Microsyntax in Russian phraseology
- Authors: Baranov A.N1, Dobrovol’skij D.O1,2
-
Affiliations:
- Vinogradov Russian Language Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences
- Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences
- Issue: No 5 (2025)
- Pages: 30–43
- Section: Special issue in memory of Leonid L. Iomdin
- URL: https://journals.rcsi.science/0373-658X/article/view/309285
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.31857/0373-658X.2025.4.30-43
- ID: 309285
Open Access
Access granted
Subscription Access
Abstract
The article examines the semantics and derivational history of reduplicated idioms vot-vot (lit. ‘here-here’), ni-ni (lit. ‘no-no’) and t’fu-t’fu (lit. ‘fie-fie’). In spite of the formal transparency of reduplicated idioms, their semantics is unpredictable and specific for every unit. In addition, their origin cannot be reduced to a single algorithm. The semantics of the idiom vot-vot is based on the reduplication of the deictic gesture, which, in the process of semantic evolution, has moved from spatial to temporal domain. In the next step of semantic development, the idiom vot-vot obtained the function of agreement. In contrast, the reduplicated idiom ni-ni inherited the idea of negation from the single ni, and is not related to deixis. The idiom t’fu-t’fu appears to go back to the gesture of folk magic to protect from evil, which differs significantly in function from the gesture of discontent, contempt, or indifference that accompanies the interjection t’fu. The specific features of the genesis of reduplicated idioms have a direct impact on their actual meanings.
Keywords
About the authors
A. N Baranov
Vinogradov Russian Language Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences
Email: baranov_anatoly@hotmail.com
Moscow, Russia
D. O Dobrovol’skij
Vinogradov Russian Language Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences; Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences
Email: dobrovolskij@gmail.com
Moscow, Russia; Moscow, Russia
References
- Apresjan Yu. D., Boguslavsky I. M., Iomdin L. L., Sannikov V. Z. Teoreticheskie problemy russkogo sintaksisa: vzaimodeistvie grammatiki i slovarya
- Baranov A. N., Dobrovol’skij D. O. (eds.). Akademicheskii slovar’ russkoi frazeologii
- Baranov A. N. Vvedenie v prikladnuyu lingvistiku
- Baranov A. N., Dobrovol’skij D. O. Aspekty teorii frazeologii
- Baranov A. N., Dobrovol’skij D. O. Osnovy frazeologii (kratkii kurs)
- Baranov A. N., Dobrovol’skij D. O. Idiomaticity of reduplicated forms. Voprosy Jazykoznanija, 2019, 6: 51–67.
- Baranov A. N., Dobrovol’skij D. O. Discursive practices in the dynamics of the system of Russian phraseology: A case of constructional phrasemes. Vestnik of Saint Petersburg University. Language and Literature, 2024, 21(3): 655–667.
- Baranov A. N., Voznesenskaya M. M., Dobrovol’skij D. O., Kiseleva K. L., Kozerenko A. D., Sharapova E. V. Russian idioms in dynamics: Sources and preliminary results. Russian Language and Linguistic Theory, 2024, 2: 185–213.
- Dobrovol’skij D. O., Levontina I. B. Modal particles and the actualization of forgotten details (based on the data of parallel corpora). Computational Linguistics and Intellectual Technologies. Papers from the Annual International Conference “Dialogue 2015”. Vol. 1: Main conference program, 14(21): 106–117.
- Iomdin L. L. Čitat’ ne čital, no…: On a Russian construction with repeated lexical elements. Computational Linguistics and Intellectual Technologies. Papers from the annual international conference “Dialogue 2013”. Vol. 1: Main conference program, 12(19): 309–322.
- Levkievskaya E. E. Slavyanskii obereg. Semantika i struktura
- Evgen’eva A. P. (ed.). Slovar’ russkogo yazyka
- Russian National Corpus. http://www.ruscorpora.ru.
- Reformatsky A. A., Kaushansky M. M. Tekhnicheskaya redaktsiya knigi: Teoriya i metodika raboty
- Shvedova N. Yu. (ed.). Tolkovyi slovar’ russkogo yazyka s vklyucheniem svedenii o proiskhozhdenii slov
- Anderson 1971 — Anderson J. M. The grammar of case: Towards a localistic theory. London; New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1971.
- Benveniste 1962 — Benveniste Е. Les niveaux de l’analyse linguistique. Preprints of papers for the Ninth International Congress of Linguists. Cambridge (MA), 1962, 266–274.
- Foucault 1971 — Foucault M. L’Ordre du discours. Paris: Gallimard, 1971.
- Miller 1974 — Miller J. A localist account of the dative case in Russian. Slavic transformational syntax. Brecht R. D., Chvany C. V. (eds.). Ann Arbor: Michigan Slavic Publications, 1974.
