# վայ
## Armenian
### Etymology

From Old Armenian վայ (vay). The adverbial usage is a semantic loan from Russian го́ре (góre).

### Pronunciation

* (Eastern Armenian) IPA: /vɑj/, [vɑj]
* (Western Armenian) IPA: /vɑj/, [vɑj]

### Interjection

վայ • (vay)
* cry of distress, woe!; cry of negative amazement
    Վայ, ի՞նչ արեց։ ― Vay, i$^?$nčʻ arecʻ. ― Oh my, what did he do?

### Noun

վայ • (vay)
* a cry of distress, pain or grief, wail
* (figuratively) woe, sorrow
* (figuratively) misfortune, disaster, calamity
    Այս ի՜նչ վայ էր, որ եկավ մեր գլխին ― Ays i$^!$nčʻ vay ēr, or ekav mer glxin ― Oh, what misfortune that befell us!

#### Declension
### Adverb

վայ • (vay)
* placed before a word to express one's view that something or someone is not worthy of being called as such; so-called, poor excuse for
    վայ-գիտնականներ ― vay-gitnakanner ― so-called scientists
    վայ-քննադատ ― vay-kʻnnadat ― criticaster

## Old Armenian
### Etymology

* PIE word
* *wáy
Borrowed from Parthian 𐫇𐫀𐫏 (wʾy /⁠wāy⁠/) or Middle Persian 𐫇𐫀𐫏 (wʾy /⁠wāy⁠/, “woe, woe to!”) (whence Persian وای (vây)), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wáy. The attempts to treat վայ (vay) as an inheritance from Proto-Indo-European *wáy are unnecessary and irregular, as word-initial prevocalic *w- yields գ- (g-) in Armenian: compare գայլ (gayl), գառն (gaṙn), գետ (get) etc, whereas the Iranian borrowing is perfectly regular.

### Interjection

վայ • (vay)
* cry of distress, woe! alas! oh! ah!
    վա՛յ քեզ ― váy kʻez ― woe to you!
    վա՛յ ինձ, վա՛յ զիս, վա՛յ զինեւ ― váy inj, váy zis, váy zinew ― woe is me! how unhappy I am!
    վա՛յ քաղաքդ մեծ ― váy kʻałakʻd mec ― woe! woe to the great city!

### Noun

վայ • (vay)
* woe, cry of pain or grief, lament, wail, moans
    վայ զվայիւ աղաղակել, ճիչել ― vay zvayiw ałałakel, čičʻel ― to cry bitterly, to wail, to lament aloud, to deplore, to complain
    արդարեւ վայի են արժանի ― ardarew vayi en aržani ― they are truly unhappy
* disaster, calamity, misfortune
    վայ կարդալ անձին ― vay kardal anjin ― to create misfortunes for oneself

#### Derived terms

* վայեմ (vayem)
* վայասացութիւն (vayasacʻutʻiwn)
* վայումն (vayumn)

#### Related terms

* գայլ (gayl) (perhaps)

### References

* ↑ Bolognesi, Giancarlo (2009) R. B. Finazzi, P. Fontani, A. Scala, P. Tornaghi, editors, Storia della linguistica e linguistica storica, Alessandria: Edizioni dell'Orso, pages 299–303
* Awetikʻean, G., Siwrmēlean, X., Awgerean, M. (1836–1837) “վայ”, in Nor baṙgirkʻ haykazean lezui [New Dictionary of the Armenian Language] (in Old Armenian), Venice: S. Lazarus Armenian Academy
* Petrosean, Matatʻeay (1879) “վայ”, in Nor Baṙagirkʻ Hay-Angliarēn [New Dictionary Armenian–English], Venice: S. Lazarus Armenian Academy

### Further reading

* Martirosyan, Hrach (2010) Etymological Dictionary of the Armenian Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 8), Leiden and Boston: Brill, page 197
* Olsen, Birgit Anette (1999) The noun in Biblical Armenian: origin and word-formation: with special emphasis on the Indo-European heritage (Trends in linguistics. Studies and monographs; 119), Berlin, New York: Mouton de Gruyter, pages 34, 787
* Pokorny, Julius (1959) Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 3, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, pages 1110–1111