Sorbian languages
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Sorbian | |
---|---|
serbšćina, serbsce (Upper Sorbian) serbšćina, serbski (Lower Sorbian) | |
Ethnicity | Sorbs |
Geographic distribution | Lusatia |
Native speakers | c. 20,000 |
Linguistic classification | Indo-European |
Subdivisions | |
ISO 639-2 / 5 | wen |
Glottolog | sorb1249 |
The Sorbian-speaking area in Germany | |
Sorbian is classified as Definitely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger (2010) |
The Sorbian languageswen
.
The two Sorbian languages, each having its own literary standard, are Upper Sorbian (hornjoserbsce), spoken by about 20,000–25,000[5] people in Saxony, and Lower Sorbian (dolnoserbski), spoken by about 7,000 people in Brandenburg. The area where the two languages are spoken is known as Lusatia (Łužica in Upper Sorbian, Łužyca in Lower Sorbian, or Lausitz in German).[1][2][3]
History
After the settlement of the formerly Germanic territories (the part largely corresponding to the former East Germany)[3] by the Slavic ancestors of the Sorbs in the 5th and 6th centuries CE,[2] the Sorbian language (or its predecessors) had been in use in much of what was the southern half of Eastern Germany for several centuries. The language still had its stronghold in (Upper and Lower) Lusatia,[2] where it enjoys national protection and fostering to the present day.
For people living in the medieval Northern Holy Roman Empire and its precursors, especially for the Saxons, the Wends (Wende) were heterogeneous groups and tribes of Slavic peoples living near Germanic settlement areas, in the area west of the River Oder, an area later entitled Germania Slavica, settled by the Polabian Slav tribes in the north and by others, such as the Sorbs and the Milceni, further south (see Sorbian March).
The exact origin of the Sorbian language is uncertain. While some
Outside Lusatia, the Sorbian language has been superseded by German. From the 13th century on, the language suffered official discrimination.[4] Bible translations into Sorbian provided the foundations for its writing system.
Geographic distribution
In Germany, Upper and Lower Sorbian are officially recognized and protected as minority languages.[8] In the officially defined Sorbian settlement area, both languages are recognized as second official languages next to German.[9]
The city of Bautzen in Upper Lusatia is the centre of Upper Sorbian culture. Bilingual signs can be seen around the city, including the name of the city, "Bautzen/Budyšin". To the north, the city of Cottbus/Chóśebuz is considered the cultural centre of Lower Sorbian; there, too, bilingual signs are found.
Sorbian was also spoken in the small Sorbian ("Wendish") settlement of Serbin in Lee County, Texas, however no speakers remain there. Until 1949, newspapers were published in Sorbian. The local dialect was heavily influenced by surrounding speakers of German and English.
The German terms "Wends" (Wenden) and "Wendish" (wendisch/Wendisch) once denoted "Slav(ic)" generally;[citation needed] they are today mostly replaced by "Sorbs" (Sorben) and "Sorbian" (sorbisch/Sorbisch) with reference to Sorbian communities in Germany.[citation needed]
Endangered status
The use of Sorbian languages has been contracting for a number of years. The loss of Sorbian language use in emigrant communities, such as in Serbin, Texas, has not been surprising. But within the Sorbian homelands, there has also been a decrease in Sorbian identity and language use. In 2008, Sorbs protested three kinds of pressures against Sorbs: "(1.) the destruction of Sorbian and German-Sorbian villages as a result of lignite mining; (2.) the cuts in the network of Sorbian schools in Saxony; (3.) the reduction of financial resources for the Sorbian institutions by central government."[10]
A study of Upper Sorbian found a number of trends that go against language vitality. There are policies that have led to "unstable
Linguistic features
Both Upper and Lower Sorbian have the dual for nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and verbs; very few living Indo-European languages retain this as a productive feature of the grammar. For example, the word ruka is used for one hand, ruce for two hands, and ruki for more than two hands. As with most Slavic languages, Sorbian uses no articles.
Grammar
The Sorbian languages are declined in six or seven cases:
- Nominative
- Accusative
- Genitive
- Dative
- Locative
- Instrumental
- Vocative (Upper Sorbian only)
Case | nan father |
štom tree |
bom tree |
wokno window | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Upper Sorb. | Lower Sorb. | Upper Sorb. | Lower Sorb. | Upper Sorb. | Lower Sorb. | |
Nom. | nan | nan | štom | bom | wokno | wokno |
Acc. | nana | nana | ||||
Gen. | štoma | boma | wokna | wokna | ||
Dat. | nanej | nanoju | štomej | bomoju | woknu | woknoju, woknu |
Loc. | wo nanje | wó nanje | na štomje | na bomje | na woknje | na woknje |
Instr. | z nanom | z nanom | ze štomom | z bomom | z woknom | z woknom |
Voc. | nano | — | štomo | — | — | — |
Case | ramjo shoulder |
ramje shoulder, armpit |
žona woman |
žeńska woman, wife |
ruka hand | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Upper Sorb. | Lower Sorb. | Upper Sorb. | Lower Sorb. | Upper Sorb. | Lower Sorb. | |
Nom. | ramjo | ramje | žona | žeńska | ruka | |
Acc. | žonu | žeńsku | ruku | |||
Gen. | ramjenja | ramjenja | žony | žeńskeje | ruki | |
Dat. | ramjenju | ramjenjeju, ramjenju | žonje | žeńskej | ruce | |
Loc. | wo ramjenju | wó ramjenju | wo žonje | wó žeńskej | w ruce | |
Instr. | z ramjenjom | z ramjenim | ze žonu | ze žeńskeju | z ruku |
Vocabulary comparison
The following is selected vocabulary from the two Sorbian languages compared with other Slavic languages.
English | Lower Sorbian | Upper Sorbian | Serbo-Croatian | Macedonian | Bulgarian | Slovene | Czech | Polish | Polabian | Kashubian | Silesian | Slovak | Russian | Ukrainian | Belarusian |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
person | clowek/luź | čłowjek | човек / човјек (čovek / čovjek) |
човек (čovek) | човек (čovek) |
človek | člověk | człowiek | clawak | człowiek | czowiek | človek | человек (čelovek) |
людина (l'udyna) | людына (ljudyna) |
evening | wjacor | wječor | вече / вечер (veče / večer) |
вечер (večer) | вечер (večer) |
večer | večer | wieczór | vicer | wieczór | wieczōr | večer | вечер (večer) |
вечір (večir) |
вечар (vječar) |
brother | bratš | bratr | брат (brat) |
брат (brat) | брат (brat) |
brat | bratr | brat | brot | brat | brat | brat | брат (brat) |
брат (brat) |
брат (brat) |
day | źeń | dźeń | дан (dan) |
ден (den) | ден (den) |
dan | den | dzień | dôn | dzéń | dziyń | deň | день (den') |
день (den') |
дзень (dzjen') |
hand | ruka | ruka | рука (ruka) |
рака (raka) | ръка (rəka) |
roka | ruka | ręka | ręka | rãka | rynka | ruka | рука (ruka) |
рука (ruka) |
рука (ruka) |
snow | sněg | sněh | снег / снијег (sneg / snijeg) |
снег (sneg) | сняг (snjag) |
sneg | sníh | śnieg | sneg | sniég | śniyg | sneh | снег (sneg) |
сніг (snih) |
снег (snjeh) |
summer | lěśe | lěćo | лето / љето (leto / ljeto) |
лето (leto) | лято / лето (ljato / ljeto) |
poletje | léto | lato | ljutü | lato | lato | leto | лето (leto) |
літо (lito) |
лета (ljeta) |
sister | sotša | sotra | сестра (sestra) |
сестра (sestra) | сестра (sestra) |
sestra | sestra | siostra | sestra | sostra | szwestra | sestra | сестра (sestra) |
сестра (sestra) |
сястра (sjastra) |
fish | ryba | ryba | риба (riba) |
риба (riba) | риба (riba) |
riba | ryba | ryba | raibo | rëba | ryba | ryba | рыба (ryba) |
риба (ryba) |
рыба (ryba) |
fire | wogeń | woheń | огањ (oganj) |
оган (ogan) | огън (ogən) |
ogenj | oheň | ogień | widin | òdżin | ôgyń | oheň | огонь (ogon') |
вогонь (vohon') |
агонь (ahon') |
water | wóda | woda | вода (voda) |
вода (voda) | вода (voda) |
voda | voda | woda | wôda | wòda | woda | voda | вода (voda) |
вода (voda) |
вада (vada) |
wind | wětš | wětr | ветар / вјетар (vetar / vjetar) |
ветер (veter) | вятър / ветер (vjatər / veter) |
veter | vítr | wiatr | wjôter | wiater | wiater | vietor | ветер (veter) |
вітер (viter) |
вецер (vjetsjer) |
winter | zyma | zyma | зима (zima) |
зима (zima) | зима (zima) |
zima | zima | zima | zaima | zëma | zima | zima | зима (zima) |
зима (zyma) |
зіма (zima) |
See also
References
- ^ a b c d "Sorbian languages". Encyclopædia Britannica. Edinburgh: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 21 November 2013 [20 July 1998]. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
Sorbian languages, also called Lusatian, or Wendish, closely related West Slavic languages or dialects; their small number of speakers in eastern Germany are the survivors of a more extensive medieval language group. The centre of the Upper Sorbian speech area is Bautzen, near the border with the Czech Republic, while Cottbus, near Poland, is the centre for Lower Sorbian. The oldest written record of Sorbian dates from the 15th century, although the languages, differing mostly in their sound systems, are known to have begun to diverge around the 13th century. Upper Sorbian enjoyed a considerable amount of prestige in Saxony, while the Kingdom of Prussia attempted to suppress Lower Sorbian. Although all Sorbs today also speak German, both Upper and Lower Sorbian have been taught in the schools of the Sorbian areas since 1948.
- ^ ISSN 2294-9135.
- ^ JSTOR 43270317.
- ^ University of Leipzig
- ^ "Seltenes Studienfach: Entschuldigung, sprechen Sie Sorbisch?" - https://www.zeit.de/zett/2016-01/leipziger-institut-wehrt-sich-gegen-das-aussterben-von-sprachen
- ISBN 978-86-6263-026-1.
- ^ Paul M. Barford (2001). The Early Slavs: Culture and Society in Early Medieval Eastern Europe. Cornell University Press. pp. 64–65, 77–78, 104–105. ISBN 9780801439773
- ^ "Full list". Treaty Office. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
- ^ Sparrow, Thomas. "Sorbs: The ethnic minority inside Germany". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
- ^ p. 154. Mieczkowska, Małgorzata. "Protestdemonstrationen der Sorben–eine Form der politischen Kommunikation." LĚTOPIS. Zeitschrift für sorbische Sprache, Geschichte und Kultur. Časopis za rěč, stawizny a kulturu Łužiskich 2 (2009): 16-28.
- ^ De Meulder, Maartje, Eduard Werner, and Danny De Weerdt. "Comparing Minority Languages-a Case Study of Flemish Sign Language and Upper Sorbian." Europäisches Journal für Minderheitenfragen 10, no. 3-4 (2017): 285-321.
Relevant literature
- Werner, Eduard. Evaluating linguistic variation in light of sparse data in the case of Sorbian. Matt Coler and Andrew Nevins, eds., Contemporary research in minoritized and diaspora languages of Europe (2022): 281–302. Online open access.
External links
- Online course for Upper and Lower Sorbian (English, Sorbian, German)
- Euromosaic information page
- Kurs serskeje rěce / Bluń, introductory texts of the lessons included in the Sorbian language textbook Curs practic de limba sorabă (in Romanian)
- website for Lětopis, journal devoted to Sorbian topics