Terméken

Terméken is a historical Hungarian adjective meaning fertile, fecund, or productive. In modern standard Hungarian, the form termékeny is the usual, current word, while terméken survives primarily in dialectal, literary, or archaic contexts. The term commonly functioned as an attributive adjective, appearing before a noun to denote fertility or productivity, and it may occur in older manuscripts or fixed expressions preserved in historical texts.

Etymology and relation to other forms: Terméken is closely related to the modern termékeny, which derives from termő, meaning bearing fruit. Many dictionaries treat terméken as an older or dialectal variant rather than a separate semantic category. The development from terméken to termékeny reflects typical changes in Hungarian orthography and morphology over time.

Usage and status: Today, terméken is encountered primarily in historical documents, poetry, and philological studies of Hungarian. It is not common in contemporary conversation or standard writing, where termékeny is preferred. In translations of older works, terméken may be retained to convey archaism or a solemn tone.

See also: termékeny; Hungarian vocabulary; archaic Hungarian.