Founded in 2006. The journal publishes articles in linguistics, literary studies, history, philosophy, ethnology and other fields of humanities. A diverse discourse of regionalism is developed in the research.
Vilniaus universiteto leidykla / Vilnius University Press
Dialectal Attitudes of Juozas Balčikonis: Dialectal and Figurative Lexicon in His Writings
In 2025, the 140th anniversary of Juozas Balčikonis is being commemorated – a historian of language, dialectologist, grammar specialist, toponymist, folklorist, promoter of linguistic purity, and lexicographer. Juozas Balčikonis was born in Panevėžys region, which belongs to the expansive and vibrant Eastern Aukštaitian (Panevėžys) subdialect. He repeatedly expressed – both directly and indirectly – a positive attitude toward dialects, concern for their future, and emphasized the significance of dialectal forms for linguistic science. Numerous such remarks can be found throughout his published works dealing with language issues. This article discusses Balčikonis’s dialectal views and examines dialectal vocabulary, vivid words, and expressions that appear in his writings. The analysis draws on examples from the two-volume Collected Works (Rinktiniai raštai), published in 1978 and 1982 (compiled by Aldonas Pupkis), the memoir book Add Word to Word – You’ll Have a Dictionary (Dėk žodį prie žodžio – turėsi žodyną), compiled by Birutė Goberienė and Aldonas Pupkis (2006), as well as on various folktale translations carried out by the linguist himself. The study shows that Balčikonis most often addressed the importance of dialects in articles written for the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language, and he frequently treated the linguistic features – lexical or grammatical – of his native dialect as benchmarks, viewing them as unquestionable when proposing or validating certain grammatical forms or toponymic equivalents in the standard Lithuanian language. Moreover, Balčikonis made abundant use of dialectal features and vivid lexicon in his own work – both in folktale translations and non-fictional texts.
Copyright (c) 2025 Irena Kruopienė | Genovaitė Kačiuškienė https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Ethnographic Regions of Lithuania and the City: Creating of Cultural Integrity
Considering that many papers of urban anthropology written by Lithuanian anthropologists and ethnologists are related to the rural culture, this article raises the question what kind of the relation could be revealed between the city and the ethnographic region. The paper aims to conceptually reveal why a city could or could not be considered as a part of a certain ethnographic region and absolutely represent the identity of an ethnographic region in which it is located. This paper is based on theoretical papers of urban anthropology and sociology, texts by foreign and Lithuanian anthropologists analyzing the concept of a region, papers by Lithuanian ethnologists revealing the features of constructing ethnographic regions of Lithuania; by analyzing the ethnographic and dialect maps of Lithuania. The article proposes that there is no conceptual anthropological definition of a region, however, because region could be constructed externally, it often gains an instrumental and classification function, i.e, to combine or separate smaller units. Specifically, the strict line defining the borders of a region on the ethnographic map marks similarities and differences. The ethnographic regions of Lithuania have been constructed by using the approach which is based on moving from the center (certain features are expressed the brightest) towards the periphery where expression of certain features diminishes. This means that the entire evenly marked area on the ethnographic map is considered as culturally integral. Nevertheless, the ethnographic regions of Lithuania have been formed not only based on ethnographic material, but also based on the historical findings, which legitimizes existence of a certain territory by confirming the origin of the name and formation of borders, also prevalence of dialects, which is considered as one of the most significant identity features of a region. The article highlights that an ethnographic region is perceived not only as a cultural integrity, but it also gains an administrative function along with distinguished organizational centers – cities, approved coats of arms, flags, and established “government”. The article reveals that, in terms of the social structure, a city is a completely different organization in comparison to a rural community representing regional culture. Unlike a rural, which is associated with similarity, closeness, tradition, and stability, a city is defined as a densely populated territory with prevailing variety of people, cultures and activities, individuality, characteristic of continuous development and modernization, whereas closeness stems from the need to survive. The article concludes that belonging of a city to an ethnographic region is questionable because the social and cultural features of the city are different from those associated with an ethnographic region, as constructed cultural integrity, however, a city may be considered as the administrative center of an ethnographic region.
Copyright (c) 2019 Authors https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Spanish Confraternities of Our Lady of Mercy, the Redeemer of Captives in the Samogitian Diocese: History and Importance to Local Piety Traditions
The article has gathered and systematised data about the confraternities of Our Lady of Mercy and the Redemption of the Captives (Latin: Beatae Maria de Mercede) that were active in the Samogitian Diocese in the 18th and 19th centuries. After a short introduction of the religious order of Mercedarians, the founder of these confraternities, and the spread of the cult of Our Lady of Mercy in the Catholic Church promoted by the order, the article concentrated on the history of the said confraternities in Lithuanian Catholic churches and the scope of existing research as well as possible directions of further investigations. The Mercedarians themselves have never settled in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania) and, based on currently available data, the said confraternities only operated in the old Samogitian Diocese (its former area before the administrative and territorial reform that took place in the mid-19th century). Here, since the 1720s, 11 or 12 confraternities of Our Lady of Mercy have been founded in churches starting with the Diocese centre in Varniai: Varniai St. Alexander Church and parish churches or chapels of ease of Lioliai, Girkalnis, Šatės, Šakyna, Gardamas, Pakruojis, Kurtuvėnai, Judrėnai, Lieplaukė, Skirsnemunė and Pernarava (?). The popes and local bishops permitted to found them after the cult of Our Lady of Mercy spread outside the Mercedarian order: in 1696 pope Innocent XII extended the feast day of Our Lady of Mercy to the entire Catholic Church dedicating September 24 for this purpose. The main indulgence feasts of the said Samogitian confraternities were associated with this day (although there were exceptions) and the dates for other events of the confraternities used to be separately set by the local bishop. Indulgence feasts of the same title that used to be celebrated in several more churches and chapels of this diocese or historically related areas were likely influenced by these confraternities as well. These confraternities of Our Lady of Mercy have left some traces in the religious culture of the Samogitian Diocese and Marian art that need further research. The investigation of these confraternities in the Samogitian Diocese deepens our knowledge of the impact of the Spanish religious culture and art on the Catholic traditions of this Lithuanian region.
the Redeemer of Captives (Latin: Beatae Maria de Mercede)
Third Century University – a Factor Reducing Social and Cultural Exclusion of the Elderly People in the Region
The problems of the elderly people are becoming an increasingly relevant object of research. Third Century Universities are a modern form of non-formal adult education that is increasingly becoming more popular and recognized in Lithuania. Larger or smaller third century universities in various parts of Lithuania are gradually becoming an important form of cultural life for the elderly people, a tool for reducing social exclusion. Sociologists claim that the elderly people face a dual social exclusion: cultural – driven by negative societal attitudes, and economic – driven by poverty. This is particularly felt by people of the periphery, remote regions, as the standard of living here is lower and their cultural field provides less opportunities to meet the various needs of a 21st century person. The aim of this article is to discuss the Third Century University as a factor reducing social and cultural exclusion of the elderly people in the regions. Research methods are as follows: the analysis of theoretical literature, case analysis (the experience of the Faculty of Humanities of Šiauliai Third Age University is analysed), the analysis of semi-structured questionnaire data. The phenomenon of the Third Century University is examined in a socio-cultural context, emphasizing social exclusion, quality of life and other aspects. The article provides a brief overview of research on Third Century Universities in Lithuania. The conclusion can be drawn that Third Century Universities undoubtedly contribute to improving the quality of life of the elderly people, as subjective well-being is also linked to access to education. In addition, TCU also helps to prevent the marginalization of people of retirement age, improves social integration of retirees into society. Meeting the need for self-education also solves problems of social exclusion: without investing large sums, people of retirement age can attend quality studies, learn useful things, and communicate with their peers. In turn, Third Century Universities enrich social and cultural life of the region through their activities.
The Role of Latvian Catholic Church Textiles in Perfecting People’s Aesthetic Values
Under the National Research Program “Letonika” in University of Latvia, the scientific topic “The Role of Latvian Catholic Church Textiles in Perfecting People’s Aesthetic Values” was started. In the frame of the project, the author has begun to identify the textiles in Catholic churches in Latgale, paying special attention to the raw materials and handicraft techniques used in their making that had a special role in increasing people’s cultural and living standards. The material collected in churches is very diverse. It shows many layers of culture, different materials, techniques and adornments. According to functionality, Catholic liturgical vestments can be classified as follows: the liturgical clothing of priests (clergy attire) and interior textiles of the church (altar cover, flags, baldachin, etc.). According to the techniques of the material and performance applied, liturgics textile fabrics may be divided into: colored liturgics textiles and white liturgics textiles. The author’s special interest was caused by the likeness of alb and surplice to the cut of peasants’ shirts. Phenomenally, that worldwide straight thread cut and traditional crosscutting technology of the cut of alb and surplice has survived until now. However, among peasants this cut of shirts disappeared at the turn of the 20th century. In the 19th century, there was mutual influence in church and peasant textiles. Namely, the church used local materials in the making of liturgics textiles (fine linen fabrics were in great respect) and traditional shirt cuts that have been recognized for many generations, but the peasants (through the church) became aware of new raw materials, craft materials, artwork machinery and compositions. Perhaps the peasants of the church took advantage of techniques such as open work, embroidered net, crochet laces, Richelieu and English embroidery, with which the ordinary people willingly embroidered their clothing and room textiles. The decorated church’s textiles encouraged the peasants to learn new crafts, to make their clothing and interior designs more beautiful and timely. New needlework knowledge improved the cultural level of the nation, raised awareness of the beauty and timeliness, and provided insight into art trends in Europe. At the same time, the pursuit of everything new, methodically led to a reduction in the specificity of traditional lifestyle.
Ethnological, Teleological and Axiological Components of the Traditional Upbringing in the Early 20th Century in Bosnia and Herzegovina
This paper looks at and compares two books. The first is entitled “The Life and Practices of Croats of Catholic Faith in Bosnia and Herzegovina” (Sarajevo, 1908) and was written by Nikola Buconjić (1865–1947), a poet, prose writer and ethnographer. The title of the second one is “Muslim Life and Practices in Bosnia and Herzegovina” (Sarajevo, 1907, 2nd ed.). It was written by Antuna Hangija (1866–1909), an ethnographer and folklorist. Both writers worked as teachers. The books served to look at the foundations, methodologies, teleology and axiology of the process of raising children at the beginning of the 20th century in one part of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian population. It has been noted that the process of raising children is based on respect for authority and family hierarchy focusing on the child at the end of that process. The authority, on the other hand, builds its foundation on the right to have access to material goods and is further reinforced by tradition, social system and religion. Implementation (methodology) of the educational process is marked by minimal technical, educational and medical conditions, with a high percentage of child mortality. According to the traditional pattern of education, it was considered that it was necessary to allow an immature individual to adopt a form of socially acceptable behaviour based on respect for authority (teleology) according to the principle: the child is allowed – the child is forbidden. The relevant authorities are parents, followed by teachers or the state, and the church. With the development of the means of production and the raising of the level of literacy and schooling, the conditions can be reached for the child to be raised as an independent and self-aware individual and a responsible member of society. The results of the research study conducted for the purpose of this article have shown low familiarity of today’s young generation with the popular beliefs from Buconjić’s and Hangi’s books.
Kaip namie (Just like at home): Sociolinguistic Interpretation of the Phraseological Idiom
Phraseological comparison kaip namie (Just like at home) is used whilst selfexplaining the local as well as spiritual (emotional) self-knowledge in the place that you are: do you feel like you are at home, just like home or do you feel foreign. The most important aspects of “home” are place, people, language and culture. The concept of “home” could be constructed from one or a few of the aspects, their harmony. The phraseological comparison implicates complicated semantics: first of all, from the adverb namie “at home”, we can apprehend that we are talking about a specific (physical, real, or abstract, imaginary, unreal) place, space; second, this adverb connected with the conjunction kaip “like” can show that we are talking about not-home – place which only from a certain angle can resemble home. In dictionaries, this phraseological definition can be found: “[to feel] good, free”. Context clues show that speakers are fond of the “comfortable, secure” meaning. In addition, context clues can display that some speakers (even from the younger generation) could associate the phraseological idiom kaip namie with a certain physical place, relatives, native language and even with the whole existence (of all the circumstances); others (especially younger ones) already have the cosmopolitan self-knowledge: they insist that they can feel like being at home anywhere. Academics of culture, sociologists assert that a modern person would more often search for home in culture and in a way is trying to bring back something that is slowly becoming foreign, changing substantial reality to circumstantial one. A very clear illustration of these points can be seen in the sculptor Antanas Šnaras’ phraseological sculpture-installation “Kaip namie”; in 2008, this gigantic, almost a meter and a half, in granite letters “written” phrase was placed in various squares of Vilnius for a brief moment.
The Main Phonetic and Morphological Features in the Deep Tamian (Tāmnieki) Subdialects of the Livonianized Dialect Nowadays
The present research aims at showing the usage of the most characteristic dialectal features in the deep Tamian subdialects of the Livonianized dialect nowadays. Main focus is on the typical phonetic and morphological features and the sociolinguistic observations of these subdialects. Analysis is based on the middle and older generation’s speech data gathered by recording the subdialects of Pope, Ziras, Piltene, Zlēkas, Ance, Dundaga, and Ugāle. The data analyzed in this paper gathered in the expeditions carried out by the author (2008–2017). In the majority of the researched deep Tamian subdialects the loss of short vowels and the reduction of long vowels in final syllables is still observed. Although these are the most typical phonetic peculiarities of the entire Livonianized dialect and are used by all generations’ speakers, those also tend to change even in the deep subdialects of Kurzeme not only in the speech of the younger generation’s speech, but also middle and older generation’s speakers begin to avoid using those, preferring standard language forms. Nowadays there are also several features in the deep Tamian subdialects which are used in the speech of the older generation only and which change under the influence of the standard language, for example, the loss of long vowels and diphthongs in suffixes and endings, the monophthongization and diphthongization, and other phonetic changes which are specific to the deep Tamian subdialects. One of the most prominent morphological features of the deep Tamian subdialects is the use of masculine gender forms instead of feminine which is still widespread and often used feature not only in the deep Tamian subdialects, but also in the Kurzeme’s non-deep subdialects and Vidzeme’s Livonianized subdialects. Another typical and often used morphological peculiarity is the use of the 3rd person verb forms in all persons and numbers. Both features appear more rarely in the speech of the younger generation than in the speech of the middle and older generation, because younger people are avoid using those, introducing the standard language forms instead of the dialectal forms. As the gathered materials show, it is still possible to hear typical phonetic and morphological features in the researched deep Tamian subdialects, but as it is clear that these features have changed since the last century, when extensive dialectal researches on Latvian dialectology were made, it is particularly important to study the dynamics of dialect phenomena nowadays.
The Derivational Field of the Noun kaimas (‘village’)
The majority of words of the Lithuanian lexicon are derivatives, not base words. In the Lithuanian language, words are derived not only from the base words, but from derivatives as well. Thus, in Lithuanian, a derivational field around a word is often formed. The article analyses the derivational field of the noun kaimas (‘village’). Having analyzed 108 derivatives with the root kaim found in Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language (LKŽe), Digital Supplement Card File of Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language (PK), Dictionary of Modern Lithuanian (DLKT), list of Dictionary of Standard Lithuanian (BŽa), the Database of Lithuanian Neologisms (NŽ) and The Corpus of the Contemporary Lithuanian Language (DLKT), the following conclusions were drawn: 1. The greater part of the derivational field of the noun kaimas comprises the derivatives of level 1 (62, or 57 percent of all derivatives); the number of level 2 derivatives is smaller (40, or 37 percent of all derivatives), the number of level 3 derivatives is the smallest (6, or 6 percent of all derivatives). 2. In the derivational field nouns dominate (86 derivatives were found): they make up 80 percent of all derivatives. The field has significantly fewer adjectives (13, or 12 percent of all derivatives), very few verbs (6, or 5 percent) and adverbs (3, or 3 percent). Some of derived nouns are abstract nouns, but most often they refer to a place and a person. 3. In addition to regular cognite derivatives recorded in dictionaries, the derivational field contains neologisms: they make up 11 percent of all derivatives. Most of the neologisms are potential derivatives: they are quite common, formed by regular types of word formation, and their meaning is easily understood from the context. Some of the neologisms can be considered to be uncommon derivatives. 4. Some of the derivatives with the same root are in free variation or are synonyms (16 sequences of derivational variants (DV) and 9 sequences of derivational synonyms (DS) were formed and analysed). Some DS have a high degree of synonymy, have identical or very similar meanings, are used in similar lexical environments, and can be substituted without much restriction. However, the DLKT data showed that usually there is a difference in the frequency of use of DS and DV sequence members: there is a tendency in the current Lithuanian language to use only certain members of synonym (and variant) sequence. Some derivatives (usually not included in DLKŽ and BŽa) are used very rarely or are not used in the current Lithuanian language at all.
Ὰ la guerre comme à la guerre: a Look at Lithuanian Public War Discourse
The aim of the present paper is to compare the specificity of war discourse actualized in the magazine KARYS of the July issues of the 1937 and 2017 years. In order to achieve this aim, the following objectives have been set: to define the limits of public war discourse; to classify the conceptual metaphors actualized in the texts; to summarize the most important concepts described in the texts; on the basis of the obtained results to make assumptions what world view is created in the issues of the magazine KARYS of different years. War discourse refers to the everyday life of the armed forces, military technology, military conflicts, people’s (un)willingness to fight for their homeland with a weapon and under threat of death, and thus values, moral choices and other topics that are fully revealed by conceptualizing metaphors. The implied target audience and the nature of the message conveyed to it can essentially change transferable features while actualizing a metaphor. After classifying and analysing the conceptual metaphors actualized in the magazine KARYS in the July issues of 1937 and 2017 years, it was revealed that they are universal, however, they differ in a variety of transferred features. The differences can be attributed to the particularities of the non-linguistic reality: since 1937, from an independent state, which was essentially a land of farmers, it was switched to the advanced state which has industry and developed technologies. All these factors are actualized in the metaphors of the relevant period. Some of the topics covered in both issues of the journal are common: it is written about the excellent preparation of Lithuanian soldiers, the troubled international situation is mentioned as well. The topics of the 2017 issue can be described as more realistic and the world view is described as more dramatic and gloomy.
The Names of the Regions of Latvia and Lithuania in the Second Baltic Language
The aim of the research is to find out the rendering and usage of Latvian and Lithuanian names of regions, singled out according to various criteria, in the second Baltic language. Dictionaries, encyclopaedias, press issues and information for tourists published in Lithuania and Latvia as well as other non-artistic texts, both written in Latvian or Lithuanian and translated into Latvian or Lithuanian, were chosen as sources for the investigation. The names of the five regions of Latvia, Kurzeme, Latgale, Sēlija, Vidzeme, Zemgale, are characteristic of quite diverse rendering and usage in the Lithuanian language. Systematically (and synchronically) assessing, the priority in giving a Latvian name of the region of Kurzeme the equivalent in Lithuanian Kuržemė as having a particular tradition of usage would be emphasised. However, recently, the growing popularity of the place name Kuršas in both historical and contemporary contexts is observed. Traditional and widespread equivalents are used in the following cases: the place name Vidzeme is rendered as Vidžemė and Latgale as Latgala; moreover, the usage of a Lithuanian equivalent Sėla being close to the name of the Latvian territory is suitable. A region of Southern Latvia, Zemgale, is most often named Žiemgala in Lithuanian. Nevertheless, in rare cases, other instances of the usage of these names, not always correct, were observed. As Latvian sources suggest, the rendering and usage of Lithuanian regions is much simpler. The most difficult name of the five regions, Aukštaitija, Dzūkija, Mažoji Lietuva, Suvalkija, Žemaitija, is the first one. Because of the difference in the consonants forming the basis of the root of the adjective having the same meaning (cf. Lithuanian aukštas and Latvian augsts), the forms Aukštaitija and Augštaitija were found; the form which is more similar to the original is the correct one. Both names Dzūkija and Žemaitija have no other variants differing from a Lithuanian form; and the name Suvalkija was used with a palatal consonant of the Latvian language, Suvaļkija, in one of the sources. Such rendering reflects pronunciation more precisely; however, still it has no tradition of being used. A complex name Mažoji Lietuva is usually translated word by word, Mazā Lietuva, even though, observing the analogy with other names of the same kind, it could be rendered by a compound Mazlietuva. The comparison of the names of regions demonstrates that the rendering of Latvian place names in Lithuanian and Lithuanian place names in Latvian is changing in both dictionaries and texts. Moreover, it is observed that it is difficult to render a Latvian word novads in Lithuanian, since it is used as both a synonym of a borrowing reģions and a name of a unit of territorial administrative division (in a spoken meaning, a Lithuanian equivalent nuovadas would be suitable).
Šiauliai County in the Correspondence of Povilas Višinskis
Sources of the article is the correspondence (reportages) written by literary, cultural, political activist Povilas Višinskis, that were published in the late 19th–early 20th centuries in “Varpas”, “Ūkininkas” and other publications. Višinskis enters into the history of writing as a publicist not only of large but also small texts by describing events, phenomena and problems related to a specific place and wider region. The aim of the article is to research the image of Šiauliai county through the prism of the relation between human and place, national and value identity, while looking at this region from the perspective of fundamental Višinskis’s provisions and style. Texts of Višinskis allow us to engage in a politically, socially, culturally rich and contradictory assessment of the events and phenomena of that time. Their connection with a specific place, allowing us to get to know this place and its wider context, emerges as a reliability criterion of ideological, cultural and social truth. The pursuit of truth in correspondence, manifesting through the criticism of the tsarist government, its laws or stereotypes entrenched in everyday life, takes the form of history, related to a specific place and its broader context. It allows a reader to get to know the rhythm of life of that place and at the same time the whole Lithuania, invites him to a more conscious relationship with his time in national, civic and other terms. A positive Višinskis’s view towards history and the present, the representation of social and cultural life is also very interesting. The connection of human and place is important in presenting culturally, politically and historically significant performances and gegužinės3. In the case of more militant or representative publicistic writing, the connection of human and place, supposing the identity of a local person, acts as a factor enhancing national identity and awareness.
Fathers of Genius: the Ambiguities of Power in Relations with their Fathers for Three Women Writers, Maria Edgeworth, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Virginia Woolf
18th and 19th century British social norms made it very difficult for talented women to become published writers: many of those who were successful owed a good deal to the help of their fathers. This article considers the particular nature of such father-daughter relationships, focusing on three women who became literary celebrities of their time, Maria Edgeworth, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Virginia Woolf. It also poses two questions: why the fathers in these cases acted against the rules for women by encouraging their daughters, and what price the three men paid for breaking rules. Research on the fathers, Richard Edgeworth, Edward Barrett and Leslie Stephen, reveals similarities among them. Although comfortably middle-class, they were still marginal in their societies; all had ambitions of their own which they failed to realize; and all devoted unusual amounts of time to their families. All of them encouraged their daughters’ literary development, in particular by giving them access to contemporary literature collected in their private libraries. Both Edgeworth and Barrett did a great deal to promote their daughters’ writings, while Stephen provided the model of a possible literary career. However, at a certain stage the fathers became less liberal, returning to the idea that women should be subordinate within their families. Maria Edgeworth had to write educational works to be allowed to write novels. Elizabeth Barrett Browning published her strongest works only after eloping with Robert Browning. Virginia Woolf was not able to write her modernist fiction until her father died. As for the fathers, Barrett and Stephen especially felt betrayed by their daughters in their later life.
The Peculiarities of the Formation of the Border Guard of the Republic of Latvia: the Example of the 4th Daugavpils Border Guard Battalion (1991–1997)
After the Republic of Latvia regained its independence, the question of its border status has become essential for its security. With the creation of the Ministry of Defence, already by 13th November 1991, it immediately began the herculean task of forming proper Latvian Armed Forces. The Border Guard Forces of the Republic of Latvia was the first main force formed by the Ministry of Defence, by 2nd January 1992 there were 2,309 state positions reserved for the Border Guard units from the combined 2,452 positions at the Ministry of Defence. Out of them, 226 formed the 4th Daugavpils Border guard battalion. Its aim was to guard the Latvian border with Belarus and Lithuania. Due to its location, it eventually became the largest Border Guard battalion, additionally, by 1994 already more than 90% of border violations occurred on the checkpoints facing Belarus and Russia, therefore, putting even more pressure on the battalion. The fact that practically all of the border guards serving in the battalion spoke Russian fluently definitely was a much needed skill when dealing with contrabandists and migrants who crossed the border illegally. However, when dealing with administrative tasks, for a lot of the border guards, especially the ones coming from Russian speaking families, this proved to be quite troublesome, since they had significant problems writing the reports and other written tasks on the time set to them by their superiors. Additionally, due to the fact that the border guard service at the time was mandatory, many of those drafted against their will suffered from the lack of discipline. For most of them this was because they lacked motivation to serve adequately, they were looking for ways to easier endure their service rather than stay in the military service afterwards. Of course, this problem was not an exception for the 4th Daugavpils Border Guard battalion, this issue was common in the entirety of the Latvian Armed Forces at that time, it was the crucial location of the battalion that made this problem so troubling. Despite all of the difficulties mentioned above, the battalion, somewhat mirroring the rapid development not just of the Republic of Latvia but of all three Baltic States, advanced quite quickly and by the year 1997 it sorted most of its logistical and administrative problems. When it was transferred under the command of the Ministry of Interior, the battalion was already fully staffed and operational.
The issue of flax was topical both in Latgale region and in Latvia in the 1920s. Flax fibre and linseeds were very important export goods in Latvia. Latgale region was the main producer of flax in the country, thanks to which Latgalian small holders could get real income. More than 10% of all agricultural land was used to grow flax. However, small holders did not get real income due to the establishment of a national flax monopoly, when flax was sold at the cheapest price. As the price of flax was very changeable on the world market, it was stored in warehouses and sold when the price grew. As a result, flax growers received only about a tenth of the profits the country got for flax exports. The government policy for getting too much profit from flax exports was criticized by Latgalian politicians. They defended the interests of flax growers. The market of flax in Latgale as well as in Latvia was also discredited by certain illegal practices of flax producers and collectors for self-benefit.
Marginal Women, Neglect and Abuse: Criminals or Victims in Soviet Society? A Case Reflected in Daugavpils Press (1953–1964)
Women marginalism as a social phenomenon in the Latvian SSR and Daugavpils city, during the period of the “Khrushchev thaw” (1953–1954), had its own characteristic spectrum, also neglect and abuse. In the Soviet period, in 1953–1964 years (time of government of N. Khrushchev in USSR), on the territory of Latvia, in case of the existing social and economic problems – low compensation, shortage of housing, deficit of essential goods and quality manufactured goods, difficult work with little reward and poverty, etc. men’s functions in the family, work and society, understanding of gender roles within the Soviet system and female emancipation, everyday traditions and spread of alcohol consumption among women in Latvian population, became pronounced. That was the foundation for the collapse of traditional patriarchal family and in women’s life occurred such problems as women crime and amoral lifestyle, psychical stress, aggression, neglect and abuse in family in soviet Latvian society. Women marginalism with neglect and abuse as a social phenomenon in the Latvian SSR and Daugavpils city during the period of the “Khrushchev thaw” had a variety of external and internal indicators. Marginal women – criminals or victims in Soviet society? Why were women as perpetrators or as victims of soviet life? How and why could it happen? This problem was vividly expressed in the materials of Daugavpils city press. The article aimed to analyse 23 articles of the Daugavpils press. In the example of women in Daugavpils, the analysis of Daugavpils city press materials, such as “Padomju Daugava” and “Krasnoje Znamja”, includes the history of women’s crimes (1953–1964) within the Soviet system, they are a sources to explore and construct the social reality in the past, formed a basis for reconstruction of crimes and of a social portrait of marginal women, give the chance to establish correlation between age, origin, education level, employment, marital status, the social status, a criminal record and commited neglect and abuse acts. The analysis revealed the influence of the social environment on decline of moral standards and motives, which in interaction with personal and psychological characteristics of women promoted the growth of crime among women.
“Who does not kill hogs will not get black puddings” – Parasitism and Parasite in Soviet Society (based on the materials of the Daugavpils City Prosecutor’s Office and the city press (1953–1964))
In the Soviet period, also called “Khrushchev thaw” (1953–1964), in the territory of Latvia, in the Soviet society it was actively fought against parasitism as a way of life of any person, who without justifiable reasons was not working for the benefit of the Soviet state. The struggle against parasitism, codified by the normative acts of the USSR, also had a clearly expressed ideological character. “Who does not kill hogs will not get black puddings” – a popular slogan of the Soviet era, pressing to a struggle against any manifestation of parasitism as a parasitic existence at the expense of society. A parasitism or parasite in Soviet society was any woman ranging from women with pronounced marginal behavior (tramps, women with alcohol addiction, thieves, fraudsters, women of deviant sexual behavior), underground business leaders to housewives who care only about their family and children. The article investigates the problem of female parasitism in the Soviet and in the Latvian society of that historical period in the city Daugavpils. The basis of the investigation are the materials of the prosecution cases of the Daugavpils Regional State Archive of the Latvian National Archive (DZGA LNA), 875 fund, inventory number 1 as well as the publications in the press of Daugavpils: annual issues between 1953 and 1964 “Padomju Daugava” and “Red Banner”. The materials of the prosecutor’s office are used as the sources for the recreation of the parasitism as a social phenomenon of the past. The analysis covers a deep and fully showdown of facts of the existence of these women and social reasons that pushed them to the life image that was called parasitism during the Soviet era. The reflection of the Daugavpils city press about the problem of female parasitism deepens the idea of the causes and manifestations of female parasitism in Soviet society as well as the opposition to this phenomenon of the Soviet regime and society.
Regional Factor in Transnational Relations: the Experience of Latvia and Lithuania in the 1920s
By the end of Latvia’s struggle for freedom, the Republic of Latvia, proclaimed in 1918, acquired land border with four countries: and if in separate stages Estonia or Poland became Latvia’s closest ally, then in the long term Latvia’s closest relation formed with its southern neighbour Lithuania. This article does not claim to be the comprehensive study of Latvian-Lithuanian relations in the 1920s; it focuses on certain important aspects and some less known details of these relations, which reflect their universality, versatility and some inconsistency. The main obstacle in relations between two countries in 1920s was difficult Lithuanian foreign policy situation – especially its open conflict with Poland. In these conditions, Latvia made attempts to dispel Lithuania’s suspicion of its intentions, and as an expression of its special friendship on February 1921, it was one of the first to give de iure recognition to Lithuania, but the Lithuanian political circles remained cautious about the intentions of Latvia. Political complications in the relations between the two countries were balanced by social aspirations of public organizations and associations to converge and society efforts starting in 1921 with the search for rapprochement. As early as 1921, Latvian-Lithuanian and Lithuanian-Latvian unity societies were established in Riga and Kaunas, which organized language courses and excursions to the neighbouring countries in order to bring both nations closer. The annual Latvian and Lithuanian Rapprochement Congresses held since 1924 were of particular importance: it became with special manifestation of social aspirations of both states, which would be difficult to find in all Europe during the interwar period; they contributed not only to cultural ties between the two nations, but also allowed the idea of a political union of the two countries to be supported in the form of the Baltic Kingdom. However, these aspirations and attempts for rapprochement failed to influence Lithuania’s internal policy, and at the end of 1920s the activities of Lithuanian political emigrants in Latvia became a new stumbling block in the relations between the two countries, putting the Latvian government in front of a complicated political choice. After the Congress of Lithuanian’s Political Emigrants, held in Riga on November 1927, which revealed the political contradictions of the emigrants themselves, the Latvian government stepped up measures to limit the political activities of Lithuanian emigrants. This government’s position was criticized by the Latvian Social Democrats and provoked sharp condemnation of assessing it as the desire to convince the Latvian government to please Lithuania, but the government chose the priority of the Statehood, sacrificing the ideals of democracy and human rights in this name. This dualism is the main feature that characterized relations between Latvia and Lithuania in the 1920s: if social aspirations, organizations and communities, public efforts tried to bring the two countries closer together, the complication in Lithuania’s foreign and internal (domestic) policies hindered the creation of closer political union of Baltic States. In this particular model of interstate relations, one should also look for an explanation of the different views on the relations between Latvia and Lithuania in the interwar period: if from the point of view of traditional interstate relations at the government level, one can agree with the opinion of some Latvian historians that Estonia was the only ally of Latvia, then in terms of public aspirations, Latvia’s closest relations were nevertheless associated with Lithuania.
Latvian and Lithuanian Rapprochement Congresses
Those who were Born in Lithuania, Died in 1944–1945 and were Buried in the Territory of Polotsk
During the implementation of the strategic and tactical plans of the Polotsk offensive operation in 1944 in the territory of Polotsk about 2 thousand soldiers of the Red Army, including natives of Lithuania, died of wounds. In 1945, military units were stationed in Polotsk for subsequent dispatch to the front, including the 3rd reserve rifle brigade. About 30 people from it are buried in a mass grave in the territory of a civil cemetery “Gromy”. During verification of the inscriptions on gravestones, the place of service, the date and place of death, the reasons, and also personal data – the date and place of birth were defined. During the research, the difficulty was caused by the choice of the correct spelling of personal data in order to correct the errors and write new names. The work is based on the archival data of the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, as well as on the history of military burial (the process of enlargement of graves), as well as the material of the Zonal State Archive in Polotsk is used.
Editorial Board, Table of Contents and Preface
Reflection of Afghan Ethnic Identity in A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
The article deals with a modern phenomenon, which is identity and its kinds. The presented research is set in Afghanistan and is based on an analysis of the novel A Thousand Splendid Suns by the Afghan-American physician Khaled Hosseini, who is currently the most famous and popular author writing about Afghanistan. A Thousand Splendid Suns is Hosseini’s second novel, which tells the story of two women, Mariam and Laila, from different generations and social classes, whose lives are united by marriage to one man and the war that forced millions to flee abroad. Violence, fear, the injustice treatment of women, and identity issues, as well as faith, hope, the protection of the family and lasting values, are concretized in the struggle for survival. In the presented research, we examined two kinds of identity, particularly ethnic and religious ones as they are essential for forming an Afghan identity. We concentrated on the formation of Afghan identity in the historical context, because the history of Afghanistan has greatly influenced its development. Several nations have tried to conquer this country and its people, but without any success. Afghanistan is considered a cemetery of great empires. Moreover, geographically, it is a mountainous country with a harsh climate, in which it can be difficult for foreigners to live or survive. Even Alexander the Great, the Mongols, the British, the Soviets, or NATO forces did not have it easy in Afghanistan. In the research, we focused on two significant historical events that strongly influenced the formation of Afghan identity, especially in the era from the Soviet invasion to the Taliban up to the present days. For Slovak readers, due to a similar experience with the Soviet invasion (1968–1989), the topics of unfreedom, hiding personal identity, persecution, adapting and accepting a regime and living under the domination of another nation are well-known. It necessary to acquaint readers with the recent history of Afghanistan so that they could identify with the fates of the main characters who lived in an unstable, ever-changing, and multi-ethnic society, where the government regime, name and symbols are constantly changing, thus, making it difficult to create a unified national identity. Afghanistan is a “troubled country” that gives the impression of enduring constant chaos, freedom, conflicts and war. At the same time, it is an exotic and oriental country that is still unknown for Westerners. Hosseini’s role is not to question the Western view of Afghanistan, but rather to enrich it. The writer brings new knowledge to readers and turns ordinary Afghans into loving people who long for a dignified life.
Copyright (c) 2020 Authors https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
An Image of a Rural Man in Lithuanian Literature and Photography
The article reviews the image of a rural man in the Lithuanian literature and photography of the 20th century and contemporary times, explains how artistic images correlate with changes in the meaning and connotation of words designating a rural man. There is no doubt that the connotation of a person’s naming has one or another influence on his image in verbal and visual creation, and the paintings in turn support the different connotations of that naming. The village and a rural man have been depicted in Lithuanian literature since Kristijonas Donelaitis “Metai” (“Seasons”). The theme of rural aestheticization, making rural everyday life poetic, and the exaltation of the land and folk language comes from a romantic tradition. According to literary researchers, in the 19th century literature, the village was perceived as the only basis of Lithuanianness, and the rural man – as the equivalent of Lithuanianness. The village as a house of the spirit of the Lithuanian language is also raised in contemporary Lithuanian poetry and prose. It is no coincidence that the idea of Vaižgantas short story about the (in)ability to see and listen to the rich world of the rural human spirit “Akylasis būtų įspėjęs jame didžiulę inteligenciją, tik nebuvo kas įspėja” (A vigilant one would have noticed a great intelligence in it, only there was no one who could notice) can be seen in the novel by Laura Sintija Černiauskaitė “sielos šviesa, besismelkianti pro bukinantį skurdą ir nuovargį, – tokia menkutė, kad reikia mokytis ją atpažinti” (the light of the soul, seeping through the fading poverty and fatigue, is so small that one must learn to recognize it). In contemporary literature, quite a number of dark colours of the village and the rural man, sometimes obvious irony, ridicule are found. The texts of postmodern literature do not avoid depicting the village drastically, sarcastically, it is described by vulgar contemptuous neologisms (for example, “šūdkaimis” [shitty-village] by Aidas Jurašius). Thus, it can be stated that the depiction of the village and the rural man in contemporary Lithuanian literature corresponds to the diversifying connotation of the rural man in the current Lithuanian language and in the expression of other style texts. Rural photography in Lithuania has been for more than a hundred years; the rural photography of our country of the late 20th–early 21st century is also diverse. Some photographers, as typical of the Lithuanian photography tradition, refer more to the romanticization of rural man and rural life (e.g. Romualdas Rakauskas, Arūnas Baltėnas, Tadas Kazakevičius), others emphasize the diversity and polyphony of the village (brothers Mindaugas and Algimantas Černiauskai), and some photographers depict “the tired village”, the bottom of the village (Rimaldas Vikšraitis is especially prominent in this respect). The theme of saying farewell to agrarian culture, which has become entrenched in Lithuanian literature in the second half of the 20th century, is also being developed in photography (for example, a cycle “Tai, ko nebebus” (“What Will No Longer Be There”) by T. Kazakevičius). Photographers are resistant to spread of the negative, derogatory connotation of the rural man in the urban discourse, they rely on the cognition of the village, the feeling and reflection of its life, not on the stereotypes created by the urban culture.
The Role of Youth Schools in Applying Travis Hirschi’s Social Control Theory
The youth school is described as one of the tools that can help to suppress the emerging risks and direct the manifestations of the delinquent behaviour of young people towards the proper purpose and the system of values prevailing in the society. On the other hand, the school can be seen as an authority of control and power, causing hostile reactions and responses to the norms, rules and values that are being introduced. This can encourage young people to become more violent towards social standards, rebel and oppose the prevailing system. The article analyses the impact of youth schools on young people prone to delinquent behaviour according to Travis Hirschi’s social control theory, using the method of the qualitative research – a semi-structured interview. The research raises the following questions: whether youth schools successfully contribute to the socialization of delinquent youth and can give them motivation to return to the traditional education system and the labour market? Or, on the contrary, can they be perceived as institutions that isolate and segregate those who are undesirable and nobody believes in their ability to re-socialize and become full members of the society? In order to answer these questions, interviews with experts-practitioners – specialists working in youth schools were carried out. For qualitative content analysis, empirical data was processed using MAXQDA software tool. By analyzing the results of the research and using the principle of the axial coding, the categories, according to their areas, were split into the first and second level subcategories. The research reveals that the role of the youth school can be assessed in two ways. On the one hand, they can be a successful socializing agent that can help guide young people away from the delinquent behaviour by ensuring socialization, attachment, engagement, commitment and faith. On the other hand, the fact that success is not frequent reveals challenges and difficulties faced by youth schools. Young people do not always take over the values that are introduced at school and start to behave pro-socially, the school is often perceived as a hostile place that does not correspond to the value system of young people. The conclusion can be made that because of the ambivalent evaluation of youth schools, their role cannot be assessed unambiguously.
The Characteristic Trends in Latvian Regional Press: Changes in the Traditional Functions of the Press, the Aspects of Identity and Cultural Diversity
Latvian regional press has been a staple of the state media environment for decades despite the fact that its readership is shrinking with each year due to objective reasons: young people move away in search for a better life in accordance with their education and professional capabilities, the already aging population is growing older; moreover, in rural Latvia, most residents have a lower income and purchasing power in comparison to the urban population, especially Rigans. However, in spite of these factors, many Latvians still try to save money especially for “their local paper”, thus ensuring the viability of regional press that has been enjoying the readers’ support for decades as a traditional value. In these pages readers find advice on how to take care of both their own and their animals’ health, how to grow in their garden something that the neighbour does not have, how to economise and save enough from one’s small income to visit Lithuania and Estonia, and, if one wants to dream of far-off lands, it is made possible at a tourism evening, when a traveller’s tale and videos transport the audience to Guatemala. Moreover, when reporting on regional news, local dialectal words are used, reminding the readers both not to forget and use them. Regional press teaches to accept life as it is. In it the readers can learn how to make an annual visit to a sanatorium and prepare meals for 2 euros a day – and not to complain about it; they are advised not to wait for miracles and find joy in the little things, as true strength can be found within, and one can learn to manage, not to complain, and set an example to the neighbours. Heads of regional newspapers admit that nowadays regional press has attained a special status: it informs its audience on everything of importance in the rural areas of Latvia, thus acting as a modern source of cultural environment, language and community togetherness. Moreover, being acutely aware of the limited cultural event and socialisation options, the newspapers also fulfil social, welfare, and healthcare functions; thus, the postman often becomes the most welcome weekly guest in the lonely homes that are cut off from the problems of urban life. Many people have left the rural areas and gone into economic exile; therefore, nearly every newspaper prints a story both on those locals who have found happiness and success elsewhere and those who have come back to Latvia and try to use their experience to strengthen their region and Latvia as a whole. These different personal stories make it possible to examine the identity of the new generation and its sense of belonging to Latvia and the Latvian language.
The “Novel” of Letters by Adolfas and Jonas Mekai: a Person and Place of a Lifeworld
The book Jonas ir Adolfas Mekai. Gyvenimo lai(š)kai, published in 2020, is not the first book co-written by Mekai brothers. In 1947, a collection of fairy tales, Knyga apie karalius ir žmones, was published. Another creative context is also important for understanding the letters: books by Jonas Mekas Semeniškių idilės, Dienų raštai, films, etc. The letters of Adolfas and Jonas Mekai are another monument to Semeniškiai (a village in Biržai district), at the same time showing the significance of another place in the consciousness of the creators. The aim of this article is to discuss the book of letters of Jonas and Adolfas Mekai by revealing the specifics of local experience in the consciousness of two brothers and other persons involved in communication with them, showing their significance in the history of Semeniškiai myth. For the methodological perspective, the social phenomenology of Alfred Schütz and his conception of the living world were chosen. When reading letters, the importance of space is primarily determined by the book compiler’s special attention to the visual and sensory expression of the publication: the pursuit of authentic reading, the abundance of photographs and other images. Almost every letter begins and ends with Semeniškiai, which face is showed up through the interaction of certain actions, persons, specific local realities and things. One letter from Adolfas Mekas and one of the strongest representations of Semeniškiai reflect on the ambiguous place of memories in the experience of space and place, highlighting the importance of “my” and “other” body, actions of a certain person in local identity. To understand a place, the writer’s attention is important not only to specific realities, but also the openness to the world, the ability to take root in any place. Although the book does not contain the letters of the mother, her figure is formed from the memories of one or another addressee, the answer to her questions, retellings of her stories, etc. By allowing different storylines to unite, the mother becomes one of the most striking “characters” in this epistolary “novel”. Such things as a specific value field of writers, a complicated post-war period, a narrative of an artist who is modern and at the same time rooted in certain traditions, could appear only in her presence.
Lithuania and Lithuanians in Imants and Rimants Ziedonis’ Book Leišmalīte
The book of cultural journalism and essays, Leišmalīte (‘Latvian–Lithuanian Borderland’) (2012), by one of the most outstanding Latvian writers Imants Ziedonis (1933–2013) and his son Rimants Ziedonis (b. 1962) is dedicated to a specific Latvian region that lies at the border stretching for 600 km, named by a Latvian word leišmale (‘Latvian–Lithuanian borderland’). In Latvia, this word is much more frequently used and is more functional than its Lithuanian analogues meant to name the borderland on this side: “palatvijys”, “palatvė” (‘Lithuanian–Latvian borderland’). Inevitably, the book under analysis focuses on Lithuanians, Lithuania and diverse relationships between both ethno-linguistically kin nations of the Balts, i.e. both states. The article grounds on the classical principle of comparative literary imagology as a methodological approach to analyse an image of one country or its several elements reflected in literature, art, culture of another country. Referring to this principle, images of Lithuania and Lithuanians are explored in the book Palietuvėlė: both the images which are seen and assessed from the viewpoint of the Latvian–Lithuanian borderland region (leišmale), i.e. through the eyes of Latvian borderland inhabitants who became the “characters” of the book, and the images which are seen and assessed through the prism of the Latvian–Lithuanian borderland region, i.e. through the eyes of the authors of the book, the narrators. Attention is paid not only to the images but also to the story of their formation, functioning, dynamics of changes, their emotional or other kind of evaluation, their highly diverse contexts: historical, political, economic, commercial, cultural, administrative, even elementary domestic or criminal ones. The “communicating” variants are briefly characterised as specific instances: various situational and more stable connections of images based on the characteristic features of the Balts, their kin languages. The images of Lithuanians, Lithuania are being regularly formed in the book Palietuvėlė in the imagological manner based on comparison, when own, Latvian, realia are assessed at the background of analogous Lithuanian realia. Some stereotypical images of a Lithuanian person established in the historical-cultural memory of Latvians are being broken by substituting them with the images bearing an opposite meaning. In general, idealisation of the image of Lithuanians, Lithuania based on subjective experiences, personal imagination prevails in the book, even though there is also a mocking, critical point of view present.
Latvian–Lithuanian borderland (Leišmalīte)
The biggest Lietuvininkai holiday connected with the ceremonial act of egg painting was Easter. In general, rites of a communal nature dominated in the calendar holidays of Lithuania Minor: attending church in the morning of the holiday, whipping with juniper or birch branches on the first day of Easter (in some locations – on the second), giving of painted Easter eggs and so on. It should be noted that from the very first descriptions of the Easter celebration in Lithuania Minor and to the present day, the main holiday symbol has been an egg and ceremonial acts related to it. Thus, the Easter egg and its related ritual actions in the Easter traditions and rites in Lithuania Minor constitute the object of the article. The archaic model of the Easter celebration in Lithuania Minor is characterized by the elements related to the symbolism of the egg, which include the ritual function and archaic semantics of egg painting, the custom of Easter egg gifting and well-wishing, and various games with eggs (breaking, rolling). Rituals with this main holiday attribute – the egg – played an exceptional role, so custom and tradition in Lithuania Minor changed very slowly. In the late 19th – early 20th centuries, in Lithuania Minor, the ritual tradition noticeably loses its existential significance; rituals become customs, and ritual functions are replaced by traditions that form regional ethnic identity. The magical meaning of egg gifting is gone, the tradition of Easter greetings is gaining popularity, and a new element is emerging – hiding eggs in the nests made in the garden and telling children that they are brought by the Easter bunny. The modern model of Lithuania Minor holidays tries to combine ethnic traditions with the needs of the consumer-oriented modern society. Easter in Lithuania is unimaginable without Easter eggs. Of course, the techniques of egg decoration have slightly changed, but the activities remain identical – Easter eggs are given as presents and various games are played with them – rolling and trying to crush the opponent’s eggs. Thus, based on the written sources recorded in the territory of Lithuania Minor and on modern ethnographic narratives, it becomes obvious that the interpretations of Easter celebration provided by the informants are related to the social and cultural environment in which they live. Therefore, the data about Easter in Lithuania Minor obtained from surviving descriptions and living witnesses are interesting and studied as a monument of history and ethnography, a testimony to the evolution of spiritual values of the area’s population.
The Change of Poetic Generations in Lithuanian Soviet Poetry: a Semantic Aspect
The article analyses the lyrics from the 7th to the 9th decades. The aim is to reveal how and when the main layers of meanings were formed, how the inner structures changed, also to highlight poetical dominants. It was revealed that the main semantic lyrical structures began to take form in the sixties. Poetry based on peasant culture prevailed till the eighties. We can recognise the tradition of Land poets in it. The generation of Justinas Marcinkevičius, Jonas Juškaitis, Marcelijus Martinaitis achieved their highest level in the eighties, when its esthetical and ethical attitudes were framed. This generation created the double semantic model, in which the elevation of those, who affirmed the origins of existance, prevailed while emphasizing the ethical values (this elevation can be callled the ethics of authenticity) and the critical approach to its time was founded, as much as it was allowed by censorship. After the debut of the second generation (Algimantas Verba, Vladas Braziūnas, Stasys Jonauskas and others), we can observe the further development of this tradition. Its modern equivalent, the generation of Sigitas Geda, Vytautas Bložė, Leonardas Gutauskas, Albinas Žukauskas, who experimented with the treasures of myth, history, religion and created the complicated world vision system stand out in the context of Soviet poetry. In the seventies the generation of Antanas A. Jonynas, Gintaras Patackas, Almis Grybauskas, Vytautas Rubavičius created the contraversive model of artistic world, digressing from the dominant lyrical model, but providing new chances for lyrical evolution. In their poetry we find the poetical world, which was already losing the national colouring and decreasing to a great extent the importance of the agrarian world. The seventies can be called the time of the most intensive development of arstistic structures, because precisely then the main semantic divisions occurred. The paradigm of land deprivation was dominant in Soviet poetry. Every poetic generation emphasised it in its own different way. The search for authentical existance, the longing for ethical values were important to the poetry, which was restricted by ideology and censorship.
Urban Toponyms as Linguistic Markers of “Owning” the Space
The article examines unofficial urban toponyms as markers of mental development of space and as markers of regional identity. A multidisciplinary approach to unofficial urban toponyms is suggested that combines the methods of linguistics with the methods of cultural geography on the basis of the “own-alien” opposition as an integrating parameter. The concept of vernacular region used in cultural geography and expediency of its application for onomastic studies is discussed. Vernacular regions are loaded with not only territorial, but also social and emotional sense and relate to mental maps. The identity of mental map is a sine qua non of the “own” community, and the correct usе of a toponym is a language criterion for passing the “own-alien” test. Also, the article provides a comprehensive overview of the studies concerning the notion of unofficial urbanonyms and approaches to their classification and categorization. An important feature implying that an urban object is fixed on the mental map of a local community is its ability to be a reference point in everyday city life and communication. Such objects are given unofficial names, the use of which in conversation is similar to using a code word. The author introduces a parameter of toponym markedness, which is understood similar to how it is interpreted in stylistics, namely: the unit standing out against similar ones. Marked forms include, in particular, those that cause an alogism of the utterance, cf. the expression that has become a Moscow topographical meme: на Ноге у Головы ‘on the foot by the head’, which means the place in the lobby of the metro station Китай-город, which until 1990 was called Площадь Ногина, near the sculpture in the form of a head of revolutionary activist Viktor Nogin. In the final part of the article, another class of names associated with toponyms is considered from the point of view of the “own-alien” opposition. These are katoikonyms – names of residents of a certain locality. According to the principles of substantive word formation in Russian, it is possible to produce derivatives with various suffixes, cf. Смоленск – смоленцы, смоляне, смоляки. In practice, the current use of these forms in the regional press, blogs and forums demonstrates that the city residents not only select the only one “correct” form (in this case смоляне), but also actively reject “incorrect” forms of the katoikonym, especially from “strangers” to the local people (journalists, politicians). The main conclusions of the article include the following. Space exploration takes place not only physically, but also mentally and emotionally. Unofficial toponyms serve as language markers of “owning” the space. In the study of unofficial toponymy, a multidisciplinary approach that integrates the achievements of onomastics, cultural anthropology, and cultural geography that is based on the “own-alien” opposition seems to be efficient. The unofficial name of a place is interpreted through this opposition: the knowledge and use of such names offer a criterion for establishing regional identity. In conclusion, it is emphasized that unofficial toponyms have their own life cycles, so their lexicographic fixation is very important not only for toponomastics, but also for urban and regional studies.
Similarities and Differences of Surnames of Lithuanian Origin in Kurzeme and Latgale
The article is dedicated to the comparative analysis of surnames of Lithuanian origin used in the Western part of Latvia, i.e. Kurzeme (including Kurzeme, Zemgale and Sēlija) and Eastern part of Latvia, i.e. Latgale, the history of which to a certain extent differs from other regions of Latvia. The giving of surnames in the regions of Latvia is different: in Kurzeme they were introduced in the first half of the 19th century. However, in Latgale surnames were introduced gradually, just as it happened in Lithuania and Poland. Nevertheless, a part of surnames in Kurzeme are older. Many of them are surnames of Lithuanian origin, because Lithuanians had apparently entered Kurzeme with surnames. Lithuanians are among the oldest and most traditional national minorities in Latvia. There were some small Lithuanian colonies in Southern and in Central Latgale. Ties with Lithuania are reflected in the surnames as well. Lithuanians have influenced both the local Latvian sub-dialects of Latgale and Kurzeme and the toponymic and anthroponymic system of these regions. Surnames of Lithuanian origin are classified into several semantic groups. Surnames motivated by names of occupations are considered to be very old. A significant number of Latvian surnames is of anthroponymic origin, usually they are derived from Christian first names. Surnames of flora and fauna semantics, as far as surnames motivated by words denoting human nature and behavior surnames form separate semantic groups. If we compare Lithuanian surnames in Kurzeme and Latgale, we can conclude that in Kurzeme there is a great variety of surnames and one surname has a small number of its owners, but in Latgale there are relatively fewer surnames of Lithuanian origin, but the number of their owners is much higher.