Category
Topic
Year
Kostuma and kostma
Keywords: reflexive verbs, corpus planning, meanings
The u-reflexive kostuma ‘to be heard’ of the reflexive verb kostma ‘to be heard’ and other verbs with -uma ending began to spread in Estonian in the first half of the 20th century. Estonian linguist Johannes Aavik revived the use of u-reflexives during the Estonian language renewal, but he also established a rule in the 1920s to prevent the use of u-derivatives created from reflexive verbs (such as kostma > kostuma, pleekima > pleekuma ‘to fade’). During the century, this rule was copied in both grammar and school textbooks, without taking into account the actual use…
The u-reflexive kostuma ‘to be heard’ of the reflexive verb kostma ‘to be heard’ and other verbs with -uma ending began to spread in Estonian in the first half of the 20th century. Estonian linguist Johannes Aavik revived the use of u-reflexives during the Estonian language renewal, but he also established a rule in the 1920s to prevent the use of u-derivatives created from reflexive verbs (such as kostma > kostuma, pleekima > pleekuma ‘to fade’). During the century, this rule was copied in both grammar and school textbooks, without taking into account the actual use…
The changing mind
Keywords: Estonian, WAT, mental lexicon, psycholinguistics
The paper addresses the changeable vs persistent part of the culturally constructed unconscious – the so-called “dark matter of the mind” (Everett 2016). Two sets of responses given to an identical list of Estonian stimuli in a word association test (WAT) are compared. The first set originates in the time when Estonia was ruled by the Soviet regime and the second (an excerpt from a larger database) in the 21st century during political independence. The aim was to detect which associations tended to survive and which did not. The quantitative results show that two-thirds of…
The paper addresses the changeable vs persistent part of the culturally constructed unconscious – the so-called “dark matter of the mind” (Everett 2016). Two sets of responses given to an identical list of Estonian stimuli in a word association test (WAT) are compared. The first set originates in the time when Estonia was ruled by the Soviet regime and the second (an excerpt from a larger database) in the 21st century during political independence. The aim was to detect which associations tended to survive and which did not. The quantitative results show that two-thirds of…
Das Õ
Stichwörter: der Buchstabe Õ, der Laut Õ, Otto Wilhelm Masing, Orthographie, Sprachplanung
Der Anfang des 19. Jahrhunderts durch Otto Wilhelm Masing (1763–1832) eingeführte Buchstabe Õ ist das orthografische Element, welches in der estnischen Linguistik und in der Öffentlichkeit stets die meiste Aufmerksamkeit auf sich gezogen hat. 2016 wurde das 200-jährige Bestehen des Õ-Zeichens mit einer wissenschaftlichen Konferenz gefeiert, und 2020 wurde auf Saaremaa eine fünf Meter hohe Õ/Ö-Grenzmarkierung eingeweiht, um die Variation der Aussprache innerhalb des Sprachgebiets zu kennzeichnen.
Der Artikel befasst sich mit der Entstehungsgeschichte des Õ-Zeichens und dessen Verbreitung in schriftlichen Texten des 19. Jahrhunderts. Übergeordnetes Ziel des Artikels ist…
Der Anfang des 19. Jahrhunderts durch Otto Wilhelm Masing (1763–1832) eingeführte Buchstabe Õ ist das orthografische Element, welches in der estnischen Linguistik und in der Öffentlichkeit stets die meiste Aufmerksamkeit auf sich gezogen hat. 2016 wurde das 200-jährige Bestehen des Õ-Zeichens mit einer wissenschaftlichen Konferenz gefeiert, und 2020 wurde auf Saaremaa eine fünf Meter hohe Õ/Ö-Grenzmarkierung eingeweiht, um die Variation der Aussprache innerhalb des Sprachgebiets zu kennzeichnen.
Der Artikel befasst sich mit der Entstehungsgeschichte des Õ-Zeichens und dessen Verbreitung in schriftlichen Texten des 19. Jahrhunderts. Übergeordnetes Ziel des Artikels ist…
On „The Poems of Ossian” and Baltic German Ossianism. Part II
Keywords: Baltic German, Ossianism, Estonia, collections, literary history, James Macpherson
This paper takes a look at the Baltic German reception of “The Poems of Ossian”. For the Baltic Germans, it seems to have been the most important work of lyrical literature written in English. First, a short summary of Macpherson’s project, its literary innovations and reception in Europe is given, which is followed by an overview of the preserved editions in the cultural historical collections of Estonian research libraries. As Baltic Germans mostly read in German, the greatest focus lies on German editions, but also some French and Italian translations…
This paper takes a look at the Baltic German reception of “The Poems of Ossian”. For the Baltic Germans, it seems to have been the most important work of lyrical literature written in English. First, a short summary of Macpherson’s project, its literary innovations and reception in Europe is given, which is followed by an overview of the preserved editions in the cultural historical collections of Estonian research libraries. As Baltic Germans mostly read in German, the greatest focus lies on German editions, but also some French and Italian translations…
Recommendations for the meanings of foreign words and their presentation in the EKI Combined Dictionary
Keywords: borrowings, corpus planning, foreign words, changes in word meaning
Since 2019, the Institute of the Estonian Language has been reviewing the information of the Dictionary of Standard Estonian (2018). In that process, some problematic areas have been found. These problems need to be addressed in the EKI Combined Dictionary (2021). Among the problems are recommendations for the correct meaning of 130 words (86 of which are foreign words and 44 are Estonian native words). Our current focus is on how to explain the meanings of foreign words in the general language. We are also working on how to combine descriptive…
Since 2019, the Institute of the Estonian Language has been reviewing the information of the Dictionary of Standard Estonian (2018). In that process, some problematic areas have been found. These problems need to be addressed in the EKI Combined Dictionary (2021). Among the problems are recommendations for the correct meaning of 130 words (86 of which are foreign words and 44 are Estonian native words). Our current focus is on how to explain the meanings of foreign words in the general language. We are also working on how to combine descriptive…
Soviet-time travelling experience in biographical narratives
Keywords: oral history, ethnology, Soviet tourism, Estonia, everyday culture
The article provides an insight into the inherent diversities and ambiguities of Soviet tourism during 1960s–1980s as revealed in Estonian biographical sources. Research on Soviet tourism has largely relied on archival sources and the press, which shed light mainly on the organization and ideological basis of tourism. Drawing on biographical sources, the article contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the complex nature of Soviet tourism.
The article focuses on the embodied ways in which Estonian travellers experienced personally significant moments during their trips, treating these moments as meaningful, lived experiences…
The article provides an insight into the inherent diversities and ambiguities of Soviet tourism during 1960s–1980s as revealed in Estonian biographical sources. Research on Soviet tourism has largely relied on archival sources and the press, which shed light mainly on the organization and ideological basis of tourism. Drawing on biographical sources, the article contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the complex nature of Soviet tourism.
The article focuses on the embodied ways in which Estonian travellers experienced personally significant moments during their trips, treating these moments as meaningful, lived experiences…
The problem of paronyms in Estonian
Keywords: corpus planning, lexis planning, language change, literary language, paronyms
Sometimes different dictionaries face the user with contradicting information. An example of such contradiction is the treatment of paronyms in Estonian. Traditionally, descriptive and prescriptive dictionaries have been separate sources in Estonia, but the new EKI Combined Dictionary (available in the language portal Sõnaveeb ‘Wordweb’) presents both descriptive and prescriptive information, which may enhance the risk of user confusion. In this article, we analyse five Estonian paronym nests, firstly, providing an overview of their treatment in Estonian dictionaries since the beginning of the 20th century and earlier, and secondly, describing the…
Sometimes different dictionaries face the user with contradicting information. An example of such contradiction is the treatment of paronyms in Estonian. Traditionally, descriptive and prescriptive dictionaries have been separate sources in Estonia, but the new EKI Combined Dictionary (available in the language portal Sõnaveeb ‘Wordweb’) presents both descriptive and prescriptive information, which may enhance the risk of user confusion. In this article, we analyse five Estonian paronym nests, firstly, providing an overview of their treatment in Estonian dictionaries since the beginning of the 20th century and earlier, and secondly, describing the…
On ”The Poems of Ossian” and Baltic German Ossianism. Part 1
Keywords: Baltic German, Ossianism, Estonia, collections, literary history, James Macpherson
This paper takes a look at the Baltic German reception of “The Poems of Ossian”. For the Baltic Germans, it seems to have been the most important work of lyrical literature written in English. First, a short summary of Macpherson’s project, its literary innovations and reception in Europe is given, which is followed by an overview of the preserved editions in the cultural historical collections of Estonian research libraries. As Baltic Germans mostly read in German, the greatest focus lies on German editions, but also some French and Italian translations…
This paper takes a look at the Baltic German reception of “The Poems of Ossian”. For the Baltic Germans, it seems to have been the most important work of lyrical literature written in English. First, a short summary of Macpherson’s project, its literary innovations and reception in Europe is given, which is followed by an overview of the preserved editions in the cultural historical collections of Estonian research libraries. As Baltic Germans mostly read in German, the greatest focus lies on German editions, but also some French and Italian translations…
Early modern disputation: conduct, structure and topics
Keywords: early modern period, disputation, history of universities, book history
Early modern disputation was a phenomenon in its own right, involving both performative and textual aspects. The texts of the disputations were different from modern academic dissertations and articles, while at the same time serving as a kind of model for both. For this reason, they must also be approached as a specific genre that no longer exists today. Disputations are intrinsically linked to the early modern university and its traditions: from the 16th to 18th century, the disputation was the main academic product of universities. It was the basis…
Early modern disputation was a phenomenon in its own right, involving both performative and textual aspects. The texts of the disputations were different from modern academic dissertations and articles, while at the same time serving as a kind of model for both. For this reason, they must also be approached as a specific genre that no longer exists today. Disputations are intrinsically linked to the early modern university and its traditions: from the 16th to 18th century, the disputation was the main academic product of universities. It was the basis…
Newly discovered samples of 17th-century Estonian poetry
Keywords: early modern occasional poetry, album amicorum, digital collections, Reiner Brockmann, Johann Hornung, Joachim Salemann
The article introduces four 17th-century poems belonging to Estonian literary history, which were discovered at the beginning of 2021 by literary researcher Jaak Urmet in the course of a systematic study of the hitherto digitized prints and manuscripts in the libraries and archives of Germany, Latvia, Denmark and some other nearby countries. Two of the four are authored by Reiner Brockmann: a nuptial poem in Latin, published in Germany in 1632, and a congratulatory poem in German, published in 1654 as dedicated to Georg Mancelius,…
The article introduces four 17th-century poems belonging to Estonian literary history, which were discovered at the beginning of 2021 by literary researcher Jaak Urmet in the course of a systematic study of the hitherto digitized prints and manuscripts in the libraries and archives of Germany, Latvia, Denmark and some other nearby countries. Two of the four are authored by Reiner Brockmann: a nuptial poem in Latin, published in Germany in 1632, and a congratulatory poem in German, published in 1654 as dedicated to Georg Mancelius,…
Kann man das Klima kodieren?
Stichwörter: Geschichte, Technik und Forschung, digitale Wende, Baltische Klimageschichte, Datenbank, Presse
In einigen Forschungsbereichen der estnischen Geschichtswissenschaft wie etwa der Agrargeschichte hielten digitale Methoden und Techniken bereits in den 1970er Jahren ihren Einzug. Dies gilt auch für die Klimageschichte, die sich in dieser Zeit wie im übrigen Europa im Übergangsgebiet zwischen Geographie und Geschichtswissenschaft entwickelte. Anhand eines der größten Sturmereignisse des Baltikums, dem Mai-Sturm von 1872, gibt der Artikel einen Überblick über die Phasen der digitalen Wende, die langjährige internationale Zusammenarbeit und die interdisziplinären Forschungsmöglichkeiten der baltischen Klimageschichte. Grosse Datenmengen, die für die Rekonstruktion und Bewertung des historisches Klimas notwendig sind,…
In einigen Forschungsbereichen der estnischen Geschichtswissenschaft wie etwa der Agrargeschichte hielten digitale Methoden und Techniken bereits in den 1970er Jahren ihren Einzug. Dies gilt auch für die Klimageschichte, die sich in dieser Zeit wie im übrigen Europa im Übergangsgebiet zwischen Geographie und Geschichtswissenschaft entwickelte. Anhand eines der größten Sturmereignisse des Baltikums, dem Mai-Sturm von 1872, gibt der Artikel einen Überblick über die Phasen der digitalen Wende, die langjährige internationale Zusammenarbeit und die interdisziplinären Forschungsmöglichkeiten der baltischen Klimageschichte. Grosse Datenmengen, die für die Rekonstruktion und Bewertung des historisches Klimas notwendig sind,…