Issue 1, 2023

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This article describes the semantics of four periphrastic verb constructions in Sakha with prospective-intentional meaning: -aarɪ tur- [-CVB.PURP stand-], -aarɪ gɪn- [-CVB.PURP do-] with past tense markers, -aarɪ gɪn- [-CVB.PURP do-] with non-past tense markers, and -aarɪ sɪrɪt- [-CVB.PURP walk-]. The choice of auxiliary verb is partially determined by the verb’s lexical meaning: for example, the verb tur- is used with standing objects (including frost or heat, which can “stand”), gɪn- in non-past tense situations where a certain process is observable, and sɪrɪt- with objects that are moving in different directions. The article likewise describes the limitations on the type of situation and participants involved, as well as the collocation of these constructions with various temporal and aspectual adverbs. The latter helps to determine the aspectual profile of the discussed constructions. Finally, the iterative-prospective polysemy of the -aarɪ gɪn- construction is discussed: this construction can be used both to refer to a situation that is about to happen and to a situation that occurs regularly (more often than usual).

Key words: Sakha, Yakut, prospective aspect

For citation: Kozlov A. A. Prospective constructions in the Sakha language. Rodnoy yazyk, 2023, 1: 5–30.

DOI: 10.37892/2313-5816-2023-1-5-30

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The names of celestial bodies in the languages of the Pamir-Hindu Kush area are etymologically heterogeneous. The differences are not accidental: they are evidence of social and cultural phenomena and processes in the history of the peoples inhabiting the area. The present article examines some of the history of this areal lexical group.

The article identifies etymologically different designations for the Sun that stem from the worldview traditions of the local population. These date back to ancient times, when the Sun was believed to be both a celestial body and a supreme deity. The Proto-Iranian name for the Sun saw continued use in some languages, but was replaced in others by the names of deities revered in particular eras: at first this was the Indo-Iranian deity Mithra, and later the supreme deity of the Zoroastrians, Ahura Mazda. In the extinct literary languages of the Middle Ages, there are expressions testifying to the deification of the Moon which are not noted in the minority languages of this area. The name for ‘star’ in the languages of the area is derived from a single Proto-Iranian root which can be traced back to the IE *stēr- ‘star’. Another Iranian term used to designate ‘star’, appearing also with the meanings ‘zodiac constellation, zodiac sign, etc.’ and deriving from the IE variant for ‘night’ — *nokᵂt-,*n̥kᵂter- — is attested mainly in medieval Middle Persian and Parthiandocuments, as well as in texts in classical Persian; in Old Iranian texts it is not documented as an independent word. In this regard, Wakhi, one of the minority languages of the Pamir-Hindu Kush area, is the only living Iranian language to have retained reflexes of this Indo-European base, although of its other variant.

The Pamir-Hindu Kush names of celestial bodies examined in this article exhibit originality thanks to lexical substitutions, unusual word-formation models, semantic shifts and the preservation of a deep Indo-Iranian archaic reflex.

Keywords: celestial bodies, areal linguistics, vocabulary, etymology, Pamir-Hindu Kush area

For citation: Edelman J. I. The designations of heavenly bodies in the minority Iranian languages of the Pamir-Hindu Kush area. Rodnoy yazyk, 2023, 1: 31–43.

DOI: 10.37892/2313-5816-2023-1-31-43

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This article presents linguistic biographies of several representatives of the Mari diaspora in the Moscow region, natives of the Sverdlovsk region who took part in the author’s sociolinguistic 2019-21 survey aimed at describing how an ethnic language functions within an internal diaspora. It is assumed that language use is due, among one grew up. Thus, part of the survey questionnaire was devoted to language use in intra-family communication, preschool education, school education (language of instruction and language as school subject), and further education. The responses made it possible to establish which channels were used by respondents for learning Mari and Russian, as well as to identify the languages used for interacting with their neighbors in their home area.

The data collected in the article is also offered as an attempt to describe the current Mari language situation in areas with a high concentration of Ural Maris in the Krasnoufimsky, Achitsky, Artinsky and Nizhneserginsky districts of the Sverdlovsk region. The author discusses Mari language use in the home and in the educational system. Some common language ideologies that underly family language policy and inf luence the choice of the language of intra-family interactions are described in detail. A separate section analyzes the dynamics of how the Mari language functions in education according to data obtained in interviews with teachers at local schools. The issues of Mari language-in-culture maintenance and its presence in religious rites are also explored. An important focus of the article is on preserving the ethnic identity of the Mari people residing in the diaspora that was formed in the 16-18 th centuries.

Keywords: Mari language, internal diaspora, Moscow region, Ural Mari, family language policy, educational policy, ethnic identity

For citation: Kutsaeva M. V. Ethnic language maintenance: The case of the Ural Maris. Rodnoy yazyk, 2023, 1: 44–89.

DOI: 10.37892/2313-5816-2023-1-44-89

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This article presents the Shughnani translation of “Little Muck”, a fairy tale by the 19th century German writer Wilhelm Hauff. This is the story of a tiny man whose appearance causes others to make fun of him. When he comes into possession of a pair of magic shoes, Muck’s hopes of attaining happiness are close, but then envious people take the shoes away. With the help of some magic fruit, Muck gets his shoes back and punishes the offenders.

In the 1930s, as part of the Soviet campaign to create alphabets for non-written languages of the Mountainous Badakhshan Autonomous Region, work began on an alphabet and writing system for the Shughnani language based on the Roman script. Based on this alphabet, primers, educational books, and translated literature were published in the Shughnani language.

“Little Muсk” was translated into Shughnani and published in 1938. Here it is presented according to the 1938 edition of the Shughnani text. The text is accompanied by morphemic glossing, using the currently accepted system of Iranian transcription in Roman script with additional characters, and a translation into Russian.

The presentation of the text in this format makes it suitable for use in comparative language research, as well as in research related to intertextuality.

Key words: Shughnani language, “Little Muck”, Wilhelm Hauff, fairy tale, translation, alphabet

For citation: Dodykhudoeva L. R. Shughnani translation of Wilhelm Hauff’s fairy tale “Little Muck”. Rodnoy yazyk, 2023, 1: 90–149.

DOI: 10.37892/2313-5816-2023-1-90-149

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This paper presents a family legend about the great Selkup shaman Tama-ira. The legend was recounted by his great granddaughter Arina Alekseevna Tamelkina (neé Kalina) (1932–2022) in July 2013 in the town of Krasnoselkup, the centre of the Krasnoselkup district, Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area. Her daughter Valentina Vladimirovna Tamelkina helped me to transcribe and translate the audio recorded text. I got acquainted with Arina Alekseevna in 2002 in Krasnoselkup. She worked with us as a language consultant for three weeks, during which time we audio and video recorded her performance of several texts and made an audio recording of a Selkup word list of 2000 lexemes with contexts. Working with her was a real pleasure. She told us about her life, but did not mention her great ancestor then. Apparently, the memory of the persecution of shamans on the Taz River and feelings that talking about such things might still be dangerous were deeply rooted in her. Only after more than 10 years of acquaintance was I fortunate enough to hear her Tama-ira story.

Quite often the heroes of Selkup folklore appear to be shamans, but in most cases the hero’s shamanic gifting remains at the periphery of the story. Shamanic texts proper, in which the personality and/or functions of the shaman occupy the central position in the story, are not numerous. Among them there are very realistic descriptions of the everyday life of shamans, legends telling about certain shamans’ great deeds and wars, descriptions of shamanic rites as recounted by eyewitnesses, and, finally, ‘inside’ texts – shamanic incantations summoning spirits, telling about travels to other worlds, etc. In this case we have a shamanic legend as a part of the story-teller’s family history.

Keywords: Northern Selkups, Northern Selkup language, shamanistic tradition, great shaman, Taz tundra, family legend

For citation: Kazakevich O. A. A Selkup family legend about a great shaman. Rodnoy yazyk, 2023, 1: 150–168.

DOI: 10.37892/2313-5816-2023-1-150-168