Lithuanian culture & history Flashcards
What language family does Lithuanian belong to?
Baltic languages, part of the Indo-European language family.
What are the branches of the Baltic languages?
-West Baltic (Old Prussian)
-East Baltic (Lithuanian, Latvian).
How many speakers does Lithuanian have and where are they primarily located?
About 3 million speakers, who almost all live in the Republic of Lithuania.
What are the parts of Lithuania called?
- Aukštaitija (highland),
- Žemaitija (lowland),
- Dzūkija,
- Suvalkija,
- Mažoji Lietuva (small Lithuania).
When was the Lithuanian alphabet developed?
The Lithuanian alphabet (Abėcė̃lė) has been developed since the 19th century.
What is the etymology of the name “Lithuania”?
Lith. Lietuvà is interpreted as ‘river basin’ from líeti ‘to pour,’ lietùs ‘rain’.
cf. the perhaps related Lat. lītus ‘shore’. Very uncertain.
What does the term “Old Lithuanian” refer to?
any form of Lithuanian pre-dating 19th-century standardization.
What influence did the Teutonic Order have in the Baltic region?
They conducted Northern Crusades, leading to the conversion and influence over Northern Poland, Prussia, Estonia, and Latvia.
What role did the Hanseatic League play in the influence of Germanic languages on the Baltic lexicon?
The sea-trade activities in the 14th-15th centuries brought many Low German loanwords into Baltic languages.
What did Tannenberg mean for Lithuanian history?
The Battle of Tannenberg in 1410, where the Teutonic Order was defeated.
What did the Union of Krewo (1386) and the Union of Lublin (1569) mean for Lithuanian history?
The Union of Krewo (1386) made a dynastic union between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland, until the Union of Lublin (1569) created a new state, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
What impact did the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth have on the Lithuanian language?
It resulted in hundreds of loanwords due to long and intensive contact between Poles and Lithuanians.
What are the oldest Lithuanian texts and when were they inscribed?
- Pater Noster inscribed on the last page of Nicolaus de Blony’s Tractatus Sacerdotalis (1503).
- 20 glosses in Joannes Herolt, Liber Discipuli de Eruditione Christifidelium (±1525).
What is the oldest Lithuanian book and when was it written?
The first Lithuanian book is Martynas Mažvydas’ 1547 Catechism.
When was the first Bible translation in Lithuanian completed and by whom?
Jonas Bretkūnas made the first Bible translation (1579-1590).
What is the historical significance of “Postilė” by Mikalojus Daukša?
Postilė (sermon collection, 1599) constitutes one of the monuments of the Lithuanian language, and used accent marks for word stress and tone.
When was the first Lithuanian grammar published and by whom?
In 1653 by Danielius Kleinas.
What historical event took place in 1795?
The Polish-Lithuanian state was dismantled and divided between Prussia, Austria, and Russia in 1795.
Which dialect is the Lithuanian standard language based on?
On the West Aukštaitian dialect (partly spoken in Lithuania Minor).
What is an influential early Lithuanian literary work published in Lithuania Minor, 1818?
“Metai” (‘The Seasons’), a hexametric poem by Kristijonas Donelaitis.
What role did the Indo-Europeanist August Schleicher play in the standardization of Lithuanian?
He wrote a grammar in 1856, which describes a Prussian West-Aukštaitian dialect. Schleicher introduced the letters <ų>, <į>, <y> and <v>, but does not mention the tones.</v></y></į></ų>
What significant acts did Prussian–Lithuanian Friedrich Kurschat perform?
–A more extensive grammar of a dialect close to the one described by Schleicher (1876)
–Lithuanian-German dictionary (1883)
–German-Lithuanian dictionary (1870-1874)
How did the Russian Empire’s rule impact the Lithuanian language in the 19th century?
From 1864 to 1904, it was forbidden to publish Lithuanian books or newspapers in the Latin alphabet, leading to smuggling of materials from Prussia and development of a standard language.
What was significant about Jonas Jablonskis’s 1901 publication?
Jonas Jablonskis, who was born on the border between Lithuania Minor and Maior, published the first grammar of the current standard language in Lithuania Minor in 1901.
Why did Lithuania have fewer German loanwords compared to Latvia?
Lithuania was independent from the Teutonic Order, less sea-oriented, and initially separated from German influences by Old Prussian territories.
What sort of Germanic loanwords are in Lithuanian?
Examples include Low German loanwords due to trade and the Hanseatic League’s influence.
What are some examples of Slavic loanwords in Lithuanian?
-gãtavas ‘ready’ from Polish gotowy or Belarusian gatovy,
-kumetìs ‘farmhand’ from Old Russian kŭmetŭ.
What was the significance of contact between Baltic and Finnic languages?
There was early contact between the speakers, and all Baltic loanwords in Finnish and Estonian relate to agriculture and animal husbandry. Finnic loanwords in Baltic are rarer:
e.g. Lith. laĩvas ‘boat,’ Latvian laĩva < Est. laev, Fin. laiva
