DISKRIMINACIJA lietuvių kalboje ir kultūroje

Irena SmetonIenė. Discrimination in Lithuanian Language and Culture 33 IRENA SMETONIENĖ Vilniaus universitetas Institute of Applied Linguistics Lietuvių kalbos katedra orCID id: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5165-8078 DIRECTIONS OF STUDY: rhetoric, stylistics, norm theory and history, cultural linguistics. DoI: https://doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2024.97.02 DISCRIMINATION IN LITHUANIA And in Culture ESMINIAI ŽODŽIAI: diskriminacija, suvaržymas, teisių apribojimas, menkinimas, humiliation, bullying, discord, language. annotaCJa The article, following the methodology of the Lublin ethnolinguistic school, examines what the term discrimination means to Lithuanians. The study is based on Lithuanian lexicographic data, material from various texts, results of a youth survey. The aim is to see what Lithuanians think when they use the lexicon discrimination in speech or writing, what new nuances of meaning emerge in context. based on data from all three domains, the synthetic analysis provides a cognitive definition of the concept. aBStraCt Following the methodology of the Lublin School of ethnolinguistics, the article focuses on the concept of discrimination, examining it in terms of what it means to Lithuanians. the study is based on Lithuanian lexicographic data, material from various texts, and the results of a young people’s survey. the aim is to identify what Lithuanians think when they use the lexeme discrimination in speech or writing and what new shades of meaning emerge in the context. Based on data from all three levels, a cognitive definition of the concept is provided in the synthetic analysis. INTRODUCTION Discrimination is a multifaceted problem, which can be examined in several sections: external and internal; negative and positive; open and hidden; institutional and structural; direct and indirect or specific discrimination (sex, 34 General Language | 97 discrimination on grounds of race, nationality, citizenship, language, descent, social status, religion, belief or opinion, age, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity, religion). Research on the phenomenon of discrimination, covering both the perception and recognition of discrimination, is a rapidly expanding field of research in Lithuania. These studies are of interest to researchers from various fields and often have an interdisciplinary nature, combining the efforts of lawyers, sociologists, psychologists and other scientists to understand the peculiarities and prevalence of discrimination in society (Janušauskienė 2019). The researchers themselves acknowledge that the meanings of the terms used in the studies are subjectively interpreted by each respondent. There is no clear, universal content, and it may differ due to the concepts used in everyday speech, the social significance assigned to individual categories in society (Beresnevičiūtė, Leončikas 2009: 336). It should be noted that linguistic discrimination has not been examined, so this article is the first attempt to find out what the concept really means to a person, what associations arise when he hears the word, according to the “Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia” (VLee), it is used in several contexts, therefore defined kodėl renkasi vartoti būtent jį. Žodis diskriminacija yra kilęs iš lotynų kalbos ir reiškia ‘atskyrimas’. Kaip differently. In one case, discrimination against the state and its citizens (external discrimination). In the first case, discrimination is the restriction or nacija susijusi su asmenimis (vidinė diskriminacija), kitu – su tam tikra deprivation of rights to a certain category of persons on the basis of sex, race, skin color, nationality, language, religious or political beliefs, property status or other characteristics. such discrimination is called negative discrimination. Most often described as restriction of the rights of a person or group of persons (change of legal position) without an objectively justifiable basis. Extreme forms of negative discrimination (apartheid, genocide) are considered international crimes under international law. The principle of non-discrimination is enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights of 1950 (Lithuania ratified it in 1995), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women of 1979 (Lithuania ratified it in 1994). in authoritarian, totalitarian states, negative discrimination is a common phenomenon. The term positive discrimination is also used to indicate that legal norms are applied differentially to persons or groups of persons with the same characteristics in order to achieve positive, socially significant goals. Positive discrimination increases the legal protection of individuals or groups of individuals who are unable to guarantee their rights (disabled persons, children, national minorities). Irena SmetonIenė. Discrimination in the Lithuanian language and culture 35 In other cases, discrimination is also the application of measures by which a State or several States restrict the rights of a State, its representatives, legal entities and natural persons. The discriminated state, in order to protect its sovereignty and to force respect for the rights and legitimate interests guaranteed by international law, usually undertakes to influence another state or group of states to cease discriminatory practices, unfriendly actions (VLee). The “Encyclopedic Dictionary of Political Science” (PmeŽ) states that there can be open or hidden discrimination. For example, open discrimination against women in many states of the Middle East. Hidden discrimination is more difficult to identify. Unequal levels of education, income, political representation, living standards or criminal convictions are often used as indicators of hidden discrimination. There is still discrimination against women in the labour market: their average wages worldwide, including in rich Western democracies, are considerably lower than those of men. the extent and nature often depends on the traditions and culture of the society, as well as on the period. During the Soviet era, discrimination against those who did not support the Soviet regime, otherwise – those who did not comply with the principles of Soviet ideology, such as believers, prevailed in Lithuania. After the restoration of independence, most of the discussions in Lithuanian society are about specific forms of discrimination: discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation, disability, age, social status. In addition to the concepts of discrimination, the words persecution, harassment and hate crimes are used. The concept of discrimination is changing and expanding. The Equal Opportunities Act, adopted in 2008, added new grounds of discrimination – nationality, language, social status – to the previously defined grounds of discrimination (gender, age, race, ethnicity, faith, beliefs or religion and sexual orientation). In 2008, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a directive providing protection against discrimination on grounds of age, disability, sexual orientation and religion or belief outside the workplace (Beresnevičiūtė, Leončikas 2009: 335). In popular usage and public discourse in Lithuania, the term discrimination is not clear and established, sometimes used indefinitely in order to name any manifestations of implied unfair behaviour and intolerance. Discrimination is sometimes referred to as intolerant statements against a group in public discourse, which in legal terms would qualify as incitement to intolerance (see also 336). For example, when discrimination has many points of contact, rie mokslininkai diskriminacijai priskiria mobingą. teigiama, kad mobingas because mobbing is called discrimination. This article was prepared on the 36 General KaLBa | 97 criminalizing relationship in the work environment. The person who experiences mobbing also experiences discrimination, and by highlighting the discriminatory aspect, the concept of mobbing is expanded (Vveinhardt 2012). According to the 2022 report of the Office of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman, according to the characteristics of the personal identity, due to which persons may have encountered discrimination, gender (22% of all requests), disability (21%) and age (7%) were the most distinguished. Together, adding inquiries and complaints on the grounds of possible discrimination on the grounds of race, nationality, citizenship, language, origin and ethnicity, their number reaches 10%. On 10 December 2020, the Minister of Social Protection and Labour approved the Action Plan for Promoting Non-Discrimination 2021-2023. Therefore, many efforts are being made to prevent discrimination, both by public authorities and by various organisations. basis of the material of the project “Analysis of the concepts of Democracy, Patriotism, Tolerance and their antonyms and synonyms” funded by the State Lithuanian Language Commission. The aim of the article is to investigate what the term discrimination means in Lithuanian language and culture, following the methodology of the Lublin School of Ethnolinguistics. 1) to investigate the data of Lithuanian lexicographical sources in this regard; 2) discuss the results of the student survey – how young people imagine the meaning of this concept; 3) to describe the meaning and nuances of the concept in various texts; 4) define the cognitive definition of the concept. The study applies the method of cognitive definition, as understood by the founders of the Lublin School of Ethnolinguistics. 1. DISCRIMINATION IN THE LEXICON The lexical meaning of the word analyzed in the Lithuanian Language Dictionary (LKŽe) is ‘restriction of someone’s rights, deprivation of equal rights’, it is noted that it is an international word, and only one example is given, but not from the living language: Racial discrimination. The “Dictionary of Contemporary Lithuanian Language” (DLKŽ8e) refers to ‘restriction or deprivation of rights’ and gives the same example. 1) ‘the reduction or withdrawal of rights of a certain category of persons on the basis of any characteristics’; 2) ‘obstruction by one State of another State, its organisations, its representatives in exercising their rights, maintaining relations on an equal basis with other States’; 3) ‘discrimination against persons on any grounds whatsoever’: Racial [sexual, Irena SmetonIenė. Diskriminacija lietuvių kalboje ir kultūroje 37 skyrimas, organizmo gebėjimas atskirai suvokti 2 vienodus dirginimus, kurie vienu metu veikia gretimus taškus’. „Bendrinės lietuvių kalbos žodyne“ (BLKŽ) laikomasi LKŽe ir DLKŽ8e reikšmės apibūdinimo ‘teisių apribojimas ar atėmimas tam tikrai kategorijai political] discrimination. Comparing with the “Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia” nimo diskriminacija darbe. Seminare kalbėjome apie diskriminaciją dėl amžiaus. and the “Political Science Encyclopedia Dictionary” it is clear that the LKŽ, DLKŽ8e and BLKŽ probably talk about internal discrimination. the meaning is too general to be understood otherwise. In the examples of the BLKŽ it is somewhat specified that discrimination can be not only racial but also sexual, due to age, can occur at work. tZM not only shows that there can be internal and external discrimination, but also provides a definition of the word used in the natural sciences, not only in social sciences. The purpose of this article is not to compare how discrimination was defined in previous dictionaries, but it can be noted that in the 2001 edition of Valerija Vaitkevičiūtė’s “International Dictionary of Words” discrimination is defined somewhat differently: 1. ‘reduction or deprivation of rights of persons or categories of persons on grounds of race, language, religion or political belief, national or social origin, property or birth’; 2. ‘measures by which a State or an association of States reduces the rights of a State, its representatives or its citizens’; 3. šnek. ‘unequal treatment of people’; 4. economic price discrimination: ‘the setting of different prices for identical products to different groups of consumers’. Here the first and second meanings are the same as VLee, but here the meaning of the spoken language is given, which is still relevant today. The fourth meaning is taken from another area of life – the economy. This suggests that when interpreting the word discrimination, it is necessary to take into account the context, the different meanings should be reflected in surveys and texts. The verb to discriminate does not add to or expand the meaning. LKŽe does not provide such a verb, DLKŽ8e defines this action as ‘to apply to whom the rights of private horse breeders. The employee was discriminated against on the basis of religion. Examples show diskriminaciją’, BLKŽ – ‘nesuteikti (kam) lygių teisių, skirtingai vertinti, taikyti diskriminaciją’: Diskriminuoti moteris. Šis įsakymas diskriminuoja that discrimination is not limited to religion, age or religion. tŽŽ defines the verb much more abstractly than the nounpagrindu ar darbe (kaip teigta diskriminacijos pavyzdžiuose), bet su šiuo reiškiniu susiduria moterys, gyvūnų augintojai, diskriminuojama gali būti dį: ‘taikyti kam nors diskriminaciją, neduoti lygių teisių; skirti, skirtingai 38 General KaLBa | 97 used, the third meaning of discrimination. Some dictionaries choose to present the objects of discrimination through traktuoti, blogiau negu su kitais elgtis’. Iš apibrėžties matyti, kad nusakant veiksmažodžio reikšmę jau nekalbama apie siaurą, tik tam tikroje srityje examples (BLKŽ), others choose the most general meaning (DLKŽ8e), so a apibendrinant trumpą sisteminių duomenų analizę galima teigti, kad detailed study is very useful, because it will highlight what a person thinks when he uses the word discrimination, what it contains. 2. DISCRIMINATION – JAUNIMO POŽIŪris is not concerned with whether students feel discrimination or were discriminated in 2022-2023 in the Faculties of Philology, nuojami, šia apklausa siekta sužinoti, kaip diskriminaciją apibūdina VU Philosophy, History, Communication, Medicine, Mathematics, Physics, Law, Natural Sciences. According to the methodology, the survey should be conducted live, not online, to highlight the first impulse, so the faculties and the university were selected, whose students are taught by the author of the article herself. respondents were asked one question specified in the methodology – What is discrimination for me? 105 students answered the question. After processing the collected material according to the methodology of the Lublin School of Ethnolinguistics, it became clear that the largest descriptors are restriction, limitation, violation of rights (36 %), different evaluation of persons (15 %), denigration (9 %), humiliation (8 %), contempt (8 %), oppression (5 %), exclusion (5 %), negative, unfavorable attitude (4 %), hatred (4 %), rejection (4 %). Intolerance, expression of negative influence, inappropriate behaviour, different behaviour, ignoring, psychological violence, inequality, racism, anger, nonsense, mentioned once each, do not exceed the 4 percent limit. As can be seen, the term discrimination is most often associated with restriction, limitation, violation of individual rights: Discrimination is a violation of human rights. Discrimination may be based on age, gender, race, disability, etc. In one questionnaire, these three aspects are commented, where discrimination occurs, what are the consequences: Discrimination in Lithuania is often encountered in employment relations, when the employer discriminates against employees of the same rank, education, qualification, for example, a woman performing the same job function and having the same education is paid less than a man. Irena SmetonIenė. Discrimination in Lithuanian language and culture 39 lower salary than a man. The most cases of discrimination are in the banking system, where women earn 40 per cent less than men. In the international arena, Lithuania lags behind in the context of human rights because of the legalization of same-sex marriage or civil partnership. Homosexuals are discriminated against and do not have the same rights as heterosexuals. Without the opportunity to legalize their marriage, this part of society has less social protection and guarantees than people of traditional orientation. One can sympathize, not sympathize, support or not support homosexual relationships, but in the legal sense this group of society is discriminated against, thus violating the European Convention on Human Rights, which results in lost cases at the European Court of Human Rights. so most students understand discrimination as it is presented in VLee when it comes to internal discrimination. Different assessment, taking into account their race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and other distinctive features that Kiti deskriptoriai vienaip ar kitaip susiję su didžiausiu, nes asmenų skirtingas vertinimas taip pat susijęs su teisių apribojimu ar suvaržymu: asmedistinguish them from other persons, is not based on abstract criteria, but on discrimination manifested in a specific society: according to specific criteria, tis tarptautiniais bei nacionaliniais aktais. Kai kuriuose atsakymuose rašoma persons divided into social groups are treated differently, unequally, compared with other persons living in that society, who do not belong to this group, and this differentiation manifests itself as conditions under which the rights of discriminated persons are restricted, violated, created, and fewer opportunities provided. There are many criteria for the formation of these groups – gender, race, age, nationality, political or religious views and other beliefs, sexual orientation, social status, etc., and their existence depends on state policy, the activities of the legislative power, as well as on the awareness of society and its specific members, and on ingrained stereotypes. In this case, attention is drawn to the fact that people in the same society are discriminated against, and this depends not only on the activities of the authorities, but also on the lack of awareness of the members of that society. This descriptor also includes the understanding that discrimination is a negative, unfavorable attitude towards a person due to his race, gender, religion, nationality, age and other characteristics. As can be seen from the descriptors, some respondents describe discrimination as if from the position of the discriminated person, because the discriminated person feels degraded, humiliated, despised, oppressed: these are actions when a person is oppressed, degraded or otherwise deprived of opportunities in various activities due to certain physiological or other characteristics; discrimination I understand as the oppression of a certain group of people or person and certain powers 40 General Language | 97 Mybies deprivation. Discriminated people face difficulties in order to improve, use opportunities; denigration of a certain group of people due to certain of their characteristics; manifests itself in the denigration, humiliation of a certain group of people or a person belonging to a certain group of people, making them feel inferior to other persons; is an attack on the dignity of a person on account of his or her origin, sexual orientation or other personal characteristics. Students note that the discriminated against is always distinguished from others: the exclusion of a certain group of people from another group of people. A group can be distinguished based on various criteria: by race (African Americans, Balkans, Europeans, Asians, etc.), by age (young, old), by gender (female, male), etc. One questionnaire states that people who do not fit in with others are excluded, stand out in something: Exclusion of other people, showing that they are not like "everyone else" and being presented as not fitting in certain spheres or in society. more than one questionnaire indicates that discrimination is caused by differences that divide society, forcing its members to support one or another position: For me, discrimination is associated with certain differences. No matter what the basis of discrimination is, it always stems from certain obvious differences: black – white, woman – man, eaten – not eaten, etc. In the world, this problem is very acute in every country on various grounds – race, gender, ethnic group, skin color, political group, etc. This structure, if it can be called so, divides society into certain parts and forces people to take a certain position. However, the differences between people, in the view of the students, are natural, discrimination begins when the rights and opportunities of those excluded persons are restricted: Because the diversity of people is great, people are naturally divided according to their nationality, race, color, citizenship, beliefs, opinions, faith, sexual orientation, language and other grounds. The division itself is not considered discrimination, as it is a natural phenomenon. However, cases where, taking into account such groups of people, some are humiliated in certain cases, they are given fewer rights, opportunities to participate in social, political, cultural, social, scientific and other activities – this is already discrimination. 4 percent of respondents believe that discrimination is best described as unacceptable or less valued by the people because of race, religion, political views on certain issues, language, nationality; hatred of speech and actions; it is humiliation, injustice; it's deliberate hatred, džiai neapykanta, atstūmimas: asmuo, kitų asmenų yra atstumiamas, atrodo much more widespread than we think. The extreme form of discrimination – racism – was also mentioned: for me, discrimination is associated with racism, which is its most ugly form. Irena SmetonIenė. Discrimination in Lithuanian language and culture In 41 responses, positive discrimination was also mentioned several times: in a positive sense, it means that a certain group of people is granted privileges; positive discrimination, which exists for noble purposes, in order to satisfy the public interest, of a certain part of the society that is more vulnerable and sensitive to protection, for example, benefits for certain social groups (discounts on urban public transport for students, pensioners). but the subject of discrimination is not developed. It is noteworthy that none of the answers refers to external discrimination, although it is still relevant today. Probably, modern youth thinks most about themselves, their place in society, their relationship with other members of society, and in addition, articles about internal discrimination problems are constantly appearing in the media, so it is not so easy to break out of this social bubble. By the way, in Lithuanian dictionaries, except for etc., external discrimination is not mentioned either. Young people understand discrimination very broadly: from restriction of rights to hatred, that is, they also include in the concept that which is not characteristic of the meanings of the lexicon presented in lexicographic sources, but, as mentioned in the introduction, such an understanding of the concept is characteristic of our society – discrimination is everything that is opposite to tolerance. 3. DISCRIMINATION IN MEDIA TEXT According to the methodology, such a study consists of three parts: systemic data, survey and various texts (S-a-t). Usually, the analysis of texts takes up most of the space and begins with the discussion of folklore data, creating a textbook of individual discourses. Unfortunately, when studying social concepts, such a variety of texts is not available, so the textbook was compiled from media (online news portals) by searching by keywords. In total, 231 cases of use of the term were collected, selected non-repetitive cases were discussed. When the selected examples are put together, it is clear that they can be presented according to profiles that will form the basis of the cognitive definition. 3.1. rights restriction, limitation, violation, rejection This concept of the concept is recorded in lexicographic sources, youth opinions, impose their will atsakymuose. medijų pavyzdžiuose toks sąvokos turinys taip pat patvirtinamas, tik čia geriausia skirti suvaržymų formas: 48 BenDrInė KaLBa | 97 kitokie nei visi. mokiniai ne tik kenčia nuo kitų mokinių, bet ir jaučia mokytojų galios demonstravimą (jie gali įsakinėti, bausti, nepaisyti kitų and opinion on students, evaluate students based on subjective criteria), ne tik atsižvelgdami į jų sugebėjimus, žinias, bet ir į asmenybę, spręsti apie prejudiced negative attitudes against some students – quieter, poor or expressing a different opinion than the teacher (Jonynienė 2008), and all this includes in answering the question whether they feel discrimination in school. Discrimination = discord The word discrimination regularly becomes a tool for inciting discord between the Poles and Lithuanians of the Vilnius region. it has to do with the desire of some politicians to score points in elections or the desire of officials to play the victim and thus get extra money. hatred flared up again after a report prepared on the initiative of the association “Wspolnota Polska” in cooperation with the Union of Poles in Lithuania and the Association of Teachers of Polish Schools in Lithuania, as well as V. Tomaszewski’s complaint to the European Court of Human Rights. The politician claims to be discriminated against on grounds of nationality (36), while the Polish Union and the Teachers’ Association, which participated in the report, complain of discrimination in all areas (37). Lithuanians do not agree with such complaints and give the opposite examples, that in Vilnius region it is not Poles, but Lithuanians who are discriminated against, because the latter’s needs are ignored (38), Lithuanian schools are weakened, not Polish ones (39), and the peaceful youth camp in Dieveniškės is called fascist, not to mention that V. Tomaševskis calls on Lithuanians to integrate into the Polish community (40) and the whole situation reminds of the saying “one beats, one screams”. this accusation of discrimination leads to discord and provides a perfect opportunity for hostile forces to destabilise the situation. 36. Mr Tamoševskis felt discriminated against on grounds of nationality: he appealed to the ECtHR and recalled the words of Mr Valinskas. (https://www.lrytas.lt/lietuvosdiena/kriminalai/2023/12/27/ tuvo-gala-29766425) 37. Lenkų mažumos padėtis Lietuvoje kelia didelį susirūpinimą. Lenkų mažuma yra news/girto-lietuvio-mercedes-benz-polskios-greitkelyje-rezesi-i-salt-barstymas) the efforts to establish Polish as an auxiliary language in the public sphere are fruitless; oficia liuose dokumentuose negali būti rašomi lenkiškais rašmenimis; gatvių užrašuose draudžiama naudoti lenkiškus vietovardžių pavadinimus. Tai tik keletas paPolish names of pupils illustrating the extent of violations of the rights of the Polish minority in Lithuania. (https://www.tv3.lt/naujiena/lietuva/wspolnota-polska-lenkai-lietuvoje-diskriminuojami-svietimo-identiteto-ir-turtiniais-aspektais-atnaujinta-11-30-n578349) Irena SmetonIenė. Discrimination in Lithuanian language and culture 49 especially in Vilnius district, where Lithuanian needs are ignored. (https://www.delfi.lt/ 38. Prisiminęs pastaruoju metu viešojoje erdvėje eskaluojamą diskriminacijos tautiniu pagrindu temą, G. Kazėnas tvirtino, kad tikrąją diskriminaciją galima pamatyti yra-tiesiogine-diskriminacija-tautiniu-pagrindu.d?id=83337053) 39. Lithuanian schools in news/daily/lithuania/prabilo-kiti-vilniaus-r-politikai-cia-iskylancios-problemosVilnius County complain of discrimination. The district authorities took some of their money and gave it to Polish schools. (https://www.tv3.lt/naujiena/ lietuva/salcininkuose-lietuviskos-skolyklos-skundziasi-diskriminacija-n192453) 40. The camp held in Dieveniškės was called fascist, inciting discord between nations. There were newspapers that managed to write that the camp had been told that ginama susidoroti su kitataučiais. O štai Valdemaras Tomaševskis garsiai skelbia, Lithuanians, not Poles, should be integrated in Vilnius region. I think it would be very appropriate to conclude by saying that the real discriminators are not the ones who are shouted at and called discriminators, but those who simply blame others for everything. (https://www.15min. lt/ikrauk/naujiena/svarbu/nuomone-tai-kas-kursto-tautine-nesanti-nuotraukos-515-256711?utm_medium=copied) The investigation by IŠVaDoS revealed that: 1. Lithuanian lexicographic sources (LKŽe, DLKŽ8e and BLKŽ) talk about internal discrimination, but it is only visible in the youth survey and in media texts, i.e., external discrimination is not present in people’s consciousness at the time of the study or it is not relevant. International dictionaries of words provide more meanings, the former correlate with the “Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia” and the “Encyclopedic Dictionary of Political Science”, thus, they provide both internal and external meanings of discrimination, in addition, tŽZ shows that the researched concept expands from the political and social sphere to others (biology, economics), spreads also in colloquial language. 2.Young people understand discrimination very broadly: from the restriction of rights to hatred, that is, they include in the concept also that which is not characteristic of the meanings of the lexicon presented in lexicographic sources, but, as mentioned in the introduction, such an understanding of the concept is characteristic of our society – discrimination is everything that is opposite to tolerance. Today’s media talk about specific restrictions of rights, which are emphasized in VLee and Vaitkevičiūtė’s dictionary: age, disability, gender, social status, profession, language, nationality, race, political views. Whatever the specific form of discrimination, they are united by a common idea – it is restriction, limitation, rejection. It can be said that discrimination is becoming a fashionable word and is difficult to explain without context. 50 General KaLBa | 97 kinnama, because, for example, the perception of this concept among children correlates with the responses of young people, but expands even more – it is bullying and humiliation experienced in the school environment (both students and teachers), mocking of health problems, children feel rejected because of the parents’ wealth, nationality, sexual orientation, etc. 4.As mentioned in the introduction, scholars argue that there is no clear, universal content of the concept of discrimination, it depends on the researcher, the material and the personal perception of the person. based on S-a-t analysis it can be said that today discrimination – kieno nors teisių apribojimas, suvaržymas, pažeidimas; – asmenų skirtingas vertinimas; for Lithuanians is: – denigration, humiliation, contempt, oppression, hatred, rejection, bullying of persons; – nesantaikos pagrindas. ŠaLtInIaI BLKŽ – Bendrinės lietuvių kalbos žodynas, vyr. red. D. Liutkevičienė, Vilnius: Lietuvių kalbos institutas, 2013–2023. Prieiga internete: https://ekalba.lt/ bendrines-lietuviu-kalbos-zodynas/ [žiūrėta 2023-03-15]. DLKŽ8e – Dabartinės lietuvių kalbos žodynas (internetinis), vyr. red. S. Keinys, 8-as patais ir papild. leid., Vilnius: Lietuvių kalbos institutas, 2021. Prieiga internete: https://ekalba.lt/dabartines-lietuviu-kalbos-zodynas/. LKŽe – Lietuvių kalbos žodynas, 1–20 (1941–2002), red. kolegija G. naktinienė, J. Paulauskas, r. Petrokienė, V. Vitkauskas, J. Zabarskaitė, vyr. red. G. naktinienė, e. variantas, Vilnius: Lietuvių kalbos institutas, 2008 (atnaujinta versija, 2018). Prieiga internete: https://ekalba.lt/lietuviu-kalbos-zodynas. PmeŽ – Politikos mokslų enciklopedinis žodynas, ats. red. a. Jankauskas, Vilnius: Vilniaus universiteto leidykla, 2007. tŽŽ – Tarptautinių žodžių žodynas, redaktorių taryba a. Kaulakienė, S. Keinys, B. Kurkulis, V. račiūnaitė, V. Žalkauskas, Vilnius: alma littera, 2013. Vaitkevičiūtė Valerija, 2001: Tarptautinių žodžių žodynas, Vilnius: Žodynas. VLEe – Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija (elektroninis variantas), Vilnius: mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos centras. Prieiga internete: https://www.vle.lt/ [žiūrėta 2023-04-06]. alfa.lt anyksta.lt delfi.lt lrytas.lt lrt.lt Irena SmetonIenė. Diskriminacija lietuvių kalboje ir kultūroje 51 m.kaunodiena.lt mlaikas.lt sekunde.lt tv3.lt universitetozurnalistas.kf.vu.lt ziniuradijas.lt 15min.lt LIteratŪra Beresnevičiūtė Vida, Leončikas tadas 2009: Diskriminacijos suvokimas Lietuvos visuomenėje. – Filosofija. Sociologija 20(4), 335–343. Janušauskienė Diana 2019: Diskriminacijos suvokimas ir požiūris į lygių galimybių principo užtikrinimą Lietuvoje. – Filosofija. Sociologija 30(2), 100–107. Jonynienė Živilė 2008: Vaiko teisių įgyvendinimas: mokyklos demokratėjimo rodiklis. – Socialinis darbas 8(2), 51–64. mikulionienė Sarmitė 2008: Diskriminacija dėl amžiaus: samprata, raiškos formos ir sritys. – Socialinis darbas 7(1), 11–18. okunevičiūtė-neverauskienė Laima 2011: Diskriminacijos apraiškos: aktuali būklė bei tendencijos antidiskriminacijos srityje Lietuvoje. – Filosofija. Sociologija 22(2), 115–128. Valentinavičius Vytautas (sud.) 2010: Diskriminacija aukštajame moksle: lengva teoriškai, sudėtinga įgyvendinti. Vilnius. Vveinhardt Jolita 2012: Identification of the reliability of methodological characteristics of quality in the diagnostic instrument for mobbing as discrimination in employee relations on purpose to improve the climate in Lithuanian organizations. – Transformations in business and economics 11(2), 218–232. Gauta 2024-04-14 Adopted 2024-05-27 IRENA SMETONIENĖ DISCRIMINATION IN THE LITHUANIAN LANGUAGE AND CULTURE Summary the word discrimination comes from Latin and means ‘distinction’. It is used in several contexts and is defined differently. In one case, it refers to individuals (in- 52 BendrInė KaLBa | 97 ternal discrimination) and in another to a particular state and its citizens (external discrimination). In popular usage and public discourse in Lithuania, the term discrimination is not clear and well-established, and is sometimes used indefinitely to refer to any manifestation of perceived unfair treatment and intolerance. Some Lithuanian dictionaries (the Dictionary of Standard Lithuanian Language, BLKŽ) choose to give examples of the objects of discrimination, while others use the most general meaning (the academic Dictionary of Lithuanian, DLKŽ). Young people have a very broad understanding of discrimination, ranging from the restriction of rights to hatred, which means that they include in the concept what is not typical of the lexicographic meanings of the lexeme, and this understanding of the concept is typical of our society - discrimination is everything that is against tolerance. the analysis of media texts has highlighted the main profiles of the concept: restriction, limitation, violation, rejection; bullying, humiliation; discord. It should be noted that children’s understanding of discrimination is much broader than that provided in the dictionaries. the content of the concept includes everything that hurts them: when their family or appearance is mocked, when they are envied, how children who dress poorly and unfashionably, or who hail from rural areas, or are overweight, or struggle academically, or lack hygiene, or are different from their peers, are treated. Students not only endure mistreatment from their peers but also perceive a display of authority from their teachers. researchers argue that there is no clear, universal definition of discrimination; rather, it depends on the researcher, the material, and the individual’s personal perception. Based on the analysis, it can be concluded that discrimination in Lithuania today includes: – restriction, limitation, and violation of someone’s rights. – differential treatment of individuals. – undermining, humiliation, contempt, oppression, hatred, rejection, and bullying. – the basis for discord. KEYWORDS: discrimination, restriction, limitation of rights, belittling, humiliation, bullying, discord, language. Irena SmetonIenė Vilniaus universitetas Lietuvių kalbos katedra Universiteto g. 5, Vilnius [email protected] Irena SmetonIenė. Discrimination in Lithuanian Language and Culture 53 IRENA SMETONIENĖ DISCRIMINATION IN LITHUANIAN LANGUAGE AND CULTURE Summary The word discrimination comes from Latin and means ‘separation’. It is used in several contexts and therefore defined differently. In one case, it concerns individuals (internal discrimination), in the other, it concerns a particular State and its citizens (external discrimination). In popular usage and public discourse in Lithuania, the term discrimination is not clear and established, sometimes used indefinitely in order to name any manifestations of implied unfair behaviour and intolerance. Some Lithuanian dictionaries choose to present the objects of discrimination through examples (BLKŽ), others choose the most general meaning (DLKŽ8e). Young people understand discrimination very broadly: from the restriction of rights to hatred, that is, they include in the concept also that which is not characteristic of the meanings of the lexicon presented in lexicographic sources, such an understanding of the concept is characteristic of our society – discrimination is everything that is opposite to tolerance. analysis of media texts highlighted the main profiles of the concept: restriction, limitation, violation, rejection; bullying, humiliation; Discord. It should be noted that children understand discrimination much more broadly than dictionaries provide. Children include in the content of the concept everything that hurts them: when the family is ridiculed, the appearance, jealousy of someone, how to deal with those who dress ugly and unfashionably or are from the countryside, who are fat, who are poor at school, do not observe hygiene, with those who are different from everyone else. students not only suffer from other students, but also feel the demonstration of the power of teachers. scientists argue that there is no clear, universal content of the concept of discrimination, it depends on the researcher, the material and the personal perception of a person. Based on the analysis, it can be said that today discrimination for Lithuanians is: – kieno nors teisių apribojimas, suvaržymas, pažeidimas; – asmenų skirtingas vertinimas; – denigration, humiliation, contempt, oppression, hatred, rejection, bullying of persons; – nesantaikos pagrindas. ESMINIAI ŽODŽIAI: diskriminacija, suvaržymas, teisių apribojimas, menkinimas, humiliation, bullying, discord. Irena SmetonIenė Vilniaus universitetas Lietuvių kalbos katedra Universiteto g. 5, Vilnius [email protected]