Writer Evgeny Vodolazkin recently announced the completion of competition on replacement of the word “reception”. The contest he announced on July 6, the Day of the Russian language. “Every year on the birthday of Pushkin, largely shaped our modern literary language, I was trying to think of words in Russian, like as not. More precisely, they are, but have such an unattractive appearance that they do not want to say,” explains Vodolazkin.
Photo: life.amur.info / Vasily Romanenkov
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According to him, most often it concerns abbreviations and borrowing. For example, “aftershock” (aftershocks of the earth’s crust after the earthquake) Vodolazkin proposes to replace “positraction”. But what to do with the word “reception” is not clear yet. This noun seems to the writer unattractive, it hears “unreasonably long hiss”, and the pronunciation can cause depression.
Opposers of the “reception” was a lot. On a competition readers responded willingly and sent more than fifty options. Among them gostepriimny, santovenia, vstrechennye, Rossellini and privateline. Privateline, by the way, was included in the “top ten” — the shortlist from which in the end will choose the final option.
The idea of Eugene Vodolazkin is not so, relatively speaking, to replace the rubbers with this monster high heel, that is, to come up with as many Russians as possible replacements for foreign words (short-list, for example, is the word “reception”), and to adapt borrowing to the Russian language, replace the “ugly” words more familiar and cute.
If you ride the bus
Language substitution is trying to do the speakers of different languages. Try — because it works well not always. To dictate what sort of language is very difficult, regardless of who dictates the people or officials.
In Lithuania, inventing new words is handled by a special linguistic Commission. Officials consulted with specialists, and together they try to find the English to the Lithuanian counterparts. For example, to the “selfie” came up with a word that sounds like “usmanali” — picture of yourself (a native Russian language at the time offered a “selfie”). However, to make the new terms replaced the old, — the task is sometimes daunting. One day the Lithuanian state language Commission has proposed to replace the word “trolley” (troleibusas) velabrukis.
But if you ride the bus, imagine that he suddenly turned into something else, quite difficult. That is why the initiative, local residents say, has not caused nothing but jokes. And as the trolley was a trolley, and it still is.
The struggle against anglicisms (in some cases very successful) has always been known and France. In the 60-ies of the journalists were fined for using English words, and “domestic” equivalents to anglicisms, the French actively come up with so far.
Marianna Taymanova
Translator from French Marianne taymanova lists some of the most successful replacements:
to network, networking réseauter, réseautage
to download from the Internet — telecharger
digital – numérique
software — logiciel
walkman — baladeur
global — mondial
checker — consulter
smartphone is téléphone intelligent
Marianna taymanova recalls one of the most famous examples is the attempt to replace the word “email” a French analogue courriel. This change is often imposed by officials, she recalls. And to the people the word in the end did not matter. It can be found in official documents or in the speech of people who want to emphasize their negative attitude to the domination of anglicisms.
According to Timakovoy, interestingly, to language substitution is now inclined to a greater extent in Canada than France. In the canadian French-speaking community you can meet such changes: for example, the smartphone is téléphone intelligent or la course instead of jogging.
When creativity is successful, the word goes to the people
“In the Finnish language instead of reception the word is used vastaanotto, which means “place where the staff takes customers”, — says a teacher of the Finnish language Risto Koivisto , adding: — But now we practice is changing, more and more used English words. It seems to me that reception is used quite often”.
The Finnish language in its relation to the international vocabulary is somewhat similar in French. In French and in Finnish there is no “computer”, and there are ordinateur and tietokone (“knowledge machine”).
Risto Koivisto
“We use to create new words derivational suffixes and prefixes, says Risto Koivisto. — In the XIX century, when Finland became part of Russia and we separated from Sweden, for the Finns it became very important to develop your language. Had to create a huge number of new words. This was done, in particular, the Finnish linguist Elias lönnrot. He used all their imagination to come up with names for new plants or birds. And now these words are used very actively. Then all that was connected with the rise of self-consciousness”.
According to this principle, for example, formed the Finnish word “pension”: the verb “to live” (elää) added the suffix-ke — eläke happened. And the word “science” (tiede) the Finns are bound to the verb tietää (to know) and the suffix -de (tie is a road).
Experts say that this method of creating new words is very important: they are simply easier to remember. This is the Finnish way to resist the domination of anglicisms.
According to Koivisto, the Finns still create new words using different prefixes and suffixes. Sometimes creativity is good, and the word goes to the people. Recently, however, resist anglicisms is becoming increasingly difficult. How to replace the verb “to tweet” or think of a Finnish equivalent to English live stream (video stream in social networks)? Have to say — livestriimi. Russian speakers in this case, use the verb “to stream”, as the Finns say “minä striimaan” “I I often stream”.
“We actually have for this special Finnish phrase, says Koivisto — it sounds like “reaaliaikainen suoratoisto” (a direct repeat in real time). But it’s too awkward!”
“Our language will become one word better”
The creators of the worthy replacement of the “reception” will go down in history as lavatory, writes on the contest page Eugene Vodolazkin. “Well, the main prize will be shared by the rest of our language will become one word is better,” he notes, and calls the invention of new words “by offering the Alexander”.
Mikhail Epstein
The creation of words as a kind of language, “tax”, a way to make something in language, that is used every day, this approach professes famous lavatories, linguist Mikhail Epstein. However, he believes that to invent new Russian words, it is important not to get rid of the “ugly” English, but simply in order to live, do not freeze. “As far as the population feels the will and desire to live, so feels it and language,” he says. That is why the words are important rather the process, not the result.
In other words, the moment of invention “privately” and “rosellinia” is much more important and interesting than whether they will be fixed in the speech. And them can stay and the reception — the language will decide.