Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/Dъněprъ

From Scythian/Old Ossetic (Sarmatian) *Dānu Apara (“Far River”) or *Dānapr (“Deep River”). The former derivation would pair it with the Dniester (“Near River”), while the latter would refer to its lack of fords. In either case, the first element is from Proto-Indo-European *déh₂nu (“river”), which is also found in a number of other river names in Europe; see more at Danube.

*Dъněprъ m^[1]

1. Dnieper (a river in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine)

   Synonym: *Slovǫta

• East Slavic:
  • Old East Slavic: Дънѣпръ (Dŭněprŭ), Дьнѣпрь (Dĭněprĭ)
    • Old Ruthenian: Днѣпръ (Dněpr), Днѣпро́ (Dněpró)
      • Belarusian: Дняпро́ (Dnjapró), Днепр (Dnjepr)
      • Carpathian Rusyn: Днїпр (Dnjipr)
      • Ukrainian: Дніпро́ (Dnipró); Дніпр (Dnipr) (archaic); Дні́пер (Dníper) (dialectal)
    • Middle Russian: Днѣпръ (Dněpr)
      • Russian: Днепр (Dnepr)
    • ⇒ Old East Slavic: Непръ (Neprŭ)
      • Old Ruthenian: Непрь (Neprʹ), Непръ (Nepr)
      • Russian: Непра (Nepra) (folklore)
• West Slavic:
  • Old Czech: Dněpr
    • Czech: Dněpr
  • Polish: Dniepr

• Non-Slavic:
  • → Ancient Greek: Δάναπρις (Dánapris) (6ᵗʰ cent.)

• Trubachyov, Oleg, editor (1978), “*dъněprъ”, in Этимологический словарь славянских языков [Etymological dictionary of Slavic languages] (in Russian), numbers 5 (*dělo – *dьržьlь), Moscow: Nauka, page 182
• Anikin, A. E. (2020) “Днепр”, in Русский этимологический словарь [Russian Etymological Dictionary] (in Russian), issue 14 (дигнитарь – дрощи), Moscow: Nestor-Historia, →ISBN, page 80
• Stryzhak, O. S., editor (1985), “Дънѣпрь”, in Етимологічний словник літописних географічних назв Південної Русі [Etymological Dictionary of Chronicle Geographical Names of Southern Rus'] (in Ukrainian), Kyiv: Naukova Dumka, page 55
• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “Днепр”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress