S aipsniai / A icles 283
MINDAUGAS STROCKIS
Vilniaus uni e si e as
Resea ch a eas: classical philology, digi al philology,
his o y o Li huanian accen ology.
The DOI
Ri a Miliūnai ė
LANGUAGE NORMS AND J. Wha is he meaning o he wo d "no m"?
The In e ne o Things
In he bed oom
The monog aph
Vilnius: Ins i u e o Li huanian Language, 2018, 512 p.
This Regula ion shall en e in o o ce on he wen ie h day ollowing ha o i s publica ion in he O icial Jou nal o he Eu opean Union.
The monog aph o Ri a Miliūnai ė is mo e han en yea s o esea ch, s ese
bin i analizuojan lie u ių kalbos a ojimą in e ne e, aisius. Kas isą
ą laiką aip pa s ebėjo lie u ių kalbos a ojimą in o macinėse echnologijo-
(e en i no o esea ch pu poses, bu only o pe sonal in e es ) could
con i m his.
In sho , he monog aph add esses he ques ion: he e is a ce ain endency o
a gue ha elec onic means a e de imen al o he egula i y, spelling, adi ions
and ela ed aspec s o he Li huanian language; Is i eally ha bad? Do no
in o ma ion echnologies c ea e any posi i e phenomena? The ma e ial ga he ed in
he monog aph p o es ha ce ain language sel - egula ion p ocesses ope a e on
he In e ne , e en in anonymous commen s: an ex emely inapp op ia e language
w i en in esponse (and anonymously, and signed) ecei es nega i e e alua ion,
ejec ion and sel -c i icism om eade s, and some imes e y app op ia e and
compe en amendmen s. In e es in language issues and hei conside a ion also
exis s on he In e ne , especially in discussions, a ious In e ne g oups and simila
o ms.
This in e es ing monog aph is di ided in o h ee pa s. The i s pa is close o
wha we would call he his o y o he ques ion and he e iew o he esea ch.
he second pa is mainly de o ed o public s a emen s and discussions in ecen yea s
MINDAUGAS STROCKIS
284 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXX This Regula ion shall en e in o o ce on he wen ie h day ollowing ha o i s publica ion in he O icial Jou nal o he Eu opean Union.
in Li huania on he so-called ideologies o language, bu also con ains ma e ial
ela ed o he his o y o he ques ion; The hi d pa is he au ho 's epo on he
moni o ing o he In e ne language, dedica ed o he a o emen ioned phenomenon
o sel - egula ion, usually exp essed in so-called eplies (i.e. commen s by In e ne
commen a o s on he inconsis ency o he Li huanian language).
The monog aph's o e iew o he his o ical and heo e ical ques ion is long and
de ailed: i p o ides a heo e ical (one could say encyclopedic) in oduc ion o
language no maliza ion, s anda diza ion, p esc ip i ism and desc ip i ism, he
de elopmen o he common language, no ma i e speech, e c., explaining he sub le
di e ences and shades o meaning o hese concep s. The second pa abou
language ideologies is also de ailed and comp ehensi e. I deals wi h a ious issues:
om he o ma ion o common languages o he cu en deba e be ween libe al
and no ma i e languages in Li huania, e c. I someone we e o say ha some o he
ac s men ioned he e a e one-day and somehow o ha e esidual alue, i would be
easonable o say ha he da a on he In e ne is no e e nal, and such a
collec ion, o ganiza ion and e iew o i is in i sel a aluable documen o he
epoch.
The main eason why he language o he In e ne is mo ing away om he o ms es ablished in
20 h-cen u y books is conside ed by he au ho o be so-called s anda diza ion, and he
p ocesses o sel - egula ion men ioned a e conside ed o be he esul o s anda diza ion (p.
Then, na u ally, he e is a need o explain wha his s anda diza ion o languages was. The
au ho claims ha language s anda diza ion was c ea ed by he no ma i e iews ha
lou ished in 18 h-cen u y Eu ope (20 p. and elsewhe e; some imes hei beginning is conside ed
o be he 16 h cen u y, 185 p.). In u n, he e iewe migh add ha he iew o he ime
men ioned was also in luenced by he ac ha he classical languages (La in and ancien G eek),
which we e conside ed impo an a he ime, we e la gely s anda dized; Howe e , mos mode n
Eu opean languages we e s anda dized by a cen alized educa ional sys em in he 19 h cen u y
empi es. In he 17 h cen u y, o example, i was hough ha he a ious spelling de ails ha
e e yone should pay o we e mo e a ma e o he p in e o p oo eade han o he
au ho ; la e i was decided o each hem in schools, i.e. hey became compulso y o e e yone
and now i is un hinkable ha i could be o he wise. 1 Fo example, in a p in ing co ec o 's
manual published in 1608, we see ha he spelling o wo ds oge he and he use o sky im o
capi al le e s (in Ge man) is a ma e o he p in e (p. 24-26), and he au ho s o manusc ip s
a e encou aged o inse diac i ical ma ks (La in cha ac e s) in hei ex s hemsel es o make
i easie o he p in e (p. 33). Sou ce: Ho nschuch Hie onymus 1608: This a icle is pa o a se ies on Ho nschuch Hie onymus.
[…]ρθοτυπογραφία, Hoc es : Ins uc io ope as ypog aphicas co ec u is […]. This is he i s ime ha
he Commission has been able o ob ain a co ec in e p e a ion o his p o ision. The Lipsiae. 2
Compa e, o example, he ecu ing discussions abou he leng h o shape o he Li huanian b ush in
he o m o a "co ec ion". Wi h he ad en o compu e s, e e y w i e has become a so o collec o o his own p in ing p ess, so hese discussions o ypog aphy some imes each he heigh s o comic pedan y.
Ri a Miliūnai ė
Kalbos no mos i jų sa i eguliacija in e ne o bend uomenėje.
Re iews o he ilm
The his o y o hea ing in he monog aph s a s om he mode n imes; Ancien
languages a e no men ioned in he monog aph, al hough hey we e cha ac e ized
by a conside able deg ee o s anda diza ion and o he ea u es a ibu ed o
mode n languages ( o example, he e m koin in he monog aph comes om he Old
G eek wo d common, and he p esence o he wo d indica es he p esence o he
phenomenon). The s anda diza ion o ancien languages was somewha di e en
om ha o mode n languages: he e we e no mode n language academies,
commissions, o councils in An ioch, bu he s anda diza ion p ocesses ook place
h ough he educa ion o he ime. The g ea es in luence was made by he wo ks
o classical au ho s, whose language was conside ed exempla y and cul . Ancien
languages we e e y impo an in Eu ope un il he 19 h cen u y, and his in luenced
he hinking o s anda dize s o new languages. The his o y o Sansk i would also
ha e p o ided a lo o in e es ing ma e ial o hose in e es ed in he
s anda diza ion o languages (i s name i sel means "de eloped" o "de eloped",
and he oldes s anda d Sansk i wo k was c ea ed in he middle o he i s
millennium BC). O cou se, i was p obably no necessa y o discuss hese issues in a
monog aph on he mode n Li huanian language and especially i s use on he In e ne ;
Ne e heless, he he i age o classical An iqui y canno be a oided a all: 91 p.
acknowledges ha he concep o he no ms o language consis ing o wo pa s (i.e. eal and codi ied) has exis ed in Eu ope since An iqui y.
Monog aphs 75 and 184-185 men ion he 16 h and 17 h cen u ies, when some mode n Eu opean
language academies we e ounded. The Li huanian Language Commission es ablished in 1961 is
conside ed, mu a is mu andis, o be in line wi h hese academies in Li huania (p. 76). I could be
added ha in he in e wa pe iod in Li huania he e was also a Te minology Commission (1921-1926)
in which P esiden An anas Sme ona and o he p ominen people wo ked; This ins i u ion is
men ioned in he monog aph only in he oo no e 76, page 45. Maybe i 's wo h men ioning mo e. On
he o he hand, e en in he p e e m o Daniel Klein's Li huanian g amma (1653), he wo ds can be
ound, albei laconically p onounced, bu essen ially o he same language s anda diza ion ideas
ha guided he c ea o s o he Wes e n Eu opean academies o he ime, such as E go.
Excolamus unam aliq am Dialec um, quae communissima, omniumque op ima esse cense u (Le us
he e o e imp o e some one language which is conside ed he commones and bes o all). Thus,
he o igins o he s anda diza ion o bo h Li huanian and o he languages a e much olde han
he imp ession o he da es men ioned in he monog aph could gi e. Un o una ely, as we all
know, in ou ime, linguis s o en ge a slap on he w is . In he monog aph, i is men ioned and
essen ially acknowledged ha he nega i e iew o some linguis ic inno a ions o o he
p oposals, as well as he esul ing example o whe he he numbe o he ini ials should be
be o e he cable o a e , whe he he c ossed le e i should ha e a do a e he c oss ma k
o no .
MINDAUGAS STROCKIS
286 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXX he slande o he speake s could ha e been
caused by he un hinking decisions o he speake s hemsel es. The amous case o
snow is depic ed on he e y co e o he book. I is also discussed in he ex o
he book: […]Snygi is so popula ha as soon as an a icle wi h his wo d in he i le
appea s on he In e ne , he e is no doub ha he commen a o s will no eac o
i […] (394 p.). Al hough he au ho o he monog aph does no say his di ec ly, bu
we can see how he gi en ma e ial highligh s bo h he causes o he wa o wo ds
and he ways o sol ing i : e en i he p oposed inno a ion (in his case pe haps no
e en a no el y, bu pe cei ed by many as a no el y) seems app op ia e acco ding o
all he c i e ia o o mal linguis ic science, bu is unaccep able o many use s o
he language, i would be wise o conside whe he i is wo h insis ing ha he
ha m (such as sel -ini ia ion, sel -de ea ing, diminished "language au ho i y") does
no exceed he bene i . Al hough, as men ioned, such a hough is no men ioned
di ec ly in he monog aph, eading i gi es he imp ession ha some imes i is
hidden among he lines; And ha 's g ea . I is also wo h men ioning ha he
phenomenon o unsuccess ul language solu ions is an olde phenomenon in
Li huanian cul u e han he beginning o he 21s cen u y. Fo example, S asys
Dabušis (1889-1974) belonged o he a o emen ioned In e wa Te minology
Commission, pe haps he i s olklo ic "keis uolian language" p oo eade , who
c ea ed unbiased inno a ions ha became pa o he "language" o he peasan
olklo e. Al hough he monog aph men ions se e al imes he mode n wo ds
[…]kalbainiai[…], […]kalbišiai[…] and so on (especially p. 228), i is in e es ing o
emembe ha he wo d o Sme ona's ime co esponding o he mode n
[…]kalbainį[…] was […]kalba aisys[…] (no e 228 p. 142). I seems ha no only he lo e
o he Li huanian language (when i hu s and ills he ba ), bu also he
exagge a ion o he excessi e use o "kalbaini" o "kalba aisi" is an old exp ession o Li huanian cul u e.
Howe e , al hough sa casm has been p oposed by linguis s in Sme onas ime, and
now, he gene al a i ude o he public o he egula i y o language is no so
nega i e. This monog aph p o es his wi h a ious collec ed da a. Some quo es:
The in e es o he No wegian public in he language is no diminishing, pe haps
e en inc easing (14 pages) language no ms a e egula ed by he language use s
hemsel es om below, no om abo e (p. 23); […][in e ne commen a o s]
some imes su pass p o essional au ho s o In e ne media a icles in hei
sense o language and abili y o no ice sub le nuances o Li huanian language
exp essions[…] (449 p.). All hese s a emen s o he au ho a e con incingly based
on quo es om eal In e ne commen s. I is ue ha he In e ne eplica o s
hemsel es some imes, un o una ely, do no make such demands on hemsel es
and, in he p ocess o commi ing a c ime, use a ious language abomina ions (as i
i we e some kind o linguis ic equi alen o punching a able wi h a is ). We'll ind examples o his in he monog aph as well.
Finally, he au ho concludes ha o e he yea s, he in e es in he egula i y o
he Li huanian language on he In e ne has no diminished. The e iewe om his obse a ions can do his
Ri a Miliūnai ė
Kalbos no mos i jų sa i eguliacija in e ne o bend uomenėje.
Re iews o he 287 h ha e been con i med. The e a e s ong li e o ces in he
Li huanian language, heal hy sel - egula ion p ocesses, and his monog aph
con incingly demons a es his. The monog aph also acknowledges ha he easons
o some ob ious disad an ages, such as he non-use o diac i ical ma ks, a e simple
and echnical: he […]Š eplasis[…] sc ip was acqui ed on he In e ne and s ill exis s
o se e al easons. Wi hou diac i ical ma ks, i is w i en ou o habi , acqui ed a
a ime when elec onic means o communica ion (mobile phones, e-mail, e c.) could no
suppo Li huanian cha ac e s, and some use s o hese means (o en mobile
phones) a e s ill unable o adap o hem due o he echnical possibili ies al eady
c ea ed. I could also be added ha a he s age ha he nasal and o he s anda d
spelling diac i ical ma ks ha e p e iously su i ed, he e a e now Li huanian spelling
punc ua ion ma ks: al hough he e a e al eady basic echnical possibili ies o using
hem, he e a e no con enien keyboa ds and no cul u al habi . Fo example, on page
364 o he monog aph, examples a e ci ed whe e he keys a e ma ked in capi al
le e s and no one is o ended by his […] al hough i is possible in p inciple o collec
he signals o he keys e en on phones (only he e a e no common con enien
keyboa ds and, o cou se, a habi o daily need).
Among o he use ul insigh s, he monog aph acknowledges ha he e m
language cul u e is essen ially a wo k o he Eas e n Bloc (34 pages), which is e y
di icul o ansla e in o Wes e n Eu opean languages ( his is known by anyone
who has e e ansla ed diploma appendices in o English be o e hey we e
ansla ed cen ally). The e o e, he choice o he au ho o he monog aph o
use he no ma i e e minology is e y commendable. The monog aph is
comp ehensi e, well- ounded and aluable; I con ains bo h decades o me iculous
esea ch, and applicable insigh s, and a aluable documen o an e a, and mos
impo an ly, i e eals well- ounded conclusions: "Does he language o he
In e ne ha e any meaning o p ac ical use, i iewed comple ely objec i ely? A
lo , yeah. The impac o he In e ne communi y on he quali y o media wo k is also ecognised by he media hemsel es (438 p.).
So, how o sol e his issue o he egula use o Li huanian language bo h online
and in eal li e? Wise insigh s lie wi hin he monog aph i sel ; Maybe hey could
ha e been emphasized e en mo e. Le 's ake a look a hese quo es: "In
English-speaking elec onic discou se, non-na i e speake s o English a e mos
likely o be disc imina ed agains o hei unbalanced use, as his global In e ne
lingua anca is conside ed a o m o cul u al capi al" (p.127, quo ed by
Pa yškin a). "Da id C ys al [a amous B i ish linguis ] is su p ised ha English
ex books a e s ill widely bough , and people ca e abou he same hings hey
ca ed abou 250 yea s ago". Thus, i is e ealed ha he ule o he Li huanian
language will lou ish mos when i becomes a " o m o cul u al capi al". Da a
collec ed in he monog aph

MINDAUGAS STROCKIS
288 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXX
odo, kad palaipsniui jis oks i ampa, no s i ka ais suk ečiamas libe alų i
o no ma i e dispu es o sel -se ing commen s on some o he p oposals in
ques ion. Pe haps he mode n speake s (and he au ho o his e iew himsel is
one o hem, a o me membe o he VLKK), like hei p edecesso s, he
užmi š a paž elg i į sa e iš šalies. Vis dėl o upu is au oi onijos, šiek iek sai-
Sme onic speake s, wi h a li le mo e wisdom in sepa a ing he impo an om
he unimpo an , less gossip and mo e in e es ing explana ions will inally so
hings ou . I we ac wisely, calmly bu decisi ely elimina e he echnical
sho comings in he clumsy keyboa ds and some imes s op some un hinking
sniggy, e e y hing will be ine and Li huanian language ex books will be widely
pu chased o many cen u ies o come. This is con incingly demons a ed by he excellen monog aph o Ri a Miliūnai ė.
Deli e ed on 26 May 2019
MINDAUGAS STROCKIS
Vilniaus uni e si e as
Uni e si y o he Republic o Li huania, LT-01131 Vilnius, Li huania
[Email p o ec ed]