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Черна елха (широколистно дърво)Коледна елха с украшения
Etymology
From Proto-Slavic*olьxa ~ *jelьxa(“alder”). Bulgarian descendants stem from variants with prothetic*j-, which has been subsequently eliminated (except dialectally).
Originally, the word seems to have referred broadly to any deciduoustree or even generally to any arboreal plant. This sense was apparently used in naming the Christmas tree. Since Christmas in Bulgaria occurs during winter, the later is traditionally made of some type of evergreen conifer. Eventually, this caused semantic drift towards coniferoustrees. The similarity to (etymologically unrelated) ела́(elá, “fir”) may have also facilitated the shift. Compare Russianёлка(jólka, “spruce”) (< *edlъka).
“елха”, in Речник на българския език [Dictionary of the Bulgarian Language] (in Bulgarian), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 2014
“елха”, in Речник на българския език [Dictionary of the Bulgarian Language] (in Bulgarian), Chitanka, 2010
Georgiev, Vladimir I., editor (1971), “елха”, in Български етимологичен речник [Bulgarian Etymological Dictionary] (in Bulgarian), volume 1 (А – З), Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Pubg. House, →ISBN, page 493
