H.C. von der Gabelentz, At odds with the Cyrillic alphabet?

Activity: Talk or presentation types › Oral presentation

Description

Abstract: Gabelentz at odds with Cyrillics

When the interpretation of an unfamiliar sound is transcribed by a fieldworker, the task maybe seen as overpowering. When an astute linguist is faced with transliteration, the task can also be quite a challenge.

An analysis must be made for any divergence from the original. H.C.von der Gabelentz (1838–1839) does statistics on the use of hard and soft signs following, for example, the letter “n”. In fact he discerns that a soft n is most frequently used in a genitive function, and yet he chooses to disregard this accurate analysis.

When the letters representing two sounds in the modern written Erzya language are mistaken by him as one letter, he sets up a rule to explain when the letter is pronounced /ju/ and when /jo/.

This presentation will discuss how well Gabelentz’s calculations illustrated the situation.
Period25 Aug 2022
Event titleCongressus XIII Internationalis Fenno-Ugristarum
Event typeConference
LocationVienna, AustriaShow on map
Degree of RecognitionInternational

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