Who is the daughter-in-law? The meaning of the word "daughter-in-law"

One day it happens that a new relative appears in your life. It can be a younger brother or sister. But after the wedding, the family increases at least twice. Now in the list of relatives appear matchmakers, brother-in-law, brother-in-law. It's easy to get confused in the names. Today we will look in detail at the meaning of the word "daughter-in-law", its origin.

Let's recollect a little

Turning your eyes deep into the centuries, you can find out that it was in those distant times that the foundations for the name of family ties were laid . In comparison with other European countries in, the system was quite complex and multilevel. First of all, this is due to complex family ties, which largely depended on the financial issue.

Who such a daughter-in-law, knew all the relatives of her husband, that's how they called her. While the girl shared them, based on the situation in the family. Over time , family members of the wife also received their names in relation to her husband and his family.

Blood or other bonds that bind people in those days were the basis for the formation of the main unit of society. Families were quite large, connections were lined up not only linearly, the list included cousins, second cousins and absolutely strangers once taken in a narrow circle.

The etymology of the word "daughter-in-law"

In order to better understand the meaning of the word, it is necessary to turn to its origins. Our ancestors put meaning into everything, passed on their feelings and emotions. Today, such a science as etymology helps us discover the secrets of the world of words. So, almost anyone can say who the daughter-in-law is, but not everyone knows the story behind these letters. Let us open the veil of secrecy.

There is a word from the simple - "bride", which, in turn, carries all the main meaning.

Previously, it was so established that the young wife after the marriage ceremony moved to live in the groom's house. Families were large, but not always rich, so getting a separate home was not part of the immediate plans of the couple. They lived together with the parents, brothers and sisters of her husband.

A new member of the family concealed a mystery for others, no one knew what to expect from a girl. "Unknown" - that's who such a daughter-in-law is by definition. For a long period the husband's family looked at a new relative for herself, studied and got used to it.

Relations in Russia

Large families meant a clear division of roles. The elders took the leading position. They disposed of the financial part of life, thereby influencing other spheres. Everyone has contributed to the development and prosperity of the house.

Especially hard at that time had a young wife. Who such a daughter-in-law and on what she is capable, it was possible to guess only. They treated her with some apprehension, checked with hard work. Torn from her family hearth, where everyone was familiar with childhood, where the atmosphere of love and care reigned, the girl found herself in an absolutely alien world for her, who did not really want to accept it. The charter of each family could be radically different, and it was necessary to learn a lot from scratch, get used to it.

The first days, months, sometimes even years, in a new house became very heavy. But, having become better acquainted with each member of the family, having proved his devotion to the common cause, one could change the attitude of others.

Becoming a daughter-in-law

If you ask a friend or friend today who the daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law are, then all will respond approximately equally: this is the young man's wife in relation to his mother. But as we already know, each word was originally of special significance, it conveyed a message, a message. So in this case, it would seem, two identical concepts have a completely different emotional coloring.

Young remained "daughter-in-law" to a certain point. Nothing brings people together like the appearance of a common member of the family - the baby. After the newly-born wife gave birth to her first-born, she could be considered a full member of the family. The attitude of older relatives became more lenient towards her. And now it was called "son" (derived from "son"), bringing a touch of love and intimacy. Over time, the pronunciation changed, and one letter dropped out of the title, forming the familiar word "daughter-in-law".

Zolovka - who is she

As many stories say, one of the main "enemies" of the daughter-in-law was the sister or sister of the groom. Young they were nurses. Many literary works describe the unfriendly attitude of the sisters to the daughter-in-law. Most likely, it is caused by jealousy. If earlier the brother's love had to be shared only with the mother and father, now a new girl appeared, which created a certain distance between the young and the sisters.

Now, understanding who the sister-in-law and daughter-in-law are, you can clearly imagine a picture of the life of these two people in the distant past. The latter had virtually no rights in the new family, at times she was not even allowed to eat at a common table. The first was still in the circle of loved ones and felt confident, although she knew full well that sooner or later it would be like that.

Family tree

Today it's not that not everyone, but practically one in a thousand can boast of the knowledge of their ancestors. Whereas before a large strong family had great importance in the life of each person.

Below is a list in order to help you sort out some personal relationships.

Parents of husband and wife:

• A father-in-law, mother of a spouse, husband.

• Father-in-law, mother-in-law, wife.

• Swat, svjatja: parents of spouses in relation to each other.

Sisters and brothers:

• Dever, sister-in-law: brother, sister of husband, husband.

• Shurin, brother-in-law: brother, sister of wife, wife.

Looking at such a simple scheme, you can understand that not everything is as difficult as it seemed initially. And besides, how often do we use such words as "brother-in-law", "sister-in-law", "daughter-in-law" in everyday life, whose meaning we do not understand until the end, if we do not know the history.

Modern view of the family

Today, family members are not as close as they used to be. Now the newlyweds strive to live separately from their parents, seeking independence in personal and financial spheres. In many respects because of this, the true meaning of the word "daughter-in-law" or "daughter-in-law" is lost.

On the one hand, it's good, a new cell of society is formed, with its charter and rules. The life of all family members remains in the usual way, and the emergence of problems is reduced to a minimum. On the other hand, a certain connection between generations is lost, the sense of duty and responsibility becomes blurred. Increasingly manifested indifference and disrespect for elders.

However, the use of simple words will not bring back to life the deep moral principles, it can be done only by fostering love and trust between generations.

Conclusions at last

The main task of such terms is to emphasize, to distinguish from the general mass of people who play an important role in the life not only of man, but of the whole society.

Answering a simple question about who such a daughter-in-law, we touched on a deeper topic - changing the emotional component of words. And there are a lot of such examples. Deep in etymology, you can discover thousands of amazing and vivid examples. Knowing the origin of the word, its true meaning, we have the opportunity to make our speech more full, truthful and open.