LIETUVIŲ KALBOTYROS KLAUSIMAI XXXV (1995)

LIETUVIŲ LEKSIKOLOGIJOS TYRINĖJIMAI

Jolanta ZABARSKAITĖ

THE PHONOSEMANTICS OF CONSONANTS IN EXPRESSIVE WORDS (SINGLE-CONSONANT INITIAL CLUSTERS)

An answer to questions in the field of phonosemantics is sought in the specific group of expressive Lithuanian vocabulary—expressive words, or ištiktukai—that is, words that do not name but rather express an impression produced by a sound, image, sensation, or experience. Expressive words have been chosen as the main object of study because they are the least problematic area of expressive vocabulary. Other layers of expressive vocabulary are drawn on when needed to substantiate the conclusions reached. To support the phonosemantic conclusions, ideophones (expressive words that imitate an image produced by an action or experience), mimemes (expressive words that imitate a typical facial expression associated with a particular sensation), and occasionally onomatopoeia (expressive words that imitate sounds) are examined.

The problem of phonosemantics is related to the fields of phonetics and phonology, semantics, and lexicology. Their terms and methods are used. Examples of expressive words are written in conventional Lithuanian transcription. Sentences illustrating the examples are presented as they appear in the dictionaries: those from the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language are untranscribed, while those from DūnŽ use its transcription. Abbreviations for geographical references to words are as in the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language. Meanings are presented as they are in the dictionaries.

The universality of the perception of articulatory and acoustic properties of sounds is constrained by the individuality of language phonetic systems and of syntagmatic relations among speech sounds. The connotation of speech sounds in the phonosemantic system is stable and unchanging. It has the potential to emerge in a text.

Expressive words, the most dynamic words in terms of their syntactic-semantic function, disregard certain phonetic laws of Lithuanian dialects, yet are part of the Lithuanian lexical system and obey its phonotactic laws. They do not have a phonetic structure that changes during the speech act and approaches the boundary of paralinguistic communication systems (gestures, facial expressions); this means that the phonosemantics of sounds is not a field of psychoacoustics and psychophysiology, but a systematic feature of language that can be described linguistically.

Expressive words can begin with all Lithuanian consonants, as well as with /ch/, /h/, and /f/, which belong to the periphery of the language. The most numerous type is formed with T consonants. We will discuss it first.

Single-consonant initial clusters of the T type. The articulation of the consonant /k/ is characterized by the fact that, during its production, the airstream passes through a closure. This is also the auditory “clarity” associated with the acoustic feature of the consonant /k/, “compac-

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“...”, which conveys the impression of a deliberate, forceful action directed outward. Many interjections denoting a blow, a punch, a poke, a shove, a strike, or a beating begin with the sound /k/: /k’ipšt/ “poke, prod,” /k’i̇mšt/ “to denote a light shove or blow,” /k’ė.lkšt/ “clatter,” /k’ėkšt/ “tack,” /kàkšt/ “clack,” /kàpšt/ “clap, whack,” /kȧr.kšt/ “clack,” /ká.u̇kš/ “sound of a blow,” /ku̇m.pt/ “thump, bash, punch,” /ku̇č/ “smack, thump,” /ku̇okš/ “thwack, clack”; /ku̇okt/ “punch, thump.” A distinctive “conversive” group of interjections, denoting grabbing or seizing, belongs to this group: /kàpt/ “to denote grabbing”; /kùpt/ “grab”; /ku̇opt/ “snatch.” (The sound /k/ is also common in interjections in other languages that denote grabbing; cf. Ossetian kæpp, Turkish kap, Semitic kàpp, Chuvash kap.) Some interjections create an image of sudden movement or a leap: /k’ùkt/ “dart, leap, jump”; /kó.st/ “to denote jumping.” The image of a hop or upward movement is conveyed by the consonant /k/ and low-tone variants of the sequence, or by a raised tone.

/k/—flat, /k’/—sharp: kù.pt “lift,” k’ù.kšt “spring,” kù.st “rise,” k’ù.st “suddenly,” kù.pt “spring up, surge,” k’ù.rt “to denote a leap,” ku̇st “spring up,” k’io.kšt “leap up”

A semantic group denotes trembling, quivering, and twitching: /kìr/ “to shiver with cold”; /k’ip/ “twitch”; /k’ėp/ “to denote quivering and stirring”; /k’ùs/ “to describe trembling”; /k’ùst/ “to describe quivering.”

The largest group consists of CpV-type interjections, denoting a sound produced by contact with a surface (usually a hard one).

G. Kornilov describes interjections of this type using the following schema: volitional impetus—action—movement—contact (Kornilov 1984: 112). In his view, T-type consonants in many languages tend to imitate this schema, while the consonant /p/ is “absolutely suited to creating action—movement—contact” (Kornilov 1984: 113). CpV interjections correlate with the semantic group of CkV-type interjections denoting rising, jumping, and so on: /pùrst/ “to describe taking flight (of a quail)”; /pùrp / pùrp/ “to describe a sudden flutter.” Semantically related are /pùkst/ “blow”; /pùkšt/ “to describe smoke or dust rising.” As in the case of CkV, the sequence has a low tone. Paradoxically, a low tone is used to express the idea of upward movement. This is apparently connected with the impression of “struggling to break free from the ground,” especially since the verb pùrptelėti means “to fly along an uneven trajectory, continually rising and falling.” The lexical-semantic valency of this verb is limited: one would not say that a srelis goes purp. The text reads: /pùrst pǫ.tpele ės pùo kùojo / pǝ̇rsegondà.u/ DūnŽ. The sequence /pu/ and its more expressive form /pù/ often evoke an impression of heaviness in the Lithuanian lexicon: pundzà “a clumsy person”; pùplinti “to walk with difficulty”; pùžinti “to walk slowly”; pùrslinti “to trudge”; pùrsóti “to sit lazily, with an air of self-importance”; pùžinti “to walk with difficulty.”

The articulatory properties of /p/—the sudden release of increased air pressure in the mouth during its pronunciation—may contribute to a secondary impression of airiness or hollowness; cf. pùršti “1. to become soft, 2. to swell, grow stout, 3. to rot, decay”; pùžióti

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“to ferment, rise (of bread)”; púrti “to bristle”; pùrpti “1. to become swollen and bloated from overgrowth, to puff up; 2. to swell, become soft and flabby”; pùzas “a tuft of tousled hair”; pùpe “dial. cradle,” etc. This would explain the phonosemantics of the interjection /pùrks/ /pùr.ks/, meaning “to denote tearing apart,” and of the figurative, distinctive imitative /pùs/, meaning “to denote anger or being puffed up.” Cf. pušata “a conceited, irritable person,” putùkšlis “a little puffed-up person,” pušėti “to be angry, to puff oneself up.”

A semantic group associated with the energy produced when pronouncing /p/ expresses suddenness and unexpectedness of action: /p’ìst/, /pùikšt/, /p’í·st/, /pù·kšt/, /p’íkt/, /púrkt/, /p’í·kt/, /p’èkšt/.

The low-tone voiceless plosive /p/, even in its articulatory name, signals a sound of contact with a surface, produced by force of varying intensity. The articulatory and acoustic features of the sound /p/ are especially well suited to creating an auditory impression. The largest group of CtV-type interjections consists of forms that create an image and sound of impact: /tàk/, /tañ/, /tàkst/, /tá·ukšt/, /tàpt/ tàp/, /t’ėi.kšt/, /tèk/. The textual evidence shows that the sound /t/ functions to signal an image of action, while also revealing that the sound of a moving object contacting a surface is high-pitched; cf. The whole pot clattered to the ground and broke; the cream splashed out LKŽ(LT IV 258); The doctor gave it a smack with his hand on the rump—it went down, and the horse swallowed the saltpeter LKŽ(Trk); The tractor lurched, the end hit the cab with a thwack and smashed it LKŽ(Slk); That Jurgis—whack on the ear! LKŽ(Slm); The man stopped; the German—smack!—hit him on the forehead with a shovel and buried him LKŽ (Krn); I swung the axe at that pine—whack!—and a splinter flew into my forehead LKŽ (Ob); He took out a ruble—clink!—onto the plate LKŽ(Erž).

The high-pitched /t/ signals a weaker action, and therefore the CtV type has a large semantic subgroup of the onomatopoeic forms under discussion—imitatives denoting tapping, rattling, light knocking, patting, and so on. Interjections are generally used repetitively; cf. Morta tapped Jonius on the shoulder, and he fell silent LKŽ(Kal); Tack, tack, he went, drumming his fingers on the tobacco tin LKŽ(J); At night he is already knocking, tar tar tar tar tar, tar tar tar, to be let out LKŽ(Varn); If you don’t listen, you’ll get a smack on your little backside LKŽ (Vrn); The voiceless T-type forms contrast in minimal pairs such as: /tàr.kšt/:/kàr.kšt/, /tà·ukšt/:/ká·ukšt/, /k’èkšt/:/t’èkšt/, /kàpšt/:/tàpšt/.

The consonants of the single phoneme class /k/:/t/ differ only in the feature of compactness: diffuse, corresponding to the auditory qualities “clear” and “unclear.” The consonant opposition is also reflected in the verbs formed from interjections; cf. kapšóti:tapšóti. The clear /k/ (which, incidentally, sounds lower than /t/) apparently signals an action involving greater energy, volition, and directionality. The texts confirm this: He just gave me a kėkšt on the fingernails LKŽ(Kair): /té·kšt / té·kšt /t/ tuòki· lašā· į ā·ki/ DūnŽ. With a stick—kàkš on the head, and the hen went vinks LKŽ(Rm): /lė·nda tà·kšt par smù.ke./ DūnŽ. Finally, a clout on the head—brink—and he was dead LKŽ(Up): /tàrkšt / tàrkšt puo kapė·ika/ DūnŽ.

For interest, one can compare Chuvash sound-symbolic words: kop “the effect of striking a football” and tup-tupke “the sound of beating.”

We have pairs in which /p/:/t/ contrast; cf. /p’ìkst/:/t’ìks/, /p’èkšt/

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/t'ėkš(t)/, /pãkšt/: /tãkšt/, /par./: /tar./, /pùk/:tuk/, /p/:/k/There are two rather unreliable pairs of contrasts: /pùm.pt/:/kùm.pt/ (onomatopoeic origin?), /pú.kšt/:/kùkšt/ (same?). We have a ternary opposition: /par.kšt/:/tar.kšt/:/kar.kšt/, /pá.ukšt/:/tá.ukšt/:/ká.ukšt/.

A tendency to contrast /p/:/t/:/k/ is emerging. Ideophones tend to form pairs /p/:/t/ and /t/:/k/.

The distinctive feature of the opposition /p/:/t/ is tone, i.e. /p/ is a low-tone sound, /t/ a high-tone one. Tone—one of the most connotative acoustic features—is regarded by some researchers as the most universal and fundamental (Jakobson, Waugh 1979: 130). In the case under discussion, however, the labial articulation of /p/ also has an independent effect: it is a kind of gesture-copying, that is, an imitation with the lips of contact between a surface and an object. Semantic analysis of the text does not contradict the idea that the low-tone labial plosive /p/ imitates the sound of contact more closely, whereas /t/ tends more toward imitating movement: She wet her hands, pėkš, pėkš, and made a loaf of bread LKŽ(Všk): /tė·kšt /tė·kš(t) tūoki· lašā· i ā·ki/ DūnŽ. Pýkšt—as she struck it, she killed her LKŽ (Švnč): /tí·kšt/ tá·kšt ir á·udi par dí·na/ DūnŽ. /pá·kšt i ví·na žùnda/pá·kšt i kìta/ DūnŽ: /lí·nda / tá·kšt par snù.ke/ DūnŽ.

The results obtained allow us to arrange the available triad according to the principle of binary oppositions:

/paũkšt /pagaliu// qâ·'l ezgóndite/ DūnŽ.

It went paršk and the imperial shot across the floor LKŽ(Dr).

/taũ.kšt taũ.kšt i sudā.žį bùtel'ika/ DūnŽ.

/taũkšt/ taũkšt / puo kapé.ika/ DūnŽ.

/i kā.kta su súm'cù kaũ.kst/ DūnŽ.

It clanks against a stone with a scythe LKŽ(Šts).

/p/ contrasts with /t/ and /k/ as an ideophone of auditory impression contrasts with ideophones of visual impression; its function lies at the third component of the generalized semantic schema. The lower /k/ contrasts with /t/ as an ideophone of a more intense, more directed action contrasts with an ideophone of a less intense action.

Į binarinės opozicijos triadą fonologijoje suvedama tuo pačiu principu (Girdenis 1981: 178).

The principal phonosemantic function of T-type consonants is to imitate the paralinguistic situation of action—movement—contact. The choice of consonant depends on its acoustic features (tone, compactness), though articulatory properties of the sound may also influence it (this is especially characteristic of the consonant /p/). Consonants also have other, less prominent connotative meanings.

The consonant /p/ carries the greatest phonosemantic load, and /k/ the least.

The CgV-type group of ideophones denoting a blow, a light punch, or a tap is considerably smaller than the group of ideophones beginning with the voiceless member of the opposition: /gùkt/ “a thump, a punch,” /gû·kt/ “a thwack,” /gùŋkt / guũ·kt/ “a bang, a clunk.” Comparing CgV-type ideophones with voiceless variants of the same semantics, it seems that with CkV-type ideophones the imitated action is directed at another object, whereas in the case of a voiced consonant the imitated action

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the object is the text’s agent or subject, cf.: Gùkt į kuprą su kuloku LKŽ(J). Aš tą pieną sriūbt sriūbt, man močiutė gūkt gūkt LKŽ(Bdr). Gùnkt į kuprą! LKŽ(Sts). Just one cluck with a stick at the goose—and that’s that LKŽ(Vj). With a stick, a kàks on the head, and the hen goes vinkts LKŽ(Rm). The hen just kańkt on the gosling’s back LKŽ(Slm). Just kūokt kūokt on the child’s back LKŽ(Rd). Káukš—he struck the table with his pipe LKŽ(rš).

Onomatopoeia indicating an action directed at a subject also includes forms conveying the scene and sound of water being poured, where the second component is imitated by an implosive consonant cluster, cf.: Just gùst a bucket of water over someone’s head LKŽ(J).

The CgV-type onomatopoeic forms under discussion are semantically related to the verb gùnkti ‘to hunch up’ and the nouns gungà, gungrà ‘hump’.

In general, a great deal of vocabulary has been found that begins with the consonant /g/ and denotes an action that the agent directs at themself; alternatively, words beginning with /g/ denote the result of such an action: gòmulti ‘to squeeze into lumps, wrap, bundle’; gùroti ‘to wrap, swathe’; gùrmulti ‘to crumple, wrinkle’, gapsnóti ‘to pick up’; góbti ‘1. to tie, 2. to wrap, 3. to seize, snatch, 4. to marry (a woman), 5. to cling’; gósti ‘to desire, strive for’; gaùbti ‘to gather, accumulate, collect, take’; guòbti ‘to seize, grab’; gabinti ‘to entice, tempt’; gabàzis ‘profit, gain’; gámbalas ‘a small bundle twisted from straw to finish the edge of a roof’; gargòlas ‘a bobble on a spindle’; gàbana ‘a clump or tuft of hay, straw, etc.’ Variants meaning ‘clump’: gùzulas, gùrgulas, gùrgulė, gùbulas, gùgulas, guñgulas; variants meaning ‘crumb’: gurìnys, gurùkas, guruláitis, gùrulas; variants meaning ‘piece’: gòmulas, gomulỹs, gùmulas, gãbūzas, gabūzis, gabižalas, gabulỹs, gamùlžis, gamūžas, gãmaužas, gãmalas, gamãkas, and so on. Words arising through lexical divergence include: garsótis ‘dirt on the body, tangles, clots’; gabùrdalas ‘a small ball’; gãbė ‘head, fool’; gógė ‘colloq. head’; gangóžas ‘a large dark cloud’; gargalnósas ‘someone with a large nose’; gùngkrãmis ‘a person with a large head’. There are also quite a few names for agents denoting a self-oriented individual: gomurà ‘a glutton’; gãbas ‘a greedy person’; góbštas ‘same’; gótas ‘someone who is voracious at meals’. There are adjectives with similar meanings: godùs, gobšùs, gobùs, goslùs. This abundant vocabulary is presented as evidence for the opposition of voiced CgV-type clusters to their voiceless counterparts, an opposition marked by a direction opposite to that of the action being imitated.

Onomatopoeic forms denoting falling tend more to imitate its appearance and constitute the largest semantic subgroup of CbV. They are more numerous than their voiceless counterparts of the same meaning, cf.: /bʹic / bʹiːc / bʹipt / bʹéːmpt / bʹéːnc / báːnc / bàc / bàpt / bãːpt / báːpt / búmpt / búmst / búːpt / búːc / búc / búːp / búrg / buiːc / bóːpt/.

We have the pairs: /bàpt: pàpt/, /báːpt: páːpt/, /búmpt: púmpt/, /búːpt: púːpt/, /búːc: púːc/, /buiːc: puiːc/, /bóːpt: póːpt/.

Pópt and sits down LKŽ(Aps); Just pūpt into that bed, so soft as down LKŽ(Mžš); When I jump over the ditch, just puic onto my side and I’ve fallen! LKŽ(Kair); Pàpt and an apple fell from the tree LKŽ(J); Pàpt—a slab of bacon into the lap LKŽ(Krš); The small pear goes bap, while the larger one goes bópt LKŽ(Ds); Būpt and fell from the attic LKŽ(Skr). Jonukas buic into the water and swam away LKŽ(Pp); Bапt and

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I lay down LKŽ(Dr). Bapt—the car fell into the Ringuvė LKŽ(Krš). The CbV-type semantic group associated with the idea of water—or, lexicologically speaking, the seme—raises interesting questions, cf.: /būl./ ‘to denote splashing’; /būrk/ ‘glug’; /būrpt/ ‘to denote gulping up liquid’; /būrkšt/ ‘to denote a spray’; /būi.pt/ ‘to denote emerging from water’. All these forms combine with low-tone mixed diphthongs /ur/ (most often), /ul/, and the diphthong /ui/. The water seme is also present in expressive vocabulary with low explosive singleton onsets, cf.: būkoti ‘to trudge through mud’; buzur̃lis ‘a slovenly person’; būzyti ‘to drink liquid’; burkšlioti ‘to slurp noisily’; burbėti ‘to bubble’; burgė ‘a quagmire, muddy place’; bungė ‘wet bread’; búojis ‘puddle’; also expressive verbs with low-dynamic implosive clusters bliaūkti ‘to flow continuously’, bliūgžti ‘to splash (of liquid mud)’, higher-tone singleton clusters: bauzōti ‘to rise and froth while boiling’, baūzaras ‘a crybaby’, and still higher-tone forms: belžti ‘to wet, drench’, and so on. One may suppose that the ideophone /b/ connotes falling into water or another liquid. This contrasts with the connotation of the ideophone /p/, which is associated with air. Compare the phonosemantic opposition: Pūpt and flew off on its own way LKŽ(Grž) (‘air’ ideophone): Nosis būrbt būrbt burbsi LKŽ(Š) (‘water’ ideophone).

CdV-type onomatopoeic forms can imitate an impact or the fall of small objects: /d’ùkt/, /d’ìmšt/, /duñ.kst/.

The semantic subgroup characteristic of the CdV type, denoting pricking, suggests that the high-toned voiced /d/, like the other voiced consonants in its phonological class, can signify a direction opposite to that of its voiceless counterparts. These are onomatopoeic forms denoting a prick with a pointed object, a sharp twinge, piercing pain, and so on, cf.: Digt and the snake bit my leg LKŽ(J); He jumped out of bed; a needle pricked his leg LKŽ(Plt). There are several onomatopoeic forms denoting an internal tingling, cf.: I feel a tingling beneath my breast, dila dila LKŽ(J); /díkt / díkt / digul’į́ka par duñ.t/ DūnŽ; /pamač’ė:u tū šašvū:ka / di·kt par širdi/ DūnŽ; I have a sudden feeling in my heart that it will be so LKŽ(J). There is also a distinctive figurative onomatopoeic form meaning ‘a thought coming into one’s head’, cf.: It just occurred to me that I haven’t fed the horses yet LKŽ(Jrb). All these are directed at the narrator or the text’s agent. The high tone of the initial clusters in onomatopoeic forms denoting a sharp twinge, prick, or stab (the diacritic /d’/ combines only with /i/-type vowels) signals that the sensation is localized and sharp; compare the expressive neuter noun dímba ‘someone or something very tall and thin’, or the vivid verb dybsóti ‘to stand stiffly, to tower’.

Shaking onomatopoeic forms beginning with voiced consonants denote a sensation experienced by the narrator, while voiceless ones are used when recounting someone else’s trembling, cf.: Only the hands are trembling, dild dild LKŽ(Dsn) (I, to me): Trembling, kūr kūr kūr, he scraped the embers into the blazing fire LKŽ(Vr) Kipsas kūst kūst started to shiver like an aspen leaf (ps.) LKŽ(Mc). (he, to him).

CgV clusters contrast with CdV clusters (cf. the opposition CkV: CtV). The CgV type imitates a stronger, more intense action; there is no imitation of sound. CdV-type onomatopoeic forms imitate a weaker, less forceful action and indi-

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…to a rather high sound, occurring as a result, cf.: I gulped down that milk, my grandmother went guk guk LKŽ(Bdr); My heart keeps beating duk duk LKŽ(Rd).

We have the /p/: /d/ pairs: /dà: bà/, /dūkst: bùkst/, /d’ik: b’ik / b’ikt/, /dú·pt: bú·pt/, /dó·pt: bó·pt/, and the /d/: /g/: /b/ triad: /dùkt: gùkt: bùkt/, /dur̄: gūr̄: būr̄/, /dàkt: gàkt: bàkt/. For example: Gūr̄ gūr̄ gūr̄ the old woman hurries, runs, gets ready LKŽ(Š). Dūr̄ dūr̄ dūr̄ they keep riding around in carts LKŽ(Arm). Būr̄ būr̄ and all the devils roared into the river LKŽ(Tvr).

Alongside the previously discussed connotative differences in the phonosemantics of voiced consonants related to action – movement – contact, interjections of the CgV type are realized that denote the suddenness and unexpectedness of an action. In the voiceless group, interjections with this semantics were of the CpV and CtV types. We have two instances: /gó·kst/ “to denote a sudden, unexpected action”; /gàkt/ “to denote a sudden action.” The first interjection has the counterpart /bókst/, the second /bàkt; the stops more strongly denote contact, cf.: Gókst, and father went into the shop LKŽ(Tvr); Bókšt and we collided LKŽ(Ds); As soon as the sun goes bàkt (sets), he goes gàkt and drives them home LKŽ(Pg).

The interjection /bù/, based on labial articulation, means “a trembling, quivering (of the upper lip)”: /bù bù bù į drė·bincu palū·pį/ DünŽ. This interjection can be considered an imitation of a sound produced by the twitching of the chin and lower lip, a sound of facial expression, belonging neither to imitative words nor to onomatopoeia. The term mimeme suggests itself because of its lexical reference to facial expression. This interjection supplements the ideophone /b/ with a connotation of labial sound, which is also evident in the semantic group discussed below, since, as with the CpV type, its voiced counterpart has a semantic group of interjections denoting speech or another sound or action associated with labial articulation, “smacking,” or pressing the lips together. The repeated onomatopoeia /biñ./ denotes the sound of crying: One went biñ, another biñ—and all the children burst into tears LKŽ(Mri). The repeated onomatopoeia /b’ik/ denotes the sound of stammering: That b’ik b’ik, and has nothing to say LKŽ(Ml). There are interjections—imitatives—denoting speech, but which, unlike the speech interjections of the CpV type, lack a connotative component of contempt, or have only a very faint one: /bõ·va sò·tà·rtà / nièks nie bō·rpt/ DünŽ. For comparison, a CpV-type interjection with a contemptuous оттенок: /pè pė / papepėje· / ir neblika/ DünŽ.

Thus the ideophone /b/ denotes speech or another action performed with the lips and carries a very weak note of contempt.

The semantic group of the CdV type, denoting a sudden glance, suggests the idea that interjections beginning with voiced consonants tend to refer to human vital functions. The root vowel modulates the connotation of an angry glance and unfriendliness: /d’ìpt / d’ìrst/ “to denote a sudden glance,” /d’é·lpt / d’é·pt/ “to denote an angry, sudden glance.”

G. Kornilov calls interjections of this type interjections of internal action. The semantics of the term itself indicate imitation in the opposite direction from that of the voiceless counterparts. This semantic group supplements the ideophone /d/ with the connotation of a glance, as well as with the connotation of suddenness noted earlier (in the semantic subgroup denoting a stabbing).

The main phonosemantic function of voiced T-type consonants is intended to

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to express the connotations of action—movement—contact, has a phonosemantic meaning of opposite direction or internal action characteristic only of voiced consonants, which most often distinguishes their phonosemantics from that of their voiceless counterparts. In the voiceless: voiced phonosemantic opposition, voiced consonants can also denote a weaker action, although this connotation is not very noticeable. Sometimes the choice of a voiced: voiceless consonant is determined by the acoustic impression of the imitated sound. The least phonosemantically marked consonant is /g/, the most marked is /b/.

Single-member initial clusters with R-type consonants.

We will begin their analysis with the pair of nasal fricatives (m, n). CmV-type ideophones associated with the water seme, whose low initial cluster is apparently ideophonic, indicate the darkness of the depths into which the subject or object of the text falls, overcoming the resistance of the surface (a universal connotation of labial articulation); cf.: /múˑrkt ir įkrìta į /raisto/ ãˑki/ DūnŽ; Mùrkt ir panėrė viedras į vandenį LKŽ(Krš). Aš tik biški valty krypt, mùlkt į vandenį, ir gatava LKŽ(Skr). A similar interpretation applies to the ideophone for boiling laundry (a moving mass of water, probably dark). /mùr mùr kã/p/ pėklà vìrs vìrs /žlùgtas/ DūnŽ. The dictionaries record the verb mùrti “to get wet, soak, become soggy”; the verb marmãlyti “to pour, babble” is common in colloquial speech. Internal-action ideophones associated with liquid and meaning swallowing are also found, cf.: /màk/ mùlkt /mùkt / mùˑkt/. Here the connotation of /m/ is similar—“sinking into a dark depth.” And of the two imitative forms meaning a blow, one has a water seme, cf.: /tãm vaĩk’ǫkùˑ màˑkt/ įˑ šùona/ DūnŽ; Mokst ranką į vandenį LKŽ(Ds).

One imitative form signals a sudden action: Mókt nosį ir ana prikìšė LKŽ(Ds).

There is an imitative form meaning to stagger, to flicker, /m’ĩr/, (cf. mirinėti “to dart about, wander furtively,” mickóti “to wave about,” micìnti “to wag”). /m’ĩr/ is probably a variant of šmĩr.

A separate group consists of mimemes associated with the articulation of labial-nasal /m/: /m’ĩk//“to indicate a speech block,” /m’ĩkt//“to signify confusion, not knowing what to say,” /mùk//“to express mumbling.” The component of disdain characteristic of the sonorant /m/ is also evident in the verbs mekióti “to speak indistinctly,” maménti “same.”

Lithuanian has many words from child language formed with clusters beginning in /m/, but none of this kind were found among single-member plosive clusters in ideophones.

G. Kornilov interestingly interprets the connotation of the sound /m/ as a mimeme of the act of sucking (Kornilov 1984: 80). This would allow us to say that the word mammà is easy to interpret phonosemantically. For comparison, the Latin name for mammals: mammalia.

There are quite a few CnV-type imitative forms denoting an external blow: /nùkt / n’úˑkt / n’úˑkst / n’ĩest / n’õˑkt / n’óˑket/. Two imitative forms have the meaning of an internal sting or blow: /n’ĩkt / n’ĩˑkt/. There is an ideophone for plunging into water, /n’ùrkt/ (cf. the CmV-type ideophones for falling into water). The ideophone /n’ĩkst/ means a movement toward the side. They all carry a connotation of suddenness, as confirmed by the sudden

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An ideophone expressing an action: /ná.ŋkt/: Nankt and toppled over, died LKŽ(J). Nasal articulation connotes the mimeme /n'ūr/, which denotes a low growl. The ideophone /n'ušt/ denotes lack: It would be good if you were still in Vilnius, but there’s no work LKŽ(Žem).

We will begin our analysis of liquid consonant clusters (l, r) with ideophones beginning with low /l/. The connotative meaning of back-and-forth movement is indicated by a large group of reduplicated ideophones, cf.: /làks/: The finger was cut off—laks, laks, laks, it clattered LKŽ(Šts); /l'úmpt/: Liùmpt, liùmpt, the willow sways over the spring LKŽ(J); /l'úŋkt/: Liùŋkt liùŋkt, it sways LKŽ(Er); /l'ėk/: When I was wrestling with the cow, my heart went lėk, lėk, lėk, lėk—and I can’t do anything LKŽ(Plt); /làp/: Fasten those sleeves—they flap, flap, flap, all torn LKŽ(Brb); /làp lap tava kaù·li/ DūnŽ; /lù·p/: While Aleksys was chattering away, lūp lūp lūp, a speckled woodpecker flew into a tree LKŽ(Vaižg); /lúop/: Only the little rooster luob luob /with its wings/, crowed kakriekoį ažgiedo/jo/ LKŽ(TDrIV 207).

The ideophone /lúop/ points to another connotation of the ideophone /l/. Ideophones denoting impact, striking, and falling are associated with connotations of softness and, in part, heaviness, cf.: /lúop/: The laundry beaters are pretty and small; luop luop luop, you beat the laundry with them LKŽ(TDr IV 238); /lúmp/: The fox just lumped into the hole LKŽ(Prng); /l'iópt/: Just liópt—the sack fell from above LKŽ(Grv). The ideophone /lùr/ indicates connotations of softness and movement: Lùr lùr, stir the porridge, lads with your heads tilted back; if someone were to give them a beating, they’d eat it up eagerly. The connotations of softness and heaviness probably also account for the choice of these ideophones in neutral texts: /ló·pc/: Every now and then he hits me with a stick, lópc, lópc! LKŽ(rš); /lùt/: As I was walking, my foot slipped, and lùt, I was down LKŽ (Grv); /l'ė·pt/: /pašli·dá·u/ l'ė·pt un dūgna/ DūnŽ. The lexicon supports the connotation of slow, periodic back-and-forth (up-and-down) movement, swaying: lyliúoti “to sway”; lekúoti “to pant with the tongue hanging out (of a dog)”; leketúoti “to rock gently”; làzgurti “to move while hanging down”; lapúoti “to swing while running”; lapsėti “to flap one’s wings”; langóti “to swing in the air”; laskióti “to dangle”; lùnginti “to wag”; lùmčioti “to sway”; lùpčioti “to beat with a laundry beater”; lugsnóti “to flap (of ears)”; lùzginti “to rock”; liupėti “to move underfoot (of soft ground)”; lopsėti “to flap”. This connotation explains numerous refrains with the ideophone /l/, cf. lado, laduto, ladu, etc. Expressive words also have a connotation of softness: lelýs “snot”; l'ė eiva “tongue”; lėbeda “a softy”; lìmti “to become soft, limp”; lámža “someone who dresses too warmly on a warm day”; lerpsóti “to sit limply”; liuliùkas “tongue”; liózga “soft-bodied creature”.

The acoustic properties of /l/, as in the case of CmV clusters, associate this ideophone with the water seme: /lá/ “to describe the sound of liquids flowing”; /lùk/ “to denote the sound of greedy drinking”; /lùkst/ “to denote pouring water”; /lú·kst/ “to describe jumping into water”. Note the low tone of the clusters. Verbs with the water seme include liùlti “to flow”; liùrškoti “to rinse” (cf. mùrti).

Repeated ideophones associated with tongue articulation denote speaking—/là/: /uǯša tuòkė pamilìje/ /là là là gėrklės palė·di/ DūnŽ; /l'ėpt/ “to denote uttering something”. The repeated ideophone /l'ùr/ “to denote poor playing” suggests that the speaking connotation of the ideophone /l/ carries a note of contempt

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There are many verbs beginning with liquid /l/ that mean “to talk nonsense, chatter”: lilėnti, lepsėti, lėmžgyti, lėpoti, larleti, lalatūoti, laskatyti, lazgėti, làgžti, lařkšti. These words support the contempt component in the speaking connotation of the ideophone /l/.

As early as Plato, the Greek sound /r/ was assigned connotations of forcefulness, energy, and movement. In Lithuanian, this connotation is confirmed by the abundance of ideophones with a movement seme: /r'ėpt / r àkt/ r àkst/ r àkšt/ r' àpt/ r' àkt/ r'ùpt/ r'ùnt/ rùp/. The semantic contexts of these ideophones do not indicate more specific connotative components, cf.: Just r àks and shoved it into the bosom LKŽ(Žmt); Everything rushed out LKŽ(Gs); I just r àkt it into the furnace LKŽ(Mr); That orphan girl gave all her intestines to the dog in one go (dial.) LKŽ(Tvr). However, there are several repeated ideophones whose semantics allow us to supplement the phonosemantics of the ideophone /r/ with the connotation of rapid, forceful back-and-forth movement (flickering): Well, rùi rùi, scratch it until it bleeds, since it itches LKŽ(Grš); Rìb rìb in the eyes—what could it be?! LKŽ(Krš). (Cf. /kõːr tos pã gal'os ròbol'į je/ a rămė nègali pastuovóti/ DunŽ.) For example, the connotative meaning of flickering, shimmering may underlie S. Nėris’s alliteration: Scatters little stones/ The Širvinta ripples/ A camomile plant stands still/ In autumn’s furrows—this is its basis. An impression of the quivering clarity of autumn air is created. The connotation of forceful, energetic back-and-forth movement accounts for the frequent refrains of the CrV structural type. It also explains the repeated ideophone /râ.i/, “to denote singing”.

The variable constriction produced when articulating /r/, and the vibrating tip of the tongue, which modulates sound amplitude (now decreasing, now increasing), apparently contribute to the ideophone /r/’s connotation of angry speech and scolding in /râ/: /rărără tecina/ gražùju nepašnek/ DunŽ; /rù/: /rù rù i r'ijės kãːp šunis/ DunŽ. There are quite a few verbs for arguing, quarreling, and scolding that begin with /r/: ragóruoti, razgáuti, rážikauti, râpoti, rèšintis, reižgėti, remėžytis. This adds a connotation of angry speech to the ideophone /r/, perhaps arising from the onomatopoeia of growling.

The largest semantic group of CvV consists of repeated ideophones articulated with the labiodental consonant /v/. The stretching of the lips in pronouncing this sound is associated with the ideophones /v'ėkšt/ “to denote a child beginning to cry”, /voř/ “to denote unclear speech”, /vàpt/ “to denote blubbering”, /v'ìpt/ “to denote a slight grimace”, /v'íːpt/ “to denote an exaggerated grimace”.

These ideophones are cases of mimemes, since a sound or action is imitated by showing the specific features of facial expression. The facial expression of grimacing is the basis for ideophones denoting disgust. These ideophones allow us to assign the ideophone /v/ an articulatory connotation of disgust and revulsion, supported by many words marked in dictionaries as “derogatory” or “contemptuous”: vėpšlos, vėbros “lips”; vambŕa, vámpla “muzzle”; varėzgà “chatterbox”; vėpežoti, vepėti, vãpalioti, vógrauti “to chatter, prattle, talk nonsense”; vėbrenti, vamplinti “to walk clumsily, look around foolishly”; vampsóti “to gape”; vãdal(u)oti “to drag oneself”, valūzuoti “to wander about”; vėmpti “to drink a lot”.

Two ideophones of the CjV type were found: /jèk/ “to denote a dog whining”; /jùst/ “a slight movement”. The phonosemantic informativeness of the sound /j/ is low. Of the—

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There is not enough material. We will disregard oppositions between interjections whose semantics (and often origin) differ: /'tʲist: rʲist/, /mʲikt: rʲikt/, /lʲap: rʲap/, /mũr: lũr/, /lũk: rũk/, /nʲũr: lʲũr/. The greatest number of phonosemantically significant oppositions (6) occur with the contrasting dental-alveolar sounds /l/: /r/, cf.: /lʲek: rʲek/, /lʲup: rʲup/, /lũkt: rũkt/, /lʲapt: rʲapt/, /lʲakst: rʲakst/, /lã: rã/. The text confirms the phonosemantic oppositions: ideophones with /l/ imitate a slower action and have a salient connotation of slow back-and-forth movement, of swaying. G. Kornilov considers the ideophone /l/ to be a sound of slipperiness (Kornilov 1984: 162). The available oppositions also allow us to associate the ideophone /r/ with energy; in addition, it clearly creates an impression of crackling and creaking onomatopoeia (Incidentally, G. Kornilov calls /r/ a universal sound of breaking (Kornilov 1984: 121)).

The consonants’ pitch may also influence phonosemantic oppositions denoting speech—scolding is usually done at a higher pitch than ordinary speech. We also find contrasting pairs of nasal consonants, labial and non-labial: /mʲikt: nʲikt/, /mʲikst: nʲikst: (vʲikst)//mʲíkt: nʲíkt/.

Oppositions are most often formed by interjections in minimal pairs.

We may conclude that all sonorants are characterized by a connotation of back-and-forth (up-and-down) movement, which, for convenience and to avoid confusion with the movement phonosemantics of obstruent consonants, we will call process. Its nature is connoted by the manner of articulation of the sonorant and, in part, by its pitch.

All sonorants are used to imitate speech or, as in the case of sign languages, to reproduce characteristic facial expressions. Their articulation also adds its own component of connotation: /m/—hesitation, stuttering; /n/—negation, dissatisfaction; /l/—contempt, swaying while singing; /r/—angry speech, greedily eating; /v/—disgust, grimacing.

The low-pitched sounds /l/ and /m/ may be used to evoke water, moisture, and wetness.

The sound /l/ has the greatest phonosemantic informativeness.

C/S/V-type single-member clusters.

Most interjections are of the CšV type. The two-place alveolar fricative /š/ contrasts with the sonorant /v/, cf.: /šʲeptis: vʲeptis/, /šʲũpt: vʲũpt/. /v/ has the connotation of disgust discussed above, which apparently underlies the phonosemantic opposition.

Most onomatopoeic forms beginning with the sound /š/ are associated with a distinctive rustling or swishing sound, for which /š/ is particularly well suited.

G. Kornilov observed this in Tajik and Chuvash, cf. Tajik šart ‘imitation of the rustling sound made when breaking twigs; imitation of ice cracking’, Chuvash šartlama ‘crackling cold’, Chuvash šartala ‘children’s rattle’. Lithuanian reduplicated interjections have varied meanings; they can be presented in a single group because they share the same onomatopoeic basis: /šdʲ/ ‘to describe raindrops pattering on a roof’; /šar/ ‘to describe the sound of pouring’; /šũpt / šũp/ ‘repeated to describe sprinkling’; /šʲũpt/ šʲũp/ ‘repeated to describe more intense sprinkling’; /šʲũkšt/ ‘repeated to describe rustling’; /šʲurkt/ ‘when cutting grass with a scythe—’

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to denote a sound of falling”; /š’ūr-/ “1. to denote a sound of crumbling, 2. to denote a rustling sound.” The consonant /š/ has a universal function of expressing whispering, quiet speech. Alongside the Lithuanian /š’à/ šàp/ š’è/ š’ėp/ š’ù/ š’ip/ (/p/ indicates lip articulation in speech) there is Russian šušù!, and Tajik šim-š! We have the hushing interjection /šà/, where /š/ indicates whispering speech.

G. Kornilov believes that words beginning with the ideophone /š/, meaning fear or terror, are characteristic of many languages (cf. Chuvash-Cheremis šarach! “my heart cracked with terror” (Kornilov 1987: 130)), and are connected with crackling onomatopoeias that also begin with the ideophone /š/. Lithuanian imitative forms /šùst/ “to denote shivering”; /šù·st/ “to describe hair standing on end”; /šùš/ “shivering described through repetition”; /š’ūŕst/ “to denote slight shivering from fright”; /š’ù·rst/ “to denote intense shivering from fright”; /š’ūrpt/ “to denote shivering from cold or fright”; /š’ù·rkš/ “to describe fright” are undoubtedly linked to the clear connotation of an uneven surface associated with the ideophone /š/. This is reflected in part by the interjections /š’ùpš/ “the swaying of waves described through repetition”; /š’ip/ “to denote the flickering of fire”; /š’ìrkšt/ “to denote sparks crackling above a fire,” and by the very extensive vocabulary carrying the semantic feature of an uneven surface: šaiža “shivering”; šarma “hoarfrost”; šaršas “water rippling as it flows over stones or when the wind blows”; šapis “one whose hair grows backward”; šiaurė “surface dirt”; šebežis “pine cone”; šėpšė “moss growing on tree trunks, roofs, fences, and stones”; šepdžiūlis “a curly-haired one (of a ram)”; šabadūkas “burdock burr”; šekštė “a coarse, poor-quality grass”; šėgžmas “rubbish”; šiošis “cracked tree bark”; šakšti “to stiffen from cold (of mud)”; šerpūti “to become scabby”; šepsóti “to stick out, protrude (of grass, hair).” Incidentally, J. Jablonskis’s label “the rough ones” seems as if it were intended to point to the connotation of an uneven surface.

Little can be said about the semantics of the CsV type, since interjections of this kind are scarce: /š’ūrpt/ “to denote a slurping sound,” /šàkt/ “to mark fastening,” /š’é·st/ “to mark sitting down abruptly,” /š’ì·kt/ “to mark a sudden action,” /š’ù·st/ “when repeated, means sewing” — they have no particularly evident connotative cues. The fact that /s/ is the most frequent consonant in standard Lithuanian (Pakerys 1986: 130) means that it is the least marked and therefore has very little phonosemantic informativeness. With some reservation, we may assign to it the connotation of smooth versus sudden movement: Siūst pralekė arklys pro kiemą LKŽ(S1).

There are also few interjections of the Čv type. There are insufficient examples to draw firm conclusions about their phonosemantics. The verbs žėngti and žėrgti have interjections with a different root vowel: /ž’ìrkt/, /ž’ìŋkt/.

The interjection /ž’ó·pt/, the verb žiotis, and the interjection /ž’ė·ukt/ apparently have features of mimemes and are also associated with fricative articulation. There is an onomatopoeia /žàr/ “to denote the splashing of drops,” which clearly supplements the textual information with the impression of a tin roof: /išė·juom /i vakarėli/ pūšplìke· / lį·tù/s/ žàr žàr/ i puo linksmibis/ DūnŽ.

The suddenness interjections /ž’ì·kt/ “to denote a sudden stabbing,” /ž’ì·pt/ “to denote a sudden action” intuitively invite association with the connotation of light and radiance—

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(/ž'ipt/ — has a clear connection with žiebti, “to kindle”). This idea is also suggested by the extensive vocabulary carrying the semantic feature of light: žarà “aurora, light,” žiùžė “little fire (in children’s speech),” žìrti “to shine, shimmer, sparkle,” žérplėti “to burn slowly, smolder,” žaižaruoti “to shine,” žaìbti “to shimmer,” žiotúoti “to burn,” and so on.

There are only three interjections of the CzV type: /ž'ìˑkt/ “to denote a sudden blow”; /zì/ “to express buzzing”; /ziñˑ/ “to denote the ringing of glass” — they are insufficient for drawing conclusions about the phonosemantics of /z/.

The phonosemantics of fricatives is epithet-like, supplementing the description of an action with the secondary feature of “smoothness” (/s/) or “unevenness” (/š/). The most highly connoted sound is /š/. The phonosemantic meanings of /š/ are associated, in one way or another, with unevenness: shivering — cold — crackling — fear — silence.

Įdomumo dėlei keletas asociacijų iš Š. Steponavičienės žodyno (Steponavičienė: 1986): tyla jungiama asociacijų ryšiais su — šnibždėti, nelaimė, nelaimingas, ošimas, siaubas, snaigės, šnarėjimas, šiokštimas; šaltis jungiamas su: ledas, speigas, nejaukus, šiurpu, drebėti, krečia, sukrečiantis, žvarbus. Tarp asociacijų, sukeltų baimės — drebėti, šiurpas, lūžo, šalta, tylu, uraganas.

Interjections beginning with non-native consonants. A separate group consists of interjections beginning with non-native consonants, or—as Prague School phonologists call them—synchronically foreign sounds, and as descriptivists call them, peripheral members of the system (Girdenis 1981: 122). No such interjections are recorded in the “Dictionary of Contemporary Lithuanian.”

The interjections available to us that begin with the foreign sound /f/ indicate meaningful utterance and the speaker’s desire to distinguish himself through an elevated textual style. This use of interjections belongs more to the domain of mythopoetic language: Fìrp ir išskrìdo LKŽ(Grž): Fìrt ir apsivertė ant kito šono LKŽ(Rod); Fùkt ir atlėkiau, fùkt ir gatava LKŽ(Slv). This is also confirmed by the frequent use of the interjection as the very first clause element, a kind of syntactic foregrounding. There are clear cases in which /f/ is a facultative variant of /p/, performing an expressive function and marking an unusual utterance, i.e. foregrounding it or the speaker himself: Fùr ir ištrūko tas žvirblis jam (ps.) LKŽ(Pin); Bèg fùk fùk traukinys LKŽ(Klk); Lapė fùrt per langelį ir išsinešė kiškutį LKŽ(Vlk). A similar phenomenon is presented by A. Girdenis in his discussion of dialect words: northern Samogitian afalceina “oranges,” folka “polkas,” fudra “powder” (Girdenis 1981: 122). The sound /f/ may be assigned a connotation of pretentiousness.

The letter h (apparently because of its acoustic properties: low timbre, aperiodic vibrations perceived as rumbling or rustling, and posterior-dorsal articulation) marks a rougher transition into the sound; in these interjections h is not a phoneme, and its appearance likewise belongs to the domain of mythopoetic language. This sound resembles a paralinguistic herding call and has a clear connotation of eeriness, cf.: Velnias ėmė vytis šaukdamas ”Huš huš į maišą?” LKŽ(TDr VI 15); Hamt ir suėdė vilkas vieną avį LKŽ(Skr); Pelėda — heu — sako LKŽ(Ps). Phonologically these are: hamt — /amt/, huš — /uš/, heu — /eu/. There are international laughter onomatopoeias with the sound /h/: /hà/, /hù/ huūˑ/, /hì/. The Yakuts laugh similarly — huk!, the Turks — hig-h!, the Japanese — ha-ha, and so on (Kornilov 1984: 89).

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With the sound /ch/ there is also the international onomatopoeia for laughter /chà/ and its variants. Russians use the voiceless counterpart xo-xo, xuxu, Tajiks — xu-xu, xa-xa, Ossetians xuel-x, Chuvash — xax-xax-x (Kornilov 1984: 88).

These consonants, because of their foreign origin, i.e. their exotic quality, and because they are rare in the language, carry a considerable phonosemantic load. There is no doubt that their frequent repetition in a text or other kind of foregrounding (say, as the first constituent of a sentence) is noticed very quickly. Their phonosemantics is superficial and belongs more to the sphere of mythopoetic language.

Clusters with affricates. Analysis of clusters with consonantal affricates shows that, from the point of view of phonosemantics, they form an intermediate link between monosegmental and bisegmental clusters, since in the case of pure onomatopoeia these clusters seem to constitute a single sound, whereas in the group of imitative words they are clear phonosemantic clusters.

Onomatopoeias imitating a voiced, metallic ringing or clanging have words with a metal or glass seme in their semantic field, cf.: Džengti kavolis ir nukirto geležį LKŽ(Ds); Džin džin stiklus pakeldami LKŽ(rš); Džinkt pro langą pinigai LKŽ(Jdr); Velnias atnešęs džek pinigus ant stalo per langą LKŽ(Dglš); Tik džur džur jam pinigus ant galvos papylė LKŽ(Rd); Kai dalgiai aštrūs, o arkliai smagiai eina, tai džì džì džì LKŽ(Gr); Džan džan dalgius daužo į tekin ius LKŽ(Vaižg); Džer džekt dusliai džerksejo dalgės LKŽ(J.Balt); Marti džingt raktus gnešusi metė ant žemės LKŽ(J). In texts, the affricate /ǯ/, through its phonosemantics, expands the sentence’s semantic space by reference to a metallic object associated with sound, cf.: Džė džė džė, kad lyja, nuo stogų LKŽ(Slm). Lytì pradėjo po dvylikos, klausaus, dža dža dža LKŽ(KlvrŽ). Eisiu pamelšiu džy džy džy karvytę LKŽ(Vrn).

The metal seme (in the semantic field: scythe, scissors, axe) is found in interjections meaning ‘cutting, slicing’ /ǯ’ìrkšt/ǯ’ìrkš/ǯ’ìrkt/. In these cases, the affricate /ǯ/ contrasts with /ž/ as discontinuous (with a more abrupt transition from silence to sound) versus continuous, and with /d/ as prominent versus subdued (with less intense rustling). The differential features of the sound of metal ringing are discontinuity and prominence.

The metallic-ringing connotation assigned to the affricate /ǯ/, phonosemantically interpreted as a sound that cannot be heard, is not entirely onomatopoeic. This is shown by the syntactic-semantic cases involving the bucket and the roof that we have discussed.

Clusters with the affricate CǯV, distinguished by the feature of diffuseness, also carry a connotation of metallic, sharp ringing and have a semantic field of words containing a metal or glass seme, cf.: Džingt stiklas ir subyrėjo LKŽ(Skrd); Džir rėžia stikliorius stiklą LKŽ (Slm); Pagriebęs lazdą, kaip duos jai in galvą — pinigai tik džer džer LKŽ(BsP I 279); Džinkšt kirviu paukštei galvą nukirto LKŽ (rš). Ką jis, varge, prikapos su tokiu kirvuku — džekt džekt LKŽ (Rs). There are interjections for the ringing of a bell: /ǯ’ìn/ ǯań.k/ ǯań.kt/ ǯen/. Interjections imitate the clatter of hooves: /ǯ’ìk/ ǯàk/ ǯùk/. The interjection ≠ /ǯ’ìː/: /a dziː dziː nuori/ DūnŽ refers to a metal bucket.

When discussing the phonosemantic oppositions /k/: /t/, we considered the phonosemantic informativeness of the feature compact: diffuse. For the compact sound

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we distinguished a more intense, higher-energy, more deliberate and more directional action. This conclusion is supported by the oppositions /ž'ek: ž'ekt/, /ž'in: ž'in'/; /ž'įˑnkt: ž'įˑnkt/, /ž'įˑ: ž'įˑ/. The opposition between compact /ž/ and diffuse /z/ differentiates the sound being reproduced.

The fact that the semantically least marked onomatopoeias for the sound of riding and the ringing of a bell are realized by C₃V clusters, together with the texts discussed above, allows us to conclude that both ideophones /ž/ and /z/ have a connotation of metallic ringing, but /ž/ has greater phonosemantic informativeness. Many phonetic variants meaning ‘pecking’ are associated with the loanword dziobas (perhaps the interjections themselves are also loanwords) and do not affect the analysis; cf. /ž'óˑpt/ ž'áˑp/ ž'úˑpt/ ž'ùpt/ ž'úˑopt/.

The phonosemantic load of the affricate /ž/ is small; it has a connotation of metallic ringing, and its phonosemantic informativeness is lower than that of /ž/.

A large group of interjections imitating the sounds of chopping, cutting, and tearing is realized with the affricate /č/. The sound’s basis is the specific acoustic properties of the voiceless affricate (rustling, the transition from silence to sound). Unlike the metallic quality of the sound of voiced affricates, the emphasis is on the gentleness of contact with an object (the sound-producing object is often wood, meat, or fabric), cf.: Čàk čàk and he began chopping the tree LKŽ(Jnšk); Čàkšt, čàkšt—and the tree fell LKŽ(Krkl); Čàkt the axe struck into the tree LKŽ(J); Just čàkšt into the finger and it got stuck LKŽ(Vvr); /č'éˑkšt/ I cut off: the dog’s tail/ DūnŽ; Čáˑrkšt, čárkšt the tailor cuts the grey broadcloth LKŽ(rš); /č'irkšt/ it tears in half/ the hide now/ DūnŽ; /č'irkšt the thin ones/ it used to tear very badly/ DūnŽ. A universal phonosemantic distinctive feature of voiced versus voiceless sounds is clearly apparent: direction. Voiced onomatopoeias imitate a spontaneous sound produced by a moving object (money, glass, a scythe, spurs, a bell, hooves, etc.); the voiceless /č/ imitates a sound produced by contact between two objects, not a spontaneous sound. Even onomatopoeias imitating the sound of rain seem to differ from voiced variants in that they signal contact with a soft object: Čà čà čà and it poured all over me LKŽ(Šts); Čè čè čè the rain fell in such large drops that it began to pound LKŽ(Jnšk); /I hear it through the sleep/ čà čà čà/ DūnŽ.

The group of onomatopoeias—imitatives—meaning sliding over an uneven surface can be interpreted in two ways. An onomatopoeic interpretation is possible: /č'ùˑšt/ č'ùˑšt the crow walks like a hen/ DūnŽ. Alternatively, the ideophones /t/ and /š/ may combine: Čiūkšt and it slid away over the ice LKŽ(Ds); Čiūkšt the bast shoe, čiūta, on the little earth, lylia LTR(Ds); /č'ùˑkšt it fell onto the road/ LKŽ.

The impact imitative forms /č'íˑŋkt/ and /č'ēŋkt/ have the direction characteristic of voiceless sounds—toward him, her, me: /mùni pamāˑti/ daughter-in-law// dùreš č'íˑŋkt/ DūnŽ; /čáŋkt across the nails/ where it gropes/ DūnŽ. The ideophone /t/ denotes movement, while /š/ increases informativeness.

Using an affricate to hush someone is more deliberate and more insistent than using interjections beginning with /š/. Deliberateness is conveyed by the ideophone /t/, cf.: /uˑžrįka/ č'ùkt/ the chickens settled down/ DūnŽ; /šùbar'áˑu gāˑva iškšūsi/

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children. č’ūkst/ DūnŽ.

Compared with /t/ and /š/, the affricate /č/ has greater phonosemantic informativeness, but its connotative meanings may coincide with those of /t/ (in the case of impact) and with the connotative value of /š/ (hushing interjections). The connotation of the sound of gentle contact between two objects is unique to /č/.

Onomatopoeias beginning with the sound /c/ imitate a softer, less sharp, weaker, rather high-pitched sound: The clock on the wall goes čak čak čak rather sporadically LKŽ(Jnšk); I listen, only can can with the bells, and the sound rang out into the distance LKŽ(Ds); /ciñ/ ciñ. / into the lamp’s socket/ DūnŽ; /či˙nkt/ č˙nkt/ the gravedigger throws earth/ DūnŽ.

The connotation of the affricate /c/ is a gentle sound produced by small objects. This is probably due to the influence of diffuse /s/, whose connotation of gentleness was not apparent in one-member clusters of the CsV type.

This connotation is apparent in ideophones. The connotations of gentleness, enclosure, and embrace distinguish the interjections /càpt/ cùp/ có˙p/ cū˙pt/ meaning ‘to grab’ from their counterparts without an affricate, cf. /kàpt/ etc. This is the influence of the ideophone /s/, since /t/ has the usual connotations of movement, contact, and suddenness.

The gentleness realized by the sound /s/ in the combination used to express hushing means that the interjections /c’īt/ c’ic/ are generally used to hush children.

The connotation of the affricate /c/ is a gentle sound produced by small objects. In cases other than onomatopoeias, this is a combination of the ideophones /t/ and /s/, where /s/ has a previously unrevealed phonosemantic meaning of softness, gentleness, and smallness. To conclude the section on affricates, it should be added that, a priori, their frequency and patterns of use in dialects may be quite different from those in the standard language or in the generalized model of Lithuanian vocabulary presented by LKŽ. This refers not only to dzūkavimas, which undoubtedly changes the phonosemantic content of affricates. It seems that Samogitians tend to use more interjections with affricates than speakers of other dialects, so their informativeness in the dialects differs. This is, of course, a matter open to discussion and further study.

The principal phonosemantic differences between consonant classes. All Lithuanian obstruent consonants have the connotation of the behaviorist schema action—movement—contact. This may also be a sense—feeling—result—expression of a paralinguistic situation. This connotation differs from the process connotation characteristic of the class of sonorants (periodic/non-periodic movement in various directions). T-type consonants denote a unidirectional action with a clear beginning, whose nature and direction are differentiated by the sounds that make up the class. The process features of sonorants likewise depend on the individual properties of each sound. Consonants of the fricative class are epithets of an action or sensation, indicating its smoothness, continuity, or uneven, jerky nature.

Phonosemantically significant acoustic features of consonants. Within classes, the following acoustic features are phonosemantically significant: a) compactness—imparts deliberateness, energy, and clear directionality to an action or sensation.

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b) tone — the higher the consonant’s tone, the finer an action, sensation, or experience one seeks to imitate. The feature of tone underlies the connotations of water, air, darkness, and dimness.

c) the phonological feature of sharpness — a secondary, raised tone of sound diminishes or softens the imitated action, but has no decisive influence on phonosemantics.

Stops that contrast in the feature of voicelessness: voicing perform the same phonosemantic functions in an action — movement — contact situation, but voiceless consonants usually denote a stronger action.

Voiced consonants may also carry an additional connotation of an action directed toward oneself, or differ from voiceless consonants in the direction of the action.

Voiceless S-type consonants convey a connotation of unevenness (an action or sensation interrupted by pauses), while voiced S-type consonants express a connotation of evenness (an action without pauses).

Articulatory features of consonants that are phonosemantically significant. Their distinction from acoustic features is relative. In differentiating the connotation of action — movement — contact, the articulation of stops has an influence, when the airstream passes through a closure and overcomes an obstruction with energy. The manner in which it is overcome forms the basis of the connotation: for example, when pronouncing /k/, the back of the tongue moves abruptly away from the palate — the beginning of the action is foregrounded; when pronouncing /t/, the tongue presses against the front teeth, the obstruction is farther from the pharynx, and the expelled air travels a longer path, so the sound usually carries a connotation of movement. The labial obstruction characteristic of the pronunciation of /p/ gives this consonant a connotation of contact and the end of an action.

Labial articulation has considerable potential from a phonosemantic perspective: all labial sounds are associated with the imitation of human speech activity.

Nasal pronunciation may express dissatisfaction.

The articulation of closure — openness, characteristic of sonorants, is phonosemantically significant and is the main cause of the connotation of process.

The continuous passage of the airstream through the opening in fricatives is the basis of continuity: discontinuity.

The study of the phonosemantics of ideophones is a first step into a very interesting area of connotative vocabulary. More questions remain than answers. Yet this area’s promise for lexicology, poetics, psycholinguistics, sociolinguistics, and even language history is undeniable. Awaiting study are refrains, magic words, the history of vowels from a phonosemantic perspective, Lithuanian mythopoetic language, and many other very interesting questions.

REFERENCES AND SOURCES

DunŽ — Vitkauskas V. Šiaurės rytų dünininkų žodynas, Vilnius, 1976.

Girdenis A. 1981: Fonologija, Vilnius.

Jakobson R., Waugh L. 1979: The Sound Shape of Language, New York.

Kornilov G.I. 1984: Imitatīvų v čuvašskom jazyke, Čeboksary.

LKŽ — Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language 3-16, Vilnius, 1956—1995; 2nd ed. 1—2, 1968—1969.

Pakerys A. 1986: Lietuvių kalbos fonetika, Vilnius.

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Steponavičienė S. 1986: Lietuvių kalbos žodinių asociacijų žodynas, Vilnius.

PHONOSEMANTICS OF MONOMORPHEMIC INITIAL CONSONANT CLUSTERS IN ONOMATOPOEIC INTERJECTIONS

Summary

The presented work is looking for the answers to the questions rising in phonosemantic research by analysing one group of the specific expressive vocabulary of the Lithuanian — onomatopoeic interjection.

Therefore it was chosen the onomatopoeic interjections for the object of study as the least problematic area of the expressive vocabulary.

The work is complex because the problem is linked to phonetic, phonology, semantic and lexicology.

It is analysed the explosive monomial consonants in onomatopoeic interjections. The general theoretical provision is the foundation of the research: the connotative synesthetic language sounds function that is realised through the acoustic features with the universally comprehensive signals.

The main phonosemantic function of the stops belonging to the T class is to imitate the paralinguistic situation of action — motion — contact. The choise of the consonant depends on its acoustic features (tone, compactness), but may be influenced by sound’s articulate pecularities (that is very characteristic of the consonant /p/). Consonant /p/ carries the greatest phonosemantic weight, the most neutral one is /k/.

The main phonosemantic function of the voiced T class consonants is to express the connotations of action — motion — contact and has the phonosemantic meaning of the opposite direction or inner action. The consonant /g/ has the lowest phonosemantic mark, /b/ — the highest one.

Sonorants are characterised by the connotation of forward–backward (up–down) movement. The sound /l/ has the highest phonosemantic informativeness. The phonosemantics of fricatives has an epithetic character, adding secondary motion characteristics of “evenness” (/s/), “unevenness” (/š/), and “lightness” (/ž/). The sound /š/ has the strongest connotation.

There is a separate group of onomatopoeic interjections that begin with consonants of an outlying nature. Onomatopoeic interjections beginning with an alien sound demonstrate the “refinement” of expression and the narrator’s wish to distinguish himself through a “noble” style.

The collocations with affricates are the intermediate link between monomial and binary collocations.

The examination of the phonosemantic of onomatopoeic interjections is the first step into the most interesting area of connotated vocabulary.

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