Routledge Dictionary of Language and Linguistics
Family of Indo-European languages which show similarities to the Baltic languages, perhaps deriving from a common Balto-Slavic group. There are numerous phonological, morphological, and lexical correspondences between these two language families. The Slavic languages are commonly divided into three groups containing the following official languages: East Slavic (Russian, Belorussian, Ukrainian), West Slavic (Polish, Czech, Slovak, Sorbian), and South Slavic (Bulgarian, Macedonian, Serbo-Croatian, Slovene). Kashubian is a member of the West Slavic group, but now has only a few thousand speakers. Old Church Slavic in its numerous variants continues to be used in Orthodox Christian services.
Characteristics: virtually all the Slavic languages have a developed aspect system for the verb, pairing perfective and imperfective verbs. Imperfectives can be constructed by adding various suffixes. Base verbs are almost invariably imperfective; prefixation renders a verb perfective and usually alters its meaning. Suffixation can provide an exact imperfective partner for a prefixed perfective. All Slavic languages, except Bulgarian and Macedonian, have well-developed case systems.
References
Arumaa, P. 1964–85. Einführung in das vergleichende Studium der slavischen Sprachen, 3 vols. Heidelberg.
Bernštejn, S.B. 1961–74. Očerk sravnitel’ noj grammatiki slavjanskix jazykov, 2 vols. Moscow.
Birnbaum, H. 1975. Common Slavic: progress and problems in its reconstruction. Columbus, OH.
Bräuer, H. 1961–9. Slavische Sprachwissenschaft. Berlin.
Carlton, T.R. 1991. Introduction to the phonological history of the Slavic languages. Columbus, OH.
Comrie, B. and G.G.Corbett (eds) 1993. The Slavonic languages. London.
de Bray, R.G.A., de. 1980. Guide to the Slavonic languages, 3 vols, 3rd edn. Columbus, OH.
Jakobson, R. 1955. Slavic languages: a condensed survey. New York.
Picchio, R.
and H.Goldblatt. 1984. Aspects of the Slavic language question, 2 vols. Columbus, OH.
Schenker, A.M. and E.Stankiewicz (eds) 1980. The Slavic literary languages: formation and development. New Haven, CT.
Shevelov, G.Y. 1964. A prehistory of Slavic: the historical phonology of Common Slavic. Heidelberg.
Stone, G. and D.Worth (eds) 1985. The formation of the Slavonic literary languages. Columbus, OH.
Panzer, B. 1991. Die slavischen Sprachen in Gegenwart und Geschichte: Sprachstrukturen und Verwandtschaft. Frankfurt-on-Main.
Rehder, P. (ed.) 1991. Einführung in die slavischen Sprachen, 2nd rev. edn. Darmstadt.
Vaillant, A. 1950–77. Grammaire comparée des langues slaves, 5 vols. Paris.
Bibliographies
Birnbaum, H. and P.T.Merrill. 1983. Recent advances in the reconstruction of Common Slavic (1971–1982). Columbus, OH.
Stankiewicz, E. and D.S.Worth. 1966–70. A selected bibliography of Slavic linguistics, 2 vols. The Hague.
Dictionary
Trubačev, O.N. 1974–. Ėtimologičeskij slovar’ slavjanskix jazykov. Vol. 20, 1994. Moscow.
Journals
International Journal of Slavic Linguistics and Poetics.
Journal of Slavonic Studies.
Slavjanskoe i balkanskoe jazykoznanie.
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