Tvaroslovná norma a kodifikační autorita

Author(s): Pavel Sojka / Language(s): Czech Issue: 4/2019

Since the first edition of the Rules of Czech Orthography in 1902, this reference book has become the official source of both orthographic and morphological codification. However, there are many other widely acknowledged reference books that contradict the Rules in regard to some morphological points. This paper suggests that we should abandon the tradition of considering the Rules to be the cornerstone of Standard Czech morphology by replacing it with a more up-to-date and user-friendly book, namely the Academic Vade Mecum of the Czech Language published in 2014.

Gramatika a sémiotika podle S. K. Šaumjana

Author(s): Martin Charvát / Language(s): Czech Issue: 4/2019

Review of the book Janečka, Martin (2017): S. K. Šaumjan: Sémiotické pojetí gramatiky. České Budějovice: Jihočeská univerzita v Českých Budějovicích.

Jelínkovy memoáry

Author(s): Jana Čerminová / Language(s): Czech Issue: 4/2019

Review of the book Jelínek, Milan (2018): Memoáry 1942–1971 (Od okupace do okupace). Brno: Moravské zemské muzeum.

Časopis Český jazyk a literatura, ročníky 65–69

Author(s): Robert Adam / Language(s): Czech Issue: 4/2019

Ke slovu vězenkyně

Author(s): Martin Beneš / Language(s): Czech Issue: 5/2019

The paper begins by documenting the surprisingly frequent occurrence of the Czech non-codified form vězenkyně (a variant of the codified form vězenkyně), showing that the ratio of these two forms in 4,225- billion-word corpus SYN v7 is about 3:1 (ARF = 2.6:1) in favor of the codified form vězenkyně (Section 1). Given this background, it further addresses the question of why the non-codified form vězenkyně actually occurs and why it is spreading (Section 2), then undertakes the question of (how to determine) its normativity or correctness (Section 3.1) and finally comments on the procedure of its possible codification (Section 3.2). The paper concludes with a sketch of an answer to the question of the correctness of form vězenkyně for language counselling purposes and argues that this currently non-codified form should not be treated as incorrect (Section 4).

Z dopisů jazykové poradně

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): Czech Issue: 5/2019

This article shows the answers of the language counselling center of the Institute of the Czech language of Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic on the question on the historical pronunciation of the consonants l and r.

Předmět gramatického výzkumu a jeho závislost na teoretickém rámci

Author(s): Jan Chromý / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

The paper discusses problems which stem from the following question: what is the goal of grammatical research of a certain language? Three main problems are uncovered: (1) the “grammatical system” is a theoretically bounded construct, (2) various approaches differ in what they account for and what they leave out of the description and (3) certain research methods are often cannot be directly linked to a particular theoretical framework, which is related to the problem of the “conversion rules” between the results and the theory and may also lead to a change in the framework under the influence of the method. Based on these problems, three questions are raised: (1) what is the best solution to these problems (provided there is one), (2) are these problems principal or temporary and (3) do we really need to look for a solution to these problems while doing grammatical research. The paper tries to find an answer to these questions and argues that the current diversity of approaches and aims in the research of language and its use is universally beneficial.

Kategorizace v lingvistice: spiritus agens nového poznání?

Author(s): Jan Křivan / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

The paper deals with (meta)linguistic categorization and its role in linguistic/grammatical research. Following the presentation of the starting point on how to assess distinct categorizations, it is shown how the absence or presence of theoretical positions on categorization in languages (structuralism, generativism, usage-based approaches) affects linguistic descriptions, and examples of inconsistencies are also presented. Subsequently, it is suggested a new categorization perspective can be used to overcome existing categorizations. The paper also presents the position that the study of language concerns causal processes applied in multiple frames and concludes that doing distinct and compatible categorizations can truly serve as a spiritus agens of new findings in linguistics.

Proč (někdy) nemíchat texty aneb Text jako možná výchozí jednotka lingvistické analýzy

Author(s): Radek Čech,Pavel Kosek,Ján Mačutek,Olga Navrátilová / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

The paper deals with two important questions in linguistic research: 1) What do we actually model when we model language usage? and 2) What is an appropriate sample or ‘text unit’ for the analysis of language usage? In the beginning, we critically discuss several approaches to the analysis of language behaviour. Then, we introduce the most important characteristics of both Zipf’s linguistic theory and synergetic linguistics. We focus in particular on the aspects of these theories which are connected to the above-mentioned questions. Specifically, we emphasize that one of the fundamental features of these theories is the assumption that there are linguistic laws which govern human language behaviour and which can be best detected by observing the language behaviour of an individual (in a particular context). As a consequence, if the goal of the research is to examine laws of this kind, the individual text is used as a basic unit for the analysis. The mixing of texts can, in some cases, lead to the “concealing” of the laws, as is presented in an example.We also offer another example which shows how characteristics of the same law (in this case, the Menzerath-Altmann law) differ in different texts. Finally, we emphasize that using individual texts in linguistic research is but one possible approach to analysis, i.e. we do not attempt to make ita linguistic research dogma.

Dvě relativizační strategie v češtině: konstrukčněgramatický přístup

Author(s): Mirjam Fried,Karolína Lipská / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

The article presents a constructional analysis of a subgroup of Czech relative clauses (namely,those with the absolutive relativizer co), addressing specifically the question of the presence vs absence of the accusative resumptive pronoun in these clauses. Based on an earlier analysis of relevant corpus data concerning the differences in distribution (Fried, 2010), we now concentrate on the constructional status of these patterns, with partial reference to other subtypes of the absolutive relative clauses. Using the tools of Construction Grammar and exploring the notion of constructional maps, we propose organizing these patterns in a network of related constructions with shared as well as distinct characteristics; the network is further mapped onto a particular functional space. One of the advantages of such a representation consists in its ability to include minority configurations, transitions from one pattern to another, and, in general, any areas of categorial fluidity.

Funkční generativní popis – rámec pro konzistentní popis gramatiky

Author(s): Jarmila Panevová,Eva Hajičová,Václava Kettnerová,Veronika Kolářová,Markéta Lopatková,Marie Mikulová,Magda Ševčíková / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

In the present contribution, the main constitutive features of the Functional Generative Description as proposed by Petr Sgall and his collaborators are introduced together with a brief characterization of selected Czech grammatical phenomena within this framework. These phenomena include above all verbal and nominal valency and related issues and topic-focus articulation, esp.in relation to negation and presupposition. Criteria for the determination of valency members are proposed together with the changes in the valency structure connected with the application of different diatheses and alternations. The role of valency requirements in complex predicates is described and exemplified by means of derived structures. The other phenomenon investigated is connected with reflexive and reciprocal constructions. Furthermore, attention is devoted to the categorization of deletions and the related phenomenon of the general participant, and also to various comparative constructions that are described as constructions with surface deletions.The constructions introduced by the Czech preposition kromě ‘besides/instead of’ are used as an illustration of how their deep representation looks. The main tenets of FGD have been applied,verified and further refined in the Prague Dependency Treebank family and valency lexicons, which are briefly characterized here as well.

Využití Natural Semantic Metalanguage při popisu diskurzních částic: případová studie částice vždyť

Author(s): Tomáš Doischer / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

The meaning of discourse particles is notoriously difficult to describe due to the number of functions each particle can have. In this paper, I present the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM) approach to describing the meaning of discourse particles which has been successfully used over the last decades. Using the example of the dictionary entry of the particle vždyť, I show that a polysemic approach leads to an unsatisfactory linguistic description. I then analyze vždyť using the NSM approach, explaining each step in detail. I arrive at the final monosemic definition and demonstrate on examples that it can serve as an adequate description of the meaning of the expression vždyť. I also examine lexicalized expressions containing (vždyť no vždyť and vždyť jo) and describe their meaning as well. Then, I compare the meaning of vždyť to its synonyms (neboť, však,and přece) and formulate a definition for each of the expressions. Finally, I point out the advantages and disadvantages of NSM for describing discourse particles.

By-fráze v českém participiálním pasivu (cesta k analýze pasiva)

Author(s): Petr Karlík / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

This study discusses the three probably most influential theories of the passive in generative grammar: Chomsky (1957), Jaeggli (1986) and Collins (2005), aiming to evaluate their proposed analyses of the passive structure in terms of their adequacy with regard to the syntactic and semantic properties of the by-phrase in the Czech long passive, i.e. the structure “be – passive participle –DP with instrumental case (= by-phrase)”. It is shown that from this perspective, the most adequate theory of the verbal passive is the one by Collins (2005; 2018b), called “smuggling analysis”. This is because it naturally explains the thematic interpretation of the by-phrase and determines its distribution in the passive structure. The smuggling analysis predicts that the Czech by-phrase(= DP with instrumental case) is the external argument and has the same semantic/thematic interpretation as the [Spec, vP]-argument of the active clause. This theory is entirely consistent with other principles of generative grammar, especially with the UTAH hypothesis (Baker, 1988).

Syncretism in Nanosyntax and three types of passive participles in Czech

Author(s): Pavel Caha,Lucie Taraldsen Medová / Language(s): English Issue: 1-2/2020

Nanosyntax is a relatively new framework of linguistic analysis that originates in the work of Starke (2009; 2018). In this article, we focus on the framework’s ability to deal with syncretism. As a specific case, we analyze passive participles in Czech. Building on Kratzer’s (2000) work, we introduce a three-way ambiguity of the Czech passive participle. The first distinction we make is between stative (adjectival) and eventive (verbal) passives. The second distinction applies within the set of stative participles and divides them into Target-state participles and Resultant-state participles. The latter describe states that hold as a result of some prior event taking place. Target-state participles entail no prior event. The result is a situation where we have three distinct meanings and just a single form (namely the passive participle), which is a situation usually covered by the term syncretism. In the last part, we describe how such a three-way ambiguity can be captured in Nanosyntax.

Instrumentál plurálu – „pádový kámen úrazu“?

Author(s): Pavel Sojka / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

In 1981, four Czech language scholars published a significant paper entitled “The current state and future prospects of Standard Czech codification” in the journal Slovo a slovesnost. The paper contained, among others, a list of non-standard morphological variants that – according to the authors – could or should be included in the Standard Czech codification. In the meantime, some of these proposals have actually been realized. However, according to the authors’ statement, the non-standard -ma variant in the plural of the instrumental case still retained a certain degree of stylistic markedness, even though it was no longer distinctively non-standard. Today, forty years later, we aim to answer the question of to what extent we can still agree with this statement, particularly in spoken journalism.

K existenci nominativních prepozic v češtině

Author(s): Miloslav Vondráček / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

The paper deals with words that precede the noun in the nominative form in Czech. It evaluates them in terms of parts of speech with regard to the functions that these words realize. It focuses on words of non-Czech origin that are classified (more or less traditionally) as nominative prepo¬sitions (kontra, versus, à la, via). It analogously treats other words from Czech which perform similar functions in the sentence. The author poses the question of whether it is theoretically possible for a preposition to be associated with the nominative, to determine it, to demand it. The answer is negative. The author concludes that the contra versus expressions are not preposi¬tions, but conjunctions, and proposes that other verbal forms should be evaluated as particles. Some can be considered text structuring particles (ad, viz ‘see’, srov. ‘cf.’), others prenominative particles (via). The function of these words is to be a signal of nominative for naming, which is effective in communication.

Neekvivalentnost „větných ekvivalentů“

Author(s): Milada Hirschová / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

The article deals with the problems related to phenomenon of so-called sentence equivalents in the description of Czech syntax as well as with the connection of this label to what is termed the sentence-utterance distinction. In the 1970s, this distinction was actively discussed by Czech linguists. The article shows that the acceptance or refusal of this distinction as well as the as¬sumed existence of sentence equivalents (mostly identified with context-dependent constructions without verbs) is anchored in the accepted theoretical concept of the very notion of predication. With certain simplification, predication can be considered either a logical-semantic relationship of a predicate to a subject or a speaker’s pragmatic act of predication. What has been called the sentence equivalent might be related to the latter interpretation. Furthermore, the paper maps the occurrence and explanation of what are posited as sentence equivalents in Czech syntactic scholarly texts and school textbooks. With the exception of the outcome of the Functional Gen¬erative Description (Panevová et al., 2014) where sentence equivalents are explained as a result of ellipsis, the exemplification of the phenomenon elsewhere (especially in school textbooks) is inconsistent and confusing. As a result, the paper suggests that this label should not be used due to its conceptual vagueness.

Výbor z díla Jarmily Panevové

Author(s): Jiří Pergler / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

Review of the book Panevová, Jarmila (2019): Studie z české morfologie a syntaxe: Vybrané stati. Praha: Karolinum.

Z jazykové poradny

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): Czech Issue: 1-2/2020

Distantní asimilace znělosti a signalizace hranice slov v češtině – případ pobočných slabik

Author(s): Magdalena Zíková,Pavel Machač / Language(s): Czech Issue: 3/2020

In our study, we take a closer look at one specific context realization of the liquids [r] and [l], namely their extrasyllabic variant, e.g. rty ‘lips’ or lžíce ‘spoon’. Being relatively rare in Czech and occurring only in the word initial position, extrasyllabic liquids exhibit a rather atypical behavior in at least two respects: (1) they do not follow the standard principles of voicing assimilation in Czech, and (2) they are articulated differently from their syllabic counterparts. A set of constructed sentences rich in the target phenomenon was designed and read by 34 speakers of Czech. Type and voicing of the consonants preceding and following the liquids as well as the preceding word’s status were taken into consideration. Overall, 1,250 items were analyzed. The analysis shows that (1) extrasyllabic liquids exhibit a strong tendency towards distant regressive voicing assimilation, with the obstruent immediately following the extra-syllabic liquid being responsible for the voicing of the obstruent immediately preceding the liquid, e.g.: líbat rty [liːbat r̩ tɪ] vs. pět lžic [pjed lžɪc]; ̩ (2) extrasyllabic liquids are systematically realized with a long initial vocal element, thereby cueing the immediately preceding word boundary, as displayed in different realization of the pair lotr děl [lotr̩ďel] (syllabic realization) vs. Lot rděl [lotərďel] (extrasyllabic realization).