History of Latvian language 09-HJŁ-FŁ-11

Baltic languages and their membership in the IE language family, the oldest Latvian texts, the first Latvian dictionaries and grammars, language changes from XVI to XIX cent.

Module learning aims

The most ancient history of the Baltic tribes, their material and spiritual culture from the point of linguistics; the development of the Latvian language from XVI to XIX cent.

Major

Philology - Latvian Philology

Cycle of studies

1st cycle

Module type

compulsory

Year of studies (where relevant)

Year 3

Learning outcomes

Student can the methods of historical linguistics (external and internal reconstruction); knows what linguistic analysis says about the past.
- determine the degree of kinship between the Baltic languages, their internal division. Baltic languages as a branch of the IE language family.
- replace the most important works of the Old Latvian period and characterize them in terms of phonetics, morphology and dialectology (Enchiridion from 1586, Mancelius, Elgers, Reiters, Evangelia Toto Anno).
- identify the most important differences between the Old and New Latvian period (e.g. loss of some postpositional cases, changes in Latvian noun declension and vocabulary).
- enumerate some examples of foreign language influences (Finno-Ugric, Old Russian and German) in Latvian.
- list the oldest Latvian grammars and dictionaries, and characterize them (Adolphi, Lange, Depkin).

Assessment criteria

Receving a credit for a class on the basis of report and passing test.

Bibliography

Pjetro Umberto Dini. 2000. Baltu valodas. Rīga.
Sabine Jordan. 1995. Niederdeutsches im Lettischen. Bielefeld
Arturs Ozols. 1965. Veclatviešu rakstu valoda. Rīga.

Additional information

Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system:

Description of 09-HJŁ-FŁ-11 in USOSweb