Category
Topic
Year
Humour and/as violence?
Keywords: folkloristics, linguistics, humour, aggression, violence
Humour has long been viewed as a subversive phenomenon that points to the incongruities and shortcomings noticed and ridiculed by members of society. The intentions of humour creators are always difficult to pinpoint. Whether with good reason or not, most humour has a target, and the depiction of this target is inevitably politically incorrect, insulting, or even downright blasphemous. Jokes violate harmonious coexistence, collective identity, and communication norms, and that seems to lie at the core of humour. We claim that the superiority and incongruity approaches to humour (traditionally, three major approaches to humour are…
Humour has long been viewed as a subversive phenomenon that points to the incongruities and shortcomings noticed and ridiculed by members of society. The intentions of humour creators are always difficult to pinpoint. Whether with good reason or not, most humour has a target, and the depiction of this target is inevitably politically incorrect, insulting, or even downright blasphemous. Jokes violate harmonious coexistence, collective identity, and communication norms, and that seems to lie at the core of humour. We claim that the superiority and incongruity approaches to humour (traditionally, three major approaches to humour are…
Violent death in folktales
Keywords: folkloristics, folktales, violence, AI-powered analysis
Folktales are often rife with scenes of bloodshed and violence, even cruelty. Such violence frequently serves a narrative purpose, propelling the plot, facilitating character development, and delivering poetic justice. This article delves into the historical context of violence in folktales, analysing its portrayal across different folktale types. It pays particular attention to how the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale collection has influenced folktales and authors of Estonian fairy tale collections (Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald, Juhan Kunder). The Brothers Grimm notably used violence as a pedagogical tool in their stories. Violence depicted in folktales can unexpectedly resonate with…
Folktales are often rife with scenes of bloodshed and violence, even cruelty. Such violence frequently serves a narrative purpose, propelling the plot, facilitating character development, and delivering poetic justice. This article delves into the historical context of violence in folktales, analysing its portrayal across different folktale types. It pays particular attention to how the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale collection has influenced folktales and authors of Estonian fairy tale collections (Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald, Juhan Kunder). The Brothers Grimm notably used violence as a pedagogical tool in their stories. Violence depicted in folktales can unexpectedly resonate with…
kuhtuma and kuihtuma
Keywords: linguistics, etymology, history of vocabulary, Estonian
In the early decades of the 20th century, Johannes Aavik proposed enriching the vocabulary of the Estonian literary language by incorporating both the southern Estonian dialect-derived kuhtuma ‘to become weak or feeble, to tire; to fade away, to wane; to extinguish; to wither, to wilt; to pale, to grow pale’, as well as the Finnish borrowing kuihtuma ‘to wilt, to dry up (plants, flowers)’. The article briefly touches on how these words have since fared and then delves into their possible origins. The verb kuhtuma lacks a satisfactory etymology so far: the explanation that…
In the early decades of the 20th century, Johannes Aavik proposed enriching the vocabulary of the Estonian literary language by incorporating both the southern Estonian dialect-derived kuhtuma ‘to become weak or feeble, to tire; to fade away, to wane; to extinguish; to wither, to wilt; to pale, to grow pale’, as well as the Finnish borrowing kuihtuma ‘to wilt, to dry up (plants, flowers)’. The article briefly touches on how these words have since fared and then delves into their possible origins. The verb kuhtuma lacks a satisfactory etymology so far: the explanation that…
Windows, entryways to infinity
Keywords: comparative literature, 20th and 21st century Estonian literature, 19th century Italian literature, imagination, ”Border State”, ”View”
The literary works of the 19th-century Italian poet and philosopher Giacomo Leopardi (1798–1836) have been available in Estonian for years. Less familiar, however, is the poetics of the vague and indefinite (Italian: poetica del vago e dell’indefinito) developed in his notebook “Zibaldone”. This concept forms the philosophical core and essence of his artistic creation. By centring his poetics around the conflict between the finiteness of the physical world and the human yearning for infinity, Leopardi proposes substituting the non-existent physical infinity with indefiniteness. By…
The literary works of the 19th-century Italian poet and philosopher Giacomo Leopardi (1798–1836) have been available in Estonian for years. Less familiar, however, is the poetics of the vague and indefinite (Italian: poetica del vago e dell’indefinito) developed in his notebook “Zibaldone”. This concept forms the philosophical core and essence of his artistic creation. By centring his poetics around the conflict between the finiteness of the physical world and the human yearning for infinity, Leopardi proposes substituting the non-existent physical infinity with indefiniteness. By…
From dictionary to constructicon
Keywords: lexicography, construction-based approach, constructicon, constructicography
A new field has emerged alongside constructional linguistic theories and electronic lexicography, known as constructicography (Lyngfelt 2018: 11). Its goal is to compile a constructicon, a resource that organizes and presents linguistic constructions much like dictionaries present words. This concept stems from the theoretical framework of Construction Grammar (see Fillmore 2006; Goldberg 2003; Hoffmann, Trousdale 2013). The main purpose of this study is to outline the necessary theoretical concepts, map out existing solutions, and identify the main challenges in creating different types of constructicons. This aims to inform decisions when beginning to create a potential…
A new field has emerged alongside constructional linguistic theories and electronic lexicography, known as constructicography (Lyngfelt 2018: 11). Its goal is to compile a constructicon, a resource that organizes and presents linguistic constructions much like dictionaries present words. This concept stems from the theoretical framework of Construction Grammar (see Fillmore 2006; Goldberg 2003; Hoffmann, Trousdale 2013). The main purpose of this study is to outline the necessary theoretical concepts, map out existing solutions, and identify the main challenges in creating different types of constructicons. This aims to inform decisions when beginning to create a potential…
Rhyme in Estonian poetic culture
Keywords: rhyme, rhyme analysis, literary rhyme, popular rhyme, Estonian poetry, poetics
In the early periods of Estonian literary poetry, rhyme was almost an integral aspect of verse. However, since the late 1950s, its significance in written poetry has gradually diminished, relegating it to a marginal position by the end of the 20th century. Contemporary acclaimed poetry collections of the 21st century predominantly feature free verse, while rhyme remains prominent in popular poetry styles like pop music lyrics, stage poetry, social media poetry, and hip-hop. Consequently, the theoretical discourse on rhyme has also resurfaced as a relevant issue.
This article has two objectives.…
In the early periods of Estonian literary poetry, rhyme was almost an integral aspect of verse. However, since the late 1950s, its significance in written poetry has gradually diminished, relegating it to a marginal position by the end of the 20th century. Contemporary acclaimed poetry collections of the 21st century predominantly feature free verse, while rhyme remains prominent in popular poetry styles like pop music lyrics, stage poetry, social media poetry, and hip-hop. Consequently, the theoretical discourse on rhyme has also resurfaced as a relevant issue.
This article has two objectives.…
The cosmos of paronyms
Keywords: lexicography, paronyms, collocations, Estonian, German, language planning
In Europe and Estonia, linguistic research on paronyms has been rather limited. This article presents a corpus-based comparative study of Estonian and German paronyms, the results of which were included in the German online dictionary Paronyme – Dynamisch im Kontrast as a bilingual word entry in the spring of 2023. This is the first German paronym dictionary compiled strictly based on corpus data analysis. The author examined the Estonian words autoritaarne ‘authoritarian’ and autoriteetne ‘authoritative’ by analyzing their collocations. In Estonian, these words have not previously been recognized as paronyms, whereas their German…
In Europe and Estonia, linguistic research on paronyms has been rather limited. This article presents a corpus-based comparative study of Estonian and German paronyms, the results of which were included in the German online dictionary Paronyme – Dynamisch im Kontrast as a bilingual word entry in the spring of 2023. This is the first German paronym dictionary compiled strictly based on corpus data analysis. The author examined the Estonian words autoritaarne ‘authoritarian’ and autoriteetne ‘authoritative’ by analyzing their collocations. In Estonian, these words have not previously been recognized as paronyms, whereas their German…
Estonian laskma-causative
Keywords: grammaticalization, causative construction, verb laskma, literary language, Estonian
The article provides an overview of the meanings of the Estonian core verb laskma (‘to let’), explains the development and usage of its grammatical constructions, and describes the most common semantic types of the laskma-causative (LET-causative). Data for this study were collected from corpora of written Estonian texts from the 16th century to the present.
The first instance of the laskma-causative is impossible to ascertain due to the grammatical constructions of laskma already appearing in written texts in the 16th and 17th centuries (explained as forced grammaticalization). However, the process of grammaticalization…
The article provides an overview of the meanings of the Estonian core verb laskma (‘to let’), explains the development and usage of its grammatical constructions, and describes the most common semantic types of the laskma-causative (LET-causative). Data for this study were collected from corpora of written Estonian texts from the 16th century to the present.
The first instance of the laskma-causative is impossible to ascertain due to the grammatical constructions of laskma already appearing in written texts in the 16th and 17th centuries (explained as forced grammaticalization). However, the process of grammaticalization…
Artur Alliksaar’s alliterative archetypes
Keywords: poetics, free verse, runic verse, primal poetry, baroque poetry, poetry revival
The article explores the free-verse poetics of Artur Alliksaar (1923–1966), Estonia’s foremost poet of language. Alliksaar faced poverty and repression under the Soviet regime, making it challenging to publish his work. A small selection of his poems were published as a book only posthumously. Nonetheless, Alliksaar’s influence on the poetry revival of the 1960s and the emerging generation of poets was profound. Estonian poetry and the language itself have been forever altered by his volcanic inspiration.
In the late 1950s, Estonia witnessed a fierce debate over free verse: while the…
The article explores the free-verse poetics of Artur Alliksaar (1923–1966), Estonia’s foremost poet of language. Alliksaar faced poverty and repression under the Soviet regime, making it challenging to publish his work. A small selection of his poems were published as a book only posthumously. Nonetheless, Alliksaar’s influence on the poetry revival of the 1960s and the emerging generation of poets was profound. Estonian poetry and the language itself have been forever altered by his volcanic inspiration.
In the late 1950s, Estonia witnessed a fierce debate over free verse: while the…
Women’s religious agency on the example of Russian Old Believer communities in Estonia
Keywords: women’s religiosity, gendered practices, gender contract, culture of exceptions, women priests in Russian Old Belief
This article explores ways in which women navigate their agency within the conservative religious context of Russian Old Belief. Specifically, it examines four closely situated congregations in Kasepää, Suur-Kolkja, Varnja (Pomortsy), and Väike-Kolkja (Fedoseevtsy) in Peipsimaa, based on fieldwork conducted between 2020 and 2021.
In the Old Belief tradition, women are barred from leadership roles or preaching; however, they often assume duties traditionally reserved for men. Furthermore, Old Believer communities in Estonia, which tend to have a higher proportion of women than men, rely heavily on…
This article explores ways in which women navigate their agency within the conservative religious context of Russian Old Belief. Specifically, it examines four closely situated congregations in Kasepää, Suur-Kolkja, Varnja (Pomortsy), and Väike-Kolkja (Fedoseevtsy) in Peipsimaa, based on fieldwork conducted between 2020 and 2021.
In the Old Belief tradition, women are barred from leadership roles or preaching; however, they often assume duties traditionally reserved for men. Furthermore, Old Believer communities in Estonia, which tend to have a higher proportion of women than men, rely heavily on…