Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/kotiti

Of unknown origin. Similar in meaning to Lithuanian skàsti (“to jump, to move around”), Latvian skatīt (“to check, to look at”), and Latin scateō (“to gush, to spring”) which suggests an origin from a possible Proto-Indo-European *(s)ket- (“to spring, to leap”) (traditionally reconstructed as *skeHt-[1]). Matasović relates it with Irish caith (“to throw”), Old Irish caithid (“to consume”) derived from Proto-Indo-European *keh₂t-[2].

*kotìti impf (perfective *kaťati)[3]

1. to tumble, to roll, to crumble
2. to leap, to climb

• *kotalěti (“to roll over”)
• *koturati (“to leap, to spring”)
• *katati (“to roll, to tumble”)
• *sъkatъ (“cliff, slope”)
• *katerica (“tree squirrel”)

• East Slavic:
  • Belarusian: каціць (kacicʹ)
  • Russian: катить (katitʹ)
  • Ukrainian: коти́ти (kotýty)
• South Slavic:
  • Bulgarian: кътая (kǎtaja) (dialectal)
    • ⇒ Bulgarian: кате́ря (katérja)
  • Slovene: kotīti (tonal orthography)
• West Slavic:
  • Czech: kotit se
  • Polish: kocić
  • Sorbian:
    • Upper Sorbian: kócić

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), “котить”, in Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), transl. and suppl. by Oleg Trubachyov, Moscow: Progress
• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1984), “*kotiti (sę) II”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological Dictionary of Slavic Languages] (in Russian), issue 11 (*konьcь – *kotьna(ja)), Moscow: Nauka, page 205
• Georgiev V. I., editor (1986), “кътая”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 3, Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, page 234
• Georgiev V. I., editor (1979), “кате́ря се”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 2, Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, page 272

Commonly interpreted as a derivative of *kotъ (“cat”) +‎ *-iti, in a similar manner as Proto-Slavic *teliti (“to beget, spec. for cows”) < Proto-Slavic *telę (“calf”) or as a figurative meaning of *kotiti (“to tumble, to roll”).

Relation to Proto-Slavic *kotьcь (“pen”), Proto-Slavic *košara (“sheepfold”) is uncertain. They both could descend from Proto-Indo-European *ket- (“to contain, to enclose, to wrap”), however, there is not sufficient evidence to reconstruct such a meaning for that root.

*kotìti[1][2]

1. (transitive) to brood
2. (reflexive) to have young, to bear an offspring (for animals)

• *kotidlo (“nest, brood”)

• East Slavic:
  • Russian: коти́ться (kotítʹsja)
  • Ukrainian: коти́тися (kotýtysja)
• South Slavic:
  • Bulgarian: ко́тя (kótja)
  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic: ко̀тити

    Latin: kòtiti

    • Chakavian (Vrgada): kotȉti
  • Slovene: kotīti (tonal orthography)
• West Slavic:
  • Czech: kotiti
  • Polish: kocić
  • Sorbian:
    • Upper Sorbian: kócić

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973), “коти́ться”, in Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), transl. and suppl. by Oleg Trubachyov, Moscow: Progress
• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1984), “*kotiti sę I”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological Dictionary of Slavic Languages] (in Russian), issue 11 (*konьcь – *kotьna(ja)), Moscow: Nauka, page 204