituals of the Baptisam
throughout the world . There is the unmistakable parallel of the ancient
model to the Bathing –Baptism of the lord Jesus Christ in the
River,recorded in the Bible. The Christening ritual is very much universal
today as most of Christian Babies are baptized in the church.
This is the ritual of water bathing that signifies the birth of new life
and the rebirth and renewal of men. Long before the emergence of Modern
Christianity,this ritual was reflected in the ancient ritual of
the Macedonian priests ( 700-800 BC)
This
is very significant as this study also provides alternative and understandable
meaning of the name of Maria the Devine mother of Jihova –Christ
which again connects the reader with the river concept.It is a recorded
fact for thousands of years and an exact parallel to the Ancient European’ Mythological” concept
as follows:
Mythology…………. Rea ,ree,riako,rieka-river > gives
birth to Zeus-life
Christianity…………Ma-ria
,(Ma-rika) > gives birth to Jihova-Christ –life
In Macedonian
today there is a very old and specific feminine name related to Maria
and that is Marika-Mareeka
In the central
region of Macedonia the dialectical form of this name is pronounced
MÀ-reeka.This name is recorded in numerous songs in many regions
over centuries.
It is a basic
combination of the root Ma (mother, Homeric Maia), combined
with Reeka and has the inescapable meaning of Mother River. This name
can be the remnant of an older name –form of a ‘divine
river- mother’ that brings, always gives and maintains the life
sustaining water to every living entity in the world.In Macedonia and
the Balkans there are many rivers which names bear very close affinity
to this concept.These are:Marica in southern Macedonia flowing in the Aegian Sea,Maris(a) a tribituary to the Ister( Danube)in
Scythia as per Herodotus 4.48, Margos a
river in Illiria, Marisos a
river in Dacia flowing in the Danube, Mareia the
name of a fountain in Alexandria.There is also a Roman female name Markia which can be obtained from Marika.
There are numerous
additional Christian rituals that relate to the significance of water
One important one is the Macedonian ritual” Vodici” ‘the
day of the water’ that takes place in the early part of the year
(close to the birth of Christ).During this ceremony the cross (symbol
of Modern Christianity) is ‘thrown’ in the river and the
young men dive into the water in order to retrieve it. People believe
that whoever retrieves the cross from the water, will be blessed with
health, long life and good fortune.
Another ritual
that is related to the significance of water and dates back to Ancient
times of European history, is the ritual of
Khladona >Khladones>Kladenci.This
was specific to the Ancient Macedonians as per J.Kalleris .He struggled to provide logical meaning to this
ancient tradition, and in his book “Les Ancient Macedonien”Athens
1968, could only provide scanty and general information.He did not
consult with the Slavic and Macedonian Languages.
Other Miracles of Reka- Rea
2.Concept associated with the Latin
words Regio ,Rex
A steady supply
of water was essential to these early people as it allowed easy watering
of their crops.
This was done
and is still carried out today by digging channels from a flowing river
and allowing the water to invade the field through gravity.
Later in human
development the rivers became channels for traveling and trade. In
many instances these settlements were positioned where two rivers joined
into one. A good example is the Sumerian Civilization – Messo
potamia (Land between rivers) as well as many cities in Europe today.
This was done
with the use of good logic based on continuous observation of the surroundings
as this location provided a degree of security and safety. One can
easily cross a little brook that dries up in the summer, but a large
steady flowing river is difficult to cross. Also if one river was affected
in some way or dried up, there was the second river still available.
Now, according
to Cassel’s D.P.Simpson MA an authority on the Latin Language,
the Latin base word/root regio is
connected with the words for line “in a straight/continuous line”, a space enclosed by lines, and
from here an administrative division.
At this point
of the study in an attempt to connect this important term with some
reference or source from nature a more in depth etymology of this very
important Latin word and concept was required.However it was nowhere
to be found in the Latin or Greek Languages.For this reason a venture
for the search of the actual etymology in the Slavic Language was considered.
This led to a
very promising, challenging but functional affinity with the Macedonian
words Riga =line; recka= a little line; and reka = river.
Now in nature,
a continuously flowing river is a permanent,
well defined, hard to cross,
and reliable means for division of territory. The river cuts the
land and creates a line. Therefore it was very simple that the easiest
and most logical location to establish a boundary between two territories
or groups of people was the river.
Now the rivers
were there since time immemorial as constant companion and supplier
of life giving water. In continuance with the functional analysis today
we can observe that:
Land was the source
of food and as families grew, there was a real necessity
for establishing order and control. Division of property, and ownership became a basic requirement.
As territories
got actually divided with
the use of these” river lines” the concept of boundary
and territorial claim developed. From
the Concept of order and control emerged the concept of ruler and King.
The Slavic words reka , rieka,rika = river and the Macedonoan
word’ riga’=
line, developed into the Early Latin word regi and regio and from this it developed into region that later required one leader who was given the power to dominate and control the region , who logically attained the name of Regis , Rex - a King.
As additional
support to this study all one has to do is observe that many countries
today have their borders as rivers.All
major cities in the world have rivers flowing through them. Today
the countries of the world are still divided by borders mainly
for the same reason as early humans divided their means of existence-
the workable fields, control
,order and ownership.
A further study
at this point indicates that a massive number of words associated with
this Slavic concept developed in the English and other European Languages.
Regulate - to control
Irrigate, irrigation - watering
the fields by controlling and channeling the water flow.
Rein (L. regnare) - Rule as a King or Queen
Regent, regatta,
and many others
Now it is very important to indicate here that the Italian and Latin word
for River is flumen bearing
no resemblance to Regi, Reka,
Reki.
But also in Latin Rigo, riguus = conduct water, flow. The word flow/riga/ rigo is functionally
related to reka- river and rigo- flow..The rivers always flow.In the modern Greek Language ,the words vor river
is potamos-potamos, which
has very close affinity with the Slavic and Macedonian word potok.The
word ‘potok’ in Slavic belonges to a large family of words
such as potoce ,potece ,potok poture.etc.( little creek, a small flow
of water , to pour water at one time), which is different than the
continuous flow of a river.This is in agreement with the fact that
most of the little rivers in ancient Greece dried up during the hot
season.In fact there was no conceptual development associated with
the word/concept of river.
A review of the
Slavic words associated with the river follows ,and gives further support
to this functional concept.
Rejati to push ( gurati) - the river breaks its own path and way.
Krece, Kreti, = to move, start moving
Riakos - Riakos - Homeric a
mountain river
Reka, rieka,; Recica, Rekicka; River, little river; river as place name
Rika ( Ukrainian. )=
River
Riciti , rici, teci = to flow
Riga = a line
Rie, riti = to dig up soil.In the spring the rivers are
more powerful and displace soil.
According to P.Skok
P.141 Book III, except for the Basque language where we have erreka = river = reka , there are no other parallels
in the other European Language with the word reka,rieka .
Also P. Skok indicates: “ (
Baski) ereka , is cega izlazi da bi praslavenska reč reka mogla
pripadati pred-ie. substratu “
(translation:
from which comes that the pre slav word’river’could belong
to the pre indo-european substrate.) He had no idea how close he came
to the real possibility of this having a very strong merit.
The Slavic Language
Concepts associated and created with the word Reka- river have made
an enormous influence on the languages of Europe and beyond. This kind
of Language creation and development happens over a long period of
time .This clearly indicates that the Slavic Languages are very ancient.
At this time further
analysis of additional aspects of the River,has taken this study to
a much higher level of appreciating and becoming part of the Natural
phenomena associated with this magnificent natural wonder.
4.Concept associated with’the
way of speaking- recital In Slavic, Reci recenica ’
When sitting by
a river in a non populated area over a long period of time it is the
most beautiful experience to hear the continuous pleasant and soothing
to the ear sounds. This happens night or day” The
river never ceases to flow and make natural sounds, it never” sleeps”.
At times it seems that the river is” talking” in a continuous
flowing voice. One can almost picture the ancient workers and planters
of the soil as they walked along the river nearby all day long and
many times at night since we know that most of the plowing
was done on clear moon lit nights. They continually listened to the
song of the River. No power could stop the river, even if one builds
a dam, it will over flow and continue to flow.
From time to time
these sounds appear to transform in melodies and words as if the river
is repeating or reciting a beautiful natural recital or message. These” Recitals” of
the naturally flowing water do change with the seasons as the volume
and therefore the force of this flow changes. In the distant past stories
were told that people believed in the songs of the River.Therefore
it is logical that the natural sounds of the flowing water have influenced
the creation of the Human speech.
In the Homeric Poems we have some very archaic forms and meanings associated
with this Concept, and although these have been most likely altered
over the years by many writers or story tellers, they still have some
excellent clues and valuable indications.
Remanants of vocabulary related to the concept of river in the Homeric
Language
rhsos - resos a river in the Troade also
called Roiths - Roites
Rhsso , rhxhnwr - Resso,.reksinor- “one or somethig that
breaks the way”
Rhsos - A River
and River God - Father of the Trachian King
Resos (Reses)
- and son of the River Strumon ( Struma) …. ( Hesoid
.Th.339 – Hdt. )
As per Homer- In Bithinia known as Ribas- Rivas, Ribas
Also we have the following words and forms in the HP with the associated
meanings:
rhsis, rhsios , (resis,
resios,recis, recios) = to talk, a saying!
This brings us to the Slavic and Macedonian forms:
Recis , reci , rec , recnik, recenica
= to talk, to say, a word,dictionary,sentence
Recitira , recitacija, rekao, ja
reko, = to recite,recitation,he said(told),I said(told)
It is important to the study of this Concept, to indicate that in the
Macedonian and Slavic Languages the word ‘reci’and its
related forms are generally used when saying a sentence or reciting
words without having a conversation.
A recital is always an uninterrupted’ flowing’ form of talk,
given to others that listen and it is most of the time in a poetic “” singing
style” or form of speech There is no” response expected
from the listeners” after a recital. Many times, even if one
listens to a recital or song in a language not understood ,it is still
adored and appreciated A good example of this is when listening to
an Opera.
This is supported in the following observation: If one
sees and hears one person just taking (zbora), he may wonder what is
going on and might ask the person: Are you talking to yourself?
But if we hear a person reciting or singing a song, we usually stop and
listen.
Also in Macedonian, the form “Recenica “indicates
a “flow of words “Reci” expressed in one continuous
sequence. This can be compared to’ zbora’ which is related
to zbir, zbira, sobor, etc. when more than one person is gathered,
indicating an interactive conversation.
In conclusion
The concepts associated with the river are many. These are true miracles
of the river, Mother-river.The Slavic Languages have ‘recorded’in
them an amaizing number of language concepts directly from nature,
many of which are yet to be discovered.These languages have in them
the most valuable and important linguistic information that will help
all future linguists and etymologists achieve a better understanding
of the European Languages, and in general provide simple and logical
meaning to many Natural laws.
‘Language is the most remarkable and the most characteristic
of all human creations’
‘Jazikot e mediumot kade prirodata se
odrazila i zabeležala.Toj ja prestavuva najčudotvornata
i najgenialna kreacija na čovekot’
Translation: (‘Language is the media where
nature is reflected and recorded. It represents the most miraculous
and most genius creation of man’)
Author: Odyssey Belchevsky
© All rights reserved by the author
