Novak I. P. The Word-Formation System of the 1804 Translated Written Monument of Tver Karelian (In Russ.)

Posted on 25.09.2026 by editor

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Original article

https://doi.org/10.15507/2076-2577.26183.334-346
https://elibrary.ru/ejqfdw
УДК / UDC 81᾿373.611:003.3(=511.112)

The Word-Formation System of the 1804 Translated Written Monument of Tver Karelian

I. P. Novak
Institute of Linguistics, Literature and History, Karelian Research Centre of the RAS, Petrozavodsk, Russian Federation, https://ror.org/05wgt8358
Ivannikov Institute for System Programming of the RAS, Moscow, Russian Federation, https://ror.org/017ef8252

Abstract

Introduction. The relevance of studying Karelian written monuments dating from the late 18th and early 19th centuries within Finnic studies lies in the fact that they remain insufficiently investigated, although it is precisely during this period that transitional linguistic features are attested, providing important evidence for understanding the evolution of Karelian word formation. The aim of the present study is to analyze the derivational system of Translation of Selected Prayers and an Abridged Catechism (1804), translated into the dialect of the Tolmachy group of the Southern dialect of Karelian Proper. Of particular interest is the combination of inherited native vocabulary with Christian neologisms, which offers new opportunities for identifying patterns of word formation in the domain of sacred vocabulary.

Materials and Methods. The analyzed source contains approximately 2,500 words, including 700 unique lemmas. The glossed text and the dictionary of lexical entries for this written monument are available on the LingvoDoc linguistic platform. The study primarily employed morphemic and word-formation analysis to identify the internal structure of words and the mechanisms underlying their formation. To organize and systematize the collected data, a descriptive-analytical method was applied, incorporating procedures classification. In order to identify regularities and determine the frequency characteristics of derivational affixes, comparative and statistical methods based on concordance data were employed. Finally, componential analysis made it possible to clarify the principal meanings of the derivational morphemes identified in the text.

Results and Discussion. The written monument reflects the principal grammatical patterns of word formation, namely morphological and morphosyntactic derivation. The morphological (suffixal) pattern is the predominant means of derivation. This study examines the suffixes that were productive in the Tver Karelian dialects of the early 19th century and were employed in the formation of nouns (-үшъ / –юшъ, –гүшъ, –нїекка, –гине, –лане, –мине, –нда / –ндѧ, –ѧ), adjectives (-ттома / –ттїомѧ, –тойнъ, –гине, –ллине), verbs (-че, -чче), and adverbs (-лди, -шты). Usage patterns are identified and described for the most frequently occurring derivational suffixes.

Conclusion. The translation process required the translator to develop a considerable number of lexical items denoting abstract concepts, agents, processes, actions, and their results. It is evident that the translator sought to make the fullest possible use of the internal resources of the Karelian language for this purpose, while keeping borrowings from Russian to a minimum. The results obtained demonstrate the flexibility of the Karelian derivational system. The findings are significant both for the study of the historical morphology of the Karelian language and the theoretical issues of Baltic-Finnic word formation, as well as for addressing practical challenges in contemporary lexicography.

Keywords: Karelian, LingvoDoc, Tver Karelians, written language heritage, translation, dialectal vocabulary, suffixal word formation

Funding: The reported study was funded by the Russian Science Foundation, grant No. 25-78-20006 (2025–2028) https://rscf.ru/project/25-78-20006/.

Acknowledgements: The author expresses gratitude to the Center for Collective Use of the Ivannikov Institute for System Programming of the Russian Academy of Sciences (СCU ISP RAS) for the assistance provided, which allowed us to obtain the results presented in this work.

Conflict of interest: The author declares no conflict of interest.

For citation: Novak I.P. The Word-Formation System of the 1804 Translated Written Monument of Tver Karelian. Finno–Ugric World. 2026;18(3):334–346. https://doi.org/10.15507/2076-2577.26183.334-346

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Information about the author:

Irina P. Novak, Dr.Sci. (Philol.), Director of the Institute of Linguistics, Literature and History, Karelian Research Center of the RAS, Leading Researcher, Interdisciplinary Scientific and Educational Center NORDICA, Institute of Linguistics, Literature and History, Karelian Research Center of the RAS (11 Pushkinskaya St., Petrozavodsk 185910, Russian Federation); Leading Researcher, Linguistic Platforms Laboratory, Ivannikov Institute for System Programming of the RAS (25 A. Solzhenitsyn St., Moscow 109004, Russian Federation), ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9436-9460, Scopus ID: 57221912667, Researcher ID: AAG-6900-2021, SPIN-code: 9366-5460, bel.irina@rambler.ru

The author has read and approved the final manuscript.

Submitted 17.02.2026; revised 02.04.2026; accepted 07.04.2026.

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