Slovene
/sloʊˈviːn/noun
A person from Slovenia or the South Slavic language spoken chiefly in Slovenia.
Did you know?Slovene belongs to the same broad ethnonymic family as Slav, but scholars debate whether the ancient name ultimately meant “people who share speech” or had another origin.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ḱlew-
“A reconstructed root associated with hearing, being heard, and fame; this connection is proposed rather than certain for the ethnonym.”
Proto-Slavic
Proto-Slavic
*slověninъ
“The reconstructed ancestral form of the Slavic ethnonym, probably referring to a Slavic person or community.”
Old Church Slavonic
Old Church Slavonic
словѣнинъ (slověninŭ)
“A Slav; a member of the Slavic-speaking peoples.”
Medieval Slavic
Slovenian
Slovenec / Slovenci
“A Slovene person / Slovenes, the native forms used for the people.”
19th Century
English
Slovene
“An English form used for a person of Slovenia and for the Slovenian language.”
Modern English
English
Slovene
“A person from Slovenia or the language of Slovenia.”