Rai (paradise)

The term Rai in Slavic languages is a term for a heavenly or earthly paradise. In some of these languages the term is a synonym with the Greco-Persian term paradise.

Etymology

The etymology of Common Slavic rai is disputed now GeneRally regarded as a direct borrowing from Iranian ray, "heavenly radiance, beatitude". If so then two Persian words ray ("radiance") and pardeis ("park") both separately passed into some Slavic languages; for example Russian where "paradise" is generally rai (Рай) but paradiz (Парадиз) from English is also encountered. Alternative derivations have included:

"glad" Jacob Grimm, James Steven Stallybrass Teutonic Mythology 2: 1888 p461 "The Slav, rai, paradise, Miklosich 73 would derive fr. rod", glad, as nai fr. nad". Boh. raghrad or rai-grad, paradise- garden," p821 "All the Slavs call paradise rai, Serv. raj, Pol. ray, Boh. rag, to which add Lith. rojus, sometimes called rojaus sodas (garden of par.), or simply darzas (garden). Rai as a contraction of paradise (Span. parayso) is almost too violent; ." -- Jacob Grimm reprint 2003 p620

Boh. raghrad or rai-grad, paradise- garden, later hradiste (castle), a plot encircled by a round wall, in which the Slavs held feasts and games, and sang songs ; so the gral-hqfe, grale. Herod. 3, 26 calls vOa<riq a fiarcdpwv v^cro?,

Proto-Slavic yrii, "land of warmth."

The term passed from Slavic usage into Romanian.

Usage

Slavonic

Usage of rai in Slavic languages differs from that of "paradise" in Western languages due in part to the influence of Old Church Slavonic versions of the Bible, which were translated from the Greek Septuagint. This influence is felt even in Protestant Slavic traditions such as Czech:

Genesis 2:8 Štípil pak byl Hospodin Bůh ráj v Eden na východ, "God planted a paradise in Eden in the East" (where Czech follows Slavonic, which follows Greek).

In Old Slavonic texts rai and peklo were associated with parts of the underworld, but in modern Russian rai popularly stands for Heaven and peklo for Hell.

Russian

The term rai is generally applied to the Garden of Eden, though uncapitalized eden also exists in Pushkin's poems as a generic paradise. and also used in relation to "paradise". The diminutive rayok is an entertainment stall at a fair, and the title of lampoon songs by Musorgsky and Shostakovich.

Wordplay

In several slavic languages, including Russian, the nearness of rai to raj meaning "region", "district," creates opportunities for word-play. The opportunity also exists for confusion, as in the rai to reka, "river".

Place names

Český ráj, "Bohemian Paradise" is a tourist area in the North of the Czech Republic.

Main Menu