Original article
https://doi.org/10.15507/2076-2577.018.2026.01.045-056
https://elibrary.ru/aqvubr
УДК / UDC 81:39:811.511.112:811.511.115
Lexical Representations of “Christian” and “Human” in the Vepsian and Karelian languages
D. Yu. Balandin
Petrozavodsk State University, https://ror.org/0176aa147
T. V. Pashkova
Institute of Linguistics, Literature and History, Karelian Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Petrozavodsk, Russian Federation
Abstract
Introduction. The relevance of this research stems from the need to examine the underlying processes of transformation in the cultural identity of the Vepsians and Karelians under the influence of centuries of Christianization, as reflected in their languages. So far, no detailed comparison has been made of the words for “Christian” and “human” in the Vepsian and Karelian languages. In addition, researchers have not yet studied how a religious word can take on a broader, everyday meaning over time. The aim of this research is to establish the relationship between these terms and to identify the nature of the semantic transformation that resulted in a religious designation becoming the standard term for a human being.
Materials and Methods. This study draws on data from translation, dialectal, and etymological dictionaries, incorporating examples from journalistic, literary, and spiritual texts. The research employs descriptive, lexicographic, and comparative methods, along with procedures of semantic, derivational, and etymological analysis. The descriptive method made it possible to characterize the collected linguistic material; the lexicographic method enabled the systematization of lexemes and the identification of their meanings and variants; and the comparative method facilitated the comparison of the identified nominations across related languages, vernaculars, and dialects. Semantic analysis contributed to revealing the semantic expansion of the words under study, derivational analysis helped determine the morphological structure of the lexemes and their modes of derivation, and etymological analysis established the origin of the nominations.
Results and Discussion. In the Vepsian language, the central lexeme denoting both a Christian and a human being in general is ristit (with the dialectal variant kristit). At the synchronic level, a semantic broadening can be observed, moving from the core meaning of ‘Christian’ towards the generalized sense of ‘human being’. In the Karelian language, the concepts of Christian and human are represented by several linguistic forms. These include the polysemantic lexeme henki / hengi / heng (encompassing the meanings ‘breath’, ‘spirit, soul, heart’, ‘Christian, human’, and ‘life’), the substantivized passive participle rissitetty / ris’t’ittü / rissitty, and the compounds rissittyhenki / rissittyhengi / ris’s’it’t’yhengi (lit. ‘baptized person’) and ristikansa / ristikanza / ristikanza / ristikanzu / ristikanzo / ristikanz / ristikanze (lit. ‘baptized person, baptized people’; at the synchronic level, simply ‘human being’). An analysis of 19th-century texts reveals that the words ristikanzu / ristikanža initially carried a distinctly religious connotation. However, in contemporary usage, their meaning is undergoing a process of semantic shift towards the generalized notions of ‘human being’ or ‘people’.
Conclusions. The results of the analysis indicate a semantic bleaching of religious connotations and an expansion of the core meaning of several lexemes denoting a Christian: in addition to referring specifically to a Christian (a baptized person), they have come to denote a human being in general. The partial de-etymologization of these lexemes and their transition into common vocabulary likely attest to the profound integration of Christian ideas into the everyday life of the Vepsians and Karelians, as well as to a transformation of their linguistic worldview under the influence of the Russian religious milieu and historical factors. This study contributes to the understanding of the historical transformation and functioning of certain elements within the Karelian and Vepsian linguistic worldview. The findings may be utilized in further research on the spiritual culture of these peoples and incorporated into courses on lexicology and dialectology.
Keywords: Karelian language, Vepsian language, nomination, Christian, Human, semantics, morphological derivation, etymology, linguistic worldview
Funding: Research was carried out as part of the state assignment of the Karelian Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences, project No. 125032004283-0, “Spiritual Traditions of the Peoples of Karelia: Texts and Contexts”, with the support of the Potanin Foundation.
Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
For citation: Balandin D.Yu., Pashkova T.V. Lexical Representations of “Christian” and “Human” in the Vepsian and Karelian languages. Finno–Ugric World. 2026;18(1):45–56. https://doi.org/10.15507/2076-2577.018.2026.01.045-056
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Information about the authors:
Daniil Yu. Balandin, Lecturer of the Department of Baltic-Finnish Philology, Institute of Philology, Petrozavodsk State University (33 Lenin Prospekt, Petrozavodsk 185910, Russian Federation); Junior Research Fellow of the NORDICA Research and Educational Centre, Institute of Linguistics, Literature and History, Karelian Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences (11 Pushkinskaya St., Petrozavodsk 185910, Russian Federation), ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-0052-025X, SPIN-code: 7480-2928, idann205@gmail.com
Tatyana V. Pashkova, Dr.Sci. (Hist.), Cand.Sci. (Philol.), Associate Professor, Head of the Department of Baltic-Finnish Philology, Institute of Philology, Petrozavodsk State University (33 Lenin Prospekt, Petrozavodsk 185910, Russian Federation), ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0505-4767, SPIN-code: 9866-8566, tvpashkova05@mail.ru
Authors’ contribution:
D. Yu. Balandin – ideas; formulation or evolution of overarching research goals and aims; preparation and creation of the published work, specifically writing the initial draft (including substantive translation); development of methodology; conducting a research and investigation process, specifically performing the data; verification of the reproducibility of the research results within the framework of the objectives of the research.
T. V. Pashkova – ideas; formulation or evolution of overarching research goals and aims; oversight and leadership responsibility for the research activity planning and execution, including mentorship external to the core team; conducting a research and investigation process, specifically performing the data; preparation and creation of the published work by those from the original research group, specifically critical review, commentary or revision – including pre- or post-publication stages; verification of the reproducibility of the research results within the framework of the objectives of the research.
All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Submitted 16.06.2025; revised 26.08.2025; accepted 03.09.2025.
