-
Mirosław Bańko : About the Norm and Error
The article is about linguistic norm, particularly the ways of normative evaluation concerning words in dictionaries. The article includes three concepts of the norm:
- the so-called absolute norm, according to which a given language element is correct or not, regardless of the context;
- the so-called multilevel norm, which makes the normative evaluation dependent on the level of speech accuracy and on communicative situation (e.g. formal vs. informal);
- the so-called multipoint norm, which means creating normative evaluations from various points of view, e.g. linguistic habit (practiced norm), linguistic awareness of language users (accepted norm) and normative tradition (codified norm).
The article suggests that lexicographic descriptions be based on the multilevel or multipoint norm, and shows that both the concepts require being more precise.
-
Andrzej Moroz : The Grammatical Status of the Phrase jak widać (%as it seems’)
The presented text is a partial study of the problem of parenthesis occurring in contemporary Polish; the phenomenon which has not been fully described, yet. The author’s attention has focused on the phrase jak widać (%as it seems’), considered by many researchers as having a parenthetical structure. Conducted observations confirmed the necessity to differentiate two units in the form of widać, and they proved that, within embedded usages, there is an impersonal predicative which obligatorily demands the jak component. It has also been pointed out that there are formal restrictions on the way of realization of the parenthetic structure constituted by widać. The analysis has used research methods suggested by Z. Saloni and M. Świdziński in Składnia współczesnego języka polskiego (“Contemporary Polish Syntax”) (1998), developed by numerous researchers, including M. Szupryczyńska in Pozycja składniowa frazy celownikowej w zdaniu polskim (“The Syntactic Position of the Dative Case Expression in a Polish Sentence”) (1996).
-
Piotr Zbróg : The Syntax of an Adjectival Qualifier Accompanying a Compound Subject
In the article, there is a description of the syntax between a compound subject and an adjectival qualifier in Polish sentences, which has not been thoroughly described, yet. Based on huge resources (from Old Polish to contemporary language), two conclusions can be pointed out concerning habits of Polish users. Most often words which define all the expression adjust their form to the first item (e.g. Najlepsze zespoły i zawodnicy otrzymali pamiątkowe puchary – The best teams and contestants received championship cups). Adjusting the form of a qualifier with the whole expression is far less frequent. The most examples of this kind of syntax occur in a situation when singular personal subjects constituted a phrase (e.g. Biedni Ania i Norbert przyszli – Poor Ann and Norbert came), examples with non-personal nouns are unique (e.g. Głównym powodem tego spadku były mroźne grudzień i styczeń – The main reson for the fall was frosty December and January). It is sometimes difficult to state precisely, whether a quantifier defines the whole subject or just its first part (e.g. Jeśli gorzkie zazdrości i swary są w sercach waszych – If bitter jealousy and arguments are in your hearts).
-
Ewa Badyda : The Problems of Morphological Adaptation of English Names in Genitive
The article raises the question of Polish declination of English names including inflectional manifestation of the so-called Saxon Genitive. Normative solutions in this issue, as presented in different reference sources, are not homogeneous. According to some standpoints, defining the inflectional subject in Polish, this manifestation has to be excluded, while according to other ones, it must be included. The inflectional situation under discussion is analyzed in morphological, syntactic, phonetic, graphic and cultural aspects. The theses are proved by linguistic material gathered in surveys. Most arguments show no necessity to omit the ‘s particle in the inflectional subject of the names in Polish. Suggestions in the conclusion postulate making a definite normative statement, after a complex analysis, which is expected by users of Polish.
-
Katarzyna Czubała : The Surnames of Contemporary Chełm Inhabitants, Containing Names of Animals and Plants (Including East Slavonic and Germanic Elements)
The article is devoted to a quantitative and qualitative analyses of surnames of contemporary Chełm inhabitants, containing names of animals and plants. Due to the cultural, ethnic and linguistic borderline position of the town, East Slavonic and Germanic elements can be found in the surnames there. I am conducting the research on Chełm’s anthroponomy due to my onomastic and linguistic specializations, my present home address and emotional bonds with the Chełm region.
The sources of the article are surnames gathered mainly from the telephone book of the Chełm region for the year 1998 and by the direct exploration of the area. Because of lack of historical material, methods of synchronic word formation have been used here.
Fauna and flora find rich representation in the names. The article offers 331 examples of surnames derived from anthroponomical appellatives which belong to the semantic field of fauna and flora. They are almost 10% of the researched material.
-
Magdalena Cepryńska : Derivation of the Notion of Service in Polish
The notion of service in Polish has had a long story. Registered in Polish language 14th-century relics, it has been changing its semantic capacity from defining the relation of interdependence towards someone to naming someone’s involvement in someone else’s good. Studying the changes, it is useful to reflect on the subject of the notion’s content, constituting its meaning.
-
Małgorzata Warchoł-Schlottmann : The Process of Neutralization of Qualitative Colloquial Lexis Based on the Word facet (guy) and kasa (cash)
The paper describes the phenomenon of lexical wandering inside the language system: from colloquial speech towards official language use. This is demonstrated by help of many citations on the example of two lexemes: facet (guy) and kasa (cash). The transfer of words, which genetically belong to the different stylistic levels, proceeds today very quickly and on a massive scale, enormously accelerated via mass media communication, and it involves at the same time the process of vulgarization and primitivisation of colloquial speech itself. The absorption of the colloquial units by the official use causes the vacant lexical spaces in the colloquial variance. In order to fill them, the colloquial language searches for new and more expressive items in the lowest linguistic registers: slang, sociolects and vulgar expressions.
