svima

Svima is a form of the Slavic pronoun svi, meaning all or everyone, used in Croatian, Bosnian, and Serbian. It is the dative plural form of svi, and is also used in the locative plural in certain constructions. In practice, svima marks the recipient or the audience as a whole, such as the people being spoken to or referred to in a general sense.

Grammatical notes: The base pronoun svi has different gender and case forms. In the plural, svima specifically appears in the dative (to everyone, for all people) and the locative (about everyone) forms. It is commonly used with verbs or prepositions that govern dative or locative cases, for example in phrases like hvala svima (thank you all) or razgovarali smo sa svima (we spoke with everyone). It can also occur in subordinate clauses or phrases that describe a group of people, as in svima prisutnima (to all those present).

Usage and nuance: Svima functions to address or include the entire group without distinguishing individuals. It is widely used in everyday speech, public speeches, and written Croatian, Bosnian, and Serbian alike. Because it is a grammatical form rather than a standalone noun, svima typically appears with verbs or prepositions that require the dative or locative case.

Etymology and cognates: Svima shares its root with related Slavic forms derived from svi, meaning all. Cognates appear in neighboring languages with similar functions, such as forms corresponding to “to everyone” or “about everyone.”