LIETUVIŲ KALBOS LEKSIKOS RAIDA LIETUVOS TSR MOKSLŲ AKADEMIJA

ON THE LITERARY FORMS OF CERTAIN DIALECTAL LEXICAL ITEMS

J. KLIMAVIČIUS

Determining the literary forms of dialectal lexical items can sometimes be problematic. In some cases, knowledge of the phonetic laws of a dialect may not suffice, since applying them can yield two or three possible reconstructions. In such cases, the word’s geographical distribution and etymology come to our aid. We will try to illustrate this with a few particularly striking examples.

In the East Dzūkian area, the name of a dish—mashed potatoes pounded in a mortar—is used in the following dialectal variants: ciulčienė Lkm (Gmž), Dglš, Vdš, Ml, Dkšt; ciulčienis Švnč, Prng, Ml; cilčienė Tvr, Dsn, Ml; cilčienis Tvr, Ad, Dglš, Plš, Švnč²; ciuncielius Prng; cincielius Dkšt, Rš, Dglš; cincielis Dglš.

How should all these variants be transposed into the literary language?

The headwords cilčienė Tvr, cilčienis (< tiltienis?) Dglš, cincielius Rš, Dkšt, cincielis Dglš and čilčiėnis Švnč, Plš, čiulčienis Prng, Švnč, čiulčienė Lkm (Gmž), Dglš are listed in volume II of the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language (Vilnius, 1947). The Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language’s card index also contains tiltienė Dsn (K. Būg), Ml, Švnč and tiltienis J. Balč (reconstructed from cilčienis OG67 and OG365). Thus, we have three possible transpositions: c ~ č, c ~ č̌, and c ~ t³. Such a three-way variation is impossible.

First, the third variant (c ~ t) is impossible. It could be reconstructed from Tvr, Ml, Švnč, but such a reconstruction is impossible in the area (Dglš, Plš, Dkšt, Rš, Vdš, Lkm, Prng) where the so-called second Dzūkian affrication (c < t)⁴ does not occur. Thus, the geographical distribution of the word shows that the forms tiltienė, tiltienis are impossible.

A much more complicated question is whether, in this case, the Dzūkian c ~ č alternation is possible, or whether c should be retained. We must also determine how the variants ciulčienė and cilčienė, relate to one another.

¹ The abbreviations of the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language are used in this article.

² The Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language’s card index contains a single slip for cilčienio from Marcinkonys. Through an error, this word (~ čilčienis) from that locality also found its way into volume II. This cannot be right. First, the other West Dzūkian speakers do not use this word; instead, they use grūdžielius~grūdžielius ‘mashed potatoes pounded in a mortar (sometimes with hempseed or poppy seeds)’ in Mrc (Zervynos), Vrn, Knv, Dv, Lš, Lzd, Lp, Nč, Rod, Plš. Second, the West Dzūkians also do not use the other word occurring in the sentence, ciulė~čiulė, whose distribution coincides with that of the East Dzūkian name for the dish under discussion.

³ Even the same authors reconstructed the forms differently in different cases. For example, K. Būga has tiltienė Dsn and čiulčienė Lkm (Gmž); J. Balčikonis has cilčienis Tvr and tiltienis Tvr (OG67 and OG365).

⁴ Therefore, the question raised regarding cilčienis (< tiltienis?) Dglš in the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language, volume II, is unjustified.

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which of them is primary. Linking all the variants of this word with other related words etymologically (semantically and phonetically) answers both questions and shows that the original form can be reconstructed as čiulčienė.

The root čiul- of this form is found in many semantically identical or very closely related words used in the literary language and in other dialects (not Dzūkian). For example:

a) čiūloti ‘to rub’: To rub the felt boots that have been soaked, so they will be soft. J. Rub that leg a little, and it won’t hurt so much. Grg;

b) with the formant -k-: čiulkė: A dish made of pounded hemp, bread, and apples is called čiulkė J; čiulkis ‘pounded dish’ Rt; čiulkinys ‘pounded mash (usually potatoes, sometimes mixed—with hemp or peas, and also groats or oat flour)’ Trk, Šlv, Vl, Šk, Vlky, Kps, Smn, Vp, Msn, Dkk, Ds, Kp, Lnkv; ‘clump, lump’: You pound the mash, and I’ll roll out the pancakes. Jd. They tangled my hank of wool into a lump—impossible to spin; pound the mash figuratively ‘to dash up and down (of mosquitoes swarming); to jump’ Krš, Krkl, Škn, Km; čiulkynė ‘a dish of pounded hemp, bread, and peas; pounded mash’ Krš, Krkl; čiulkinė ‘pounded potato mash’ Gly; čiulkinas ‘clod, lump’ Rs; figuratively ‘a tiny insect, gnat’ Sv; čiulkinis ‘čiulškis’ Vkš; čiulškis ‘a certain equine ailment in which awns collect behind the teeth, irritating them and preventing the animal from eating’ End; čiulku interjection ‘describing beating, kneading, or scraping’: The old woman beat the flax, čiulku čiulku. rš; čiulkti ‘to pound, rub’: In the evenings mosquitoes buzz around, čiulkinę čiulkia Glv. You shouldn’t have taken the mittens; now you have to čiulkinę čiulkt (=rub your hands) Šk.

In all these words, the root čiul- expresses the meaning ‘to pound, rub’. This root is also found in several other Eastern Dzūkian words:

a) with the formant -č-: čiulčis ~ čiulčis ‘pounded dish’ Prng, Tvr; čiulcinys ~ čiulčinyš ‘pounded dish’ Tvr, Dkšt, Švnč;

b) without formants: čiūlė ~ čiūlė ‘a lump of dough, porridge, or snow’ Tvr, Dsn, Dglš, Vdš, Prng, Plš, Švnč, Ml; čiūlėti ~ čiūlėti ‘to squeeze, knead, chew’ Dglš, Rš, Švnč: Squeeze yourself a lump of porridge and eat it Ck.

It may also be added that Volume II of the “Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language” likewise gives these Eastern Dzūkian words in forms with restored č: čiulčis, čiūlė, čiūlėti (čiulcinys ~ čiulčinyš is known only from additions to the card index).

Some words with the root čiul- also mean ‘to suck, to nurse’, for example: čiulčė (čiulėlė, čiuliūkas, čiuliūtė) ‘pacifier’, čiulénti ‘to suck’, čiulkti ‘to suckle’: The lamb sucks and sucks at the teat like a ram Šk. With the determinatives -m-, -n-, and -p-, almost only this meaning is attested, for example: čiulmikas ‘pacifier’, čiulmyti ‘to suck, suckle’, čiulnėnti ‘to suck’, čiulpti, and so on. The two meanings are related, but the primary meaning is ‘to pound, rub’. This may be attested to indirectly by two facts. First, there are words with this root that have both meanings, for example, čiulkė ‘pounded mash’ and ‘pipe’, čiulkinys ‘pounded mash’ and ‘pacifier’, but the second meaning is derived, narrower, and less prominent. Second, the word grūsti itself also has the derived meaning ‘to suck, suckle’, for example: The lambs keep suckling the ewe Plv. The calf is like a colt; it’ll suck the cow dry Plv.⁵

Semantically, we can compare the word čiulčienė with other names for pounded foods, such as: grūšlys, grūštienė, kruštienė, krušinys, and others.

⁵ This meaning is not represented in Volume III of the “Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language” because of the limited scope of the card-index material—there is only one sentence: The calf keeps kneading the udder but still cannot get any milk Gs, which is listed under the meaning ‘to strike’. Incidentally, this meaning is illustrated by only two examples: the one just mentioned, which has been misunderstood, and another: That’s how the children pound on the door Vrn.

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Having established the basic form čiulčienė, we can easily explain the neighboring form čilčienė as well. Čiulčienė: čilčienė = čiulbėti Prng, Plš: čilbėti Švnč, Klt, Krd, Mlt, Ds, Grv; čiulbutė: čiulbutė Rš; čiulvuoti: čiulvuoti Tvr, Ml; čiulpti: čilpti Jnšk; čiupinėti: čipinėti Ds, Jnšk; čiupnoti: čipnoti Slnt; čiupryna: čipryna Jž, Smal, Klov, Skp. We see that i in place of the literary-language iu also occurs in those localities (Tvr, Rš, Švnč) where the form čilčienė is used. Of course, complete overlap in distribution (and for all words) cannot be expected, since iu: i is not a rule, but a tendency. It may also be added that both variants of the word under consideration occur even in the very same localities—Dkšt, Dglš, Lkm, Ml, Švnč.

That čilčienė is a phonetic variant of čiulčienės, and not vice versa, is also shown by the fact that Lithuanian has no words with the root čil- meaning stuffing or trampling that cannot be linked to words with the identical or semantically related root čiul-; thus, they are variants of this root. For example: čilčiokas 1. “something tangled; a wad”: The tow became tangled into clumps Yl. 2. “a certain ailment of horses; čiulškis”: Do not give horses barley chaff, or they will get čilčiokas Grg, cf. čiulčiokas || čiulčekas: 1. “Oh, you’re a poor spinner: you’ve made all the wool into lumps” Slk. 2. Eating barley chaff causes čiulčiokai to form in a horse’s teeth End; čiulkšnoti “to chew something hard to bite through,” cf. čiulkšnoti “to smack one’s lips”; čiūkinti “to cut with a blunt tool; to rub, wear down,” cf. čiulkšis 1. “pacifier,” 2. “a certain ailment of horses”; čilinti “to rub, chafe, wear down; to sharpen”: The girl cut through the cord with a small iron blade and freed the little billy goat Rš, cf. čiulinti 1. “to suckle, rouse a child (by drawing air into the mouth with the lips)”: Mother is soothing the child with her lips Žb, 2. “to rub, scrub, clean, polish”: Your suit has already been well rubbed down (=worn out, rubbed) Žb. Even if they tidied up before the holidays, they live like a pig in a sty Vj.

Thus, this analysis shows that the basic form can be reconstructed with complete confidence as čilčienė by including it in the broader group of related words (čiulkė, čiulkinys, čiulčis, čiulčinys,...). As for the suffix -ienė, it should be said that it is used interchangeably with -ienis; for example, both occur in Tvr, Ml, and Dglš. The suffix -ienė is preferred because it is more common in the literary language. The forms činčielius, činčielius, činčielis are phonetic alterations of forms with the root čiul-⁶, cf. čiunkė: čiulkė, čiunkinys: čiulkinys, čiunkų: čiulkų, čiunkti: čiulkti and so on; only a change—n: l—occurs through dissimilation in the suffix as well. These too are used interchangeably; for example: Dglš—čilčienis and činčielis, Prng—čilčienis and čiunčielius, Dkšt—čilčienė and činčielius.

All variants of the word čilčienė could be connected by cross-references in the following lexicographic chain: čilčienis see čilčienė see čiulčienė; činčielis see činčielius see čiunčielius see čiulčienė; čiulčienis see čiulčienė; likewise—čiulčis see čiulčinys see čiulčienė. In addition, čiulčienė could also be linked with closer synonyms: čiulkinys, čiulkynė, čiulkė, čiulkis.

Similarly, by linking words etymologically, we could explain more specific linguistic facts. Volume II of the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language contains two words: čiunkūčiai ‘small gnats (mosquitoes, flies)’ Š and čiunkūtis ‘mosquito, gnat’ Tvr. Of course, in the Dzūkian dialect these words are pronounced identically, but reconstructed differently. The literary-language form should be čiunkūtis, cf. čiulkīnas ‘a small insect, gnat’ Sv, and also čiulkinti (čiunkinti) ‘to thrust, cram’.

⁶ For more on the l: n alternation, see Jan Otrębski, Gramatyka języka litewskiego, I, Warszawa, 1958, p. 332.

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The word to spin thinly “to spin finely”: She spins the thread as thin as a strand Vlk, to spin out Rod could be linked to to economize “to be very sparing”: I economized all winter, and it was barely enough Pnd. We just managed to scrape by on the feed An. In this way, the word to spin thinly ~ člpinti would not remain an isolated representative of the root čil-p-, but would be included in a broader group of related words. The word to economize has a similar meaning to čiulkinti, cf.: When whitening the gruel, women pour it sparingly (=pouring it thinly, begrudging the milk), whereas men pour it lavishly (=pouring the milk thickly) Vlk (J. Balč). This word can explain the questionable word čiulkinti, which the informant explains as “to spin,” while Volume II of the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language gives “to spin with a sound” (apparently associating it with the interjection čili (n)). The semantic relationship of the words čiulkinti: čil-kinti is the same as that of the words čiulpinti: čilpinti.

ON THE QUESTION OF ADAPTING SOME LEXICAL DIALECTISMS INTO THE LITERARY LANGUAGE

Й. КЛИМАВИЧЮС

A b s t r a c t

Transposing lexical dialect words into the literary language sometimes presents considerable difficulties. Applying the dialect’s phonetic laws is not sufficient: it may yield double or triple forms. In such cases, information about the word’s geographical distribution and etymologically linking the dialect form with other words in the literary language and other dialects can help. This analysis is illustrated in the present article by a fairly striking example.

In the dialect of the eastern Dzūkai, a name is used for a dish—a mash of pounded potatoes, tolokno—which occurs in the variants: ciulčienė, ciulčienis, cilčienė, cilčienis, ciunčiėlius, cincėlius, cincėlis. The academic “Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language” gives three transposed forms: cicėnė, čiulčienė and tilitienis. We demonstrate that only the second variant—čiulčienė (Dzūkian s~č)—is correct. First, the third variant is entirely impossible (с~t), since this form is also found in the eastern Dzūkai area where there is no с < t (only с < č). Second, these forms can be reliably linked etymologically with other words in the literary language and other dialects that are identical or close in meaning: čiulkītņys, čiulkis, čiulkė, čiulkti... The forms čilčienė and čiunčielius are phonetic transformations.

The article also briefly mentions the transposition of the Dzūkian words ciunkučiai and čilpinti.