All Slavic languages: Promaja (draft)

QuasiTriestino

QuasiTriestino

Senior Member
Trst, Italija
American English
During my time in Serbia, this cultural curiosity always caused me to chuckle: promaja.

Promaja is a chilly draft that comes in when you leave a window or door open. I can't tell you how many times I was chastised by older Serbians for letting a little chill in through an open window for fear that it would cause harm. To me, it seemed a little exaggerated, but many swear it causes sickness.

The idea of promaja is ubiquitous is Serbia and in the Balkans in general and I'm curious if other Slavic languages have their own ways of referring to it.
 
    • Течение/Techenie in Bulgarian and is the most feared health hazard. It's blamed from everything from the common cold to neuralgia and hearing loss. :D
     
    Czech:

    průvan from the verb váti/vanouti = to blow (pro-váti/vanouti = to blow through);

    In our country the průvan causes mainly broken windowpanes :). My "babushka" (babička) also didn't like it.

    (also used figuratively)
     
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    Ucrainian:
    про́тяг, крізни́й ві́тер, про́дув
    I do not tolerate draft.
     
    Macedonian:

    провев (provev) masc., but in everyday speech промаја (promaja) fem. is also used, even thought it is considered as Serbism.

    провев comes from the verb вее (vee) 3rdp.sg. "blows" only used for wind; and про- is a prefix.

    But your definition for provev/promaja is wrong.
    QuasiTriestino said:
    Promaja is a chilly draft that comes in when you leave a window or door open.
    Click to expand...

    What we call promaja/provev is the air current circulating through at least two openings (windows or/and doors) which are on opposite sides.
     
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    nimak said:
    What we call promaja/provev is the air current circulating through at least two openings (windows or/and doors) which are on opposite sides.
    Click to expand...
    I just checked this with a Serbian and you are correct! I guess it's more about the movement of the air through the house/room and not necessarily its temperature? Or maybe it's promaja+ if it's also cold air.
     
    Sometimes the mild průvan is pleasing and desirable, for instance in hot afternoon, it vaporizes sweat. Also when you need to ventilate your flat/house quickly.

    So we sometimes say "Udělej průvan!" (make a draught).
     
    Slovak: prievan

    like in Czech from the verb viať/vanúť = to blow;
    = mierne fúkať, duť (o vetre, vánku): Odkiaľ vanie vietor?
     
    In Russian, the word is сквозня́к (skvozn'ak), formed from the preposition сквозь (skvoz') = through.
    Both in Russia and Hungary, it is seen as a health hazard that can give you a cold, an earache, neuralgia and pneumonia. :rolleyes:
     
    Russian even has a verb просквози́ть (proskvozít' [pɾəskvɐ'zʲitʲ]) - impersonal "to make sick by a chilly draft" (in expressions like "его́ просквози́ло").

    To my moderately informed knowledge, it has some objective health basis.
     
    marco_2 said:
    In Polish we call it 'przeciąg'.
    Click to expand...
    ...and it's related to the word "przeciągać" which means "pull through" as "prze-" is a prefix meaning "through" and "ciąg" is a stem referring to pulling and in one of its meanings means a "chimney draught". But it's not about just any sort of an air movement. It's a strong blow caused by a wind or perhaps differences in temperatures, especially if windows or door are opened in different walls of the building. It may also be a steady flow of cold air coming through leaky windows or door. An unpleasant and unhealthy thing, which - in case of the former - can create a mess or damage in the rooms or easily break the windows.
     
    The Czech cognate is průtah, however it means delay, also through road.

    The chimney draught is simply tah (v komíně).
     
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