Correlation of short and full forms of adjectives in the modern Slovenian literary language in journalistic texts (based on the materials of the Gigafida 2.0 corpus)

Komarova Ksenia Igorevna Postgraduate student, Department of Slovenian Philology, M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University 119991, Russia, Moskovskaya oblast', g. Moscow, Leninskie gory, 1 str. 51 xenia.komarova@gmail.com Other publications by this author

In modern literary Slovene, the category of certainty/uncertainty is expressed by contrasting short and full forms of adjectives. These forms of expression of the category are codified and go back to the common Slavic opposition of short and full forms of adjectives, which was lost in the Slovenian language as a result of contraction, differences remained only in masculine forms in the nominative and accusative singular cases (and in the accusative case only when expressing inanimation).

In the Slovenian language, three main groups of adjectives can be distinguished by the presence/absence of short and full forms: 1. adjectives with only a short form (possessive adjectives in –ov/ev, –in); 2. adjectives with only a full form (adjectives in –ji, –nji, –ski, –ški, –čki, adjectives levi, desni, pravi, obči, mali); 3. adjectives with a short and full form (for example, lep – lepi). A similar division of adjectives is presented in the “Slovenian Grammar” of 1956 ^[1]. J. Toporisic proposed dividing adjectives into only two categories – definite and indefinite, among the indefinite, in addition to the above forms (only with a short form), he distinguished adjectives having both forms (lep – lepi) ^[2].

In modern research on Slovenistics, special attention is paid to the question of the similarity of the functions of a certain article in Western European languages and a certain adjective form in Slovene. For example, F. Lipovshek emphasizes that qualitative adjectives have a high degree of correlation with a certain article in the English language, because they are used in the same cases as the English definite article: to denote the defining function of an adjective; to express the certainty of the entire nominal group (when repeated in the text, emphasizing uniqueness and specificity feature and object) ^[3]. Relative adjectives denote uncertainty, but most often the uncertainty depends on the context: an adjective describes an object that occurs for the first time in the text; IG denotes a whole class of objects, that is, it is used in a general sense ^[3].

In the study, it seems important to analyze the use of short and full forms of adjectives in journalistic texts and determine whether the functions of short and full forms of adjectives are similar to the definite and indefinite article in Western European languages. To do this, we turned to the corpus of the written standard Slovenian language Gigafida 2.0 ^[4] – the corpus includes 1.2 million words from newspapers, magazines, school textbooks, highly specialized texts, texts published on the Internet, fiction, etc.

For the analysis, we selected four pairs of adjectives: nov / novi, star / stari, m lad / mladi. We have considered all pairs of short and full adjectives in the nominative and accusative cases. To work, it is necessary to analyze the differences between the two functions of adjectives – in the position of the subject and in the position of the complement; and also to determine the influence of context on the choice of the adjective form. To address these issues, we randomly selected 100 examples for each form of adjectives (1200 examples in total).

The frequency of use of the forms nov / novi, star / stari, mlad / mladi in the nominative case is reflected in the following table:

The full form of the adjective novi is used 2.4 times more often than the short form, and is mainly found in journalistic texts. On the contrary, the full form of the adjective stari is used 1.5 times less often than the short form, while the short form is most often found in journalistic texts. Probably, the more frequent use of the short form star is due to the fact that star is used when expressing age (star je ... let). The full form of the adjective mladi is used 1.9 times more often than the short form, and is also found most often in journalistic texts.

The short form of the adjective nov is primarily used to denote some new phenomenon that has not yet occurred in the past (93 examples in total), for example: Pred desetletjem smo jugoslavanske osebne izkaznice in potne liste menjali za dokumente na slovenskih obrazcih, vsem najbrž ni še uspelo urediti niti tega, ko je izšel nov zakon o osebni izkaznici, kaj kmalu pa so začeli veljati novi, spet rdeči potni listi, ki bodo dosedanje dokončno nadomestili 5. avgusta. (Ten years ago, we changed Yugoslav passports and foreign passports to Slovenian-style documents, probably not everyone managed to do this when the new passport law came out, and soon new, red passports began to operate, which will finally be replaced on August 5.) In this example, we are talking about the new passport law that was adopted in Slovenia after the breakup of Yugoslavia. In the following example, we see a similar moment – a new building will be built, not yet specified: Na istem mestu naj bi bil zgrajen nov, večnamenski športno-rekreativni dom z dvema telovadnicama, s klubskimi prostori, s sejno sobo, s fitnesom in savno ter ustreznim številom primernih garderob s sanitarijami in tuši (On the same a new multifunctional sports and wellness complex with two halls, club rooms, a conference room, a fitness room, a sauna and a sufficient number of changing rooms, toilets and a shower will be built on the site). Such use of the short form of the adjective correlates with the use of the indefinite article in Western European languages, which also serves to designate a new object in speech or text.

The short form nov is also found in combinations such as "new day", "new way", "new time" to denote a fundamentally new and unique phenomenon (7 examples in total): Že v 12. stoletju je nov način razumevanja prizora sodbe nadomestil starega (Already in the 12th century a new way of understanding the court scene replaced the old one); in nov dan je bil kot naročen za potovanje (and the new day was supposedly intended for travel); da je jutri nov dan in priložnost za nove zmage (that tomorrow will be a new day and an opportunity for new victories); pred nami je nov čas... (before us is a new time...).

There was also a case of using the short form of an adjective with the adverb čisto, which indicates the maximum degree of the attribute expressed by the adjective: če je čisto nov del neke serije v Ameriki predvajan recimo vsak torek zvečer, je še isto noče dosegljiv tudi na spletu (if a new episode of some TV series in America, say, comes out every Tuesday evening, then at night it will already be available on the Internet).

The full form of the adjective novi is used in cases where the object has already been mentioned in the text or is familiar to readers, all the examples we have considered (100 examples) confirm this use: Pri motornem dobavitelju Mercedesu so prav tako zaorali novo ledino. [...] Poleg tega so z novimi materiali in elektroniko uspeli zvišati največje število vrtljajev in zmogljivosti motorja povečati za približno 3 odstotke. [... Novi motor serije FO110M je dobil tudi drugačen izpuh... (The Mercedes engine manufacturer has reached a new level. [...] In addition, with the help of new materials and electronics, they managed to increase the number of revolutions and increase the engine power by 3%. [...] The new FO110M series engine also received a different exhaust...). In this example, we are talking about a specific engine of a certain series, which was previously tested. When the object is mentioned again in the text, the full form of the adjective is also used: Ministri so danes razpravljali tudi o novem programu za spodbujanje mobilnost v izobraževanju, ki ima delovno ime Erasmus za vse. Novi program naj bi zagotavljal širše možnost... (The ministers discussed today a new program to increase mobility in education, the working title of which is "Erasmus for all". The new program will provide ample opportunities ...). In cases where readers already have an idea about a certain object, the full form of the adjective is used: Letošnji festival v Cannesu 11. maja odpira novi film Woodyja Allen ... (This year the Cannes Film Festival will open a new Woody Allen film on May 11 ...).

The full form of the adjective novi is used in 29 cases in combination with the title of the position and the name, which emphasizes the fame of the person: "Prezgodaj je še za kakršno koli napoved," zatrjuje novi direktor uprave mag. Edvard Lesnik… (“It's too early for any forecast,” says the new director of the mag administration. Edward Lesnik...); Lucijo Larisi pa bo novi šef Tomaš Kos poslal na trening (new head Tomas Kos will send Lucija Larisi to training); zato pa je novi minister za zdravstvo Andrej Bručan že na prvi uradni tiskovni konferenci omenil... (therefore, the new Minister of Health Andrei Bruchan already mentioned at the first press conference ...). In 9 cases, the full form novi is used in combination only with the title of the position, if the name was mentioned in the text before: Letta je pred glasovanjema o zaupnici tudi izrazil prepričanje, [...]. "Pot iz krize pa pelje samo prek sodelovanja in zavedanja odgovornosti," je po poročanju dejal novi premier (Letta before the vote He also expressed his conviction [...]. "It is possible to get out of the crisis only through cooperation and awareness of responsibility," the new prime minister said after the report). The following example is also interesting: Najverjetnejši novi rektor želi veliko pozornosti nameniti kakovostnem razvoju univerze... (The likely new rector wants to pay more attention to the qualitative development of the university ...). The name of the likely rector is not mentioned here, but the most likely candidate for the position, which is familiar to readers, is implied.

The full form is also used in combination with possessive and demonstrative pronouns (3 examples in total), because pronouns also indicate the prominence of the object: Naš novi heroj (our new hero); Že v dobi [cesarja] Karla V. je bil ta novi pojem Evrope [...] v veliki meri domač med izobraženimi... (Already in the era of Emperor Charles V, this new concept was often used among the educated).

The situation is similar with the adjective star / stari. The short form of the adjective star is used to denote an object that was first mentioned in the text or unknown to the reader, or to denote a feature of an object that is not key and does not require special emphasis in the text: Ne glede na to, ali gre za nov, obnovljen ali star objekt, ima lahko nepremičnina določene pomanjkljivosti oziroma napake (Despite the fact that whether it is a new, renovated or old object, the property may have certain disadvantages or flaws); ker star organizem postopoma izgublja sposobnost resorbcije (because the old body is gradually losing its ability to resorption); Na parkirišču za gostilno je star avto brez registrskih tablic... (in the parking lot behind the restaurant is an old car without a registration number...).

In the examples we have considered, we have noted a number of combinations that occur in various texts:

1. star znanec/prijatelj – 10 examples in total: Osumljenec je že njihov star znanec... (the suspect was an old acquaintance of theirs); Cherif, znan po vzdevku Abu Issan, je star znanec policije (Sheriff, known by the nickname Abu Issan, an old acquaintance of the police); Otroci, star prijatelj iz Vesele doline me prosi v pismu za pomoč (children, an old friend from the Merry Valley asks me in a letter for help). In example 3, the short form is probably used because the children did not know the friend. However, in examples 1 and 2 we are talking about famous people, but the short form of the adjective is used. This suggests that such use is sustainable.

2. star rek/izrek/pregovor – 15 examples: star slovenski vremenski pregovor pravi... (the old Slovenian saying about the weather says...); Star izrek pravi... (the old saying says ...). In these cases, it can be assumed that the adjective star itself is not indicative and does not emphasize any special meaning and does not it distinguishes from similar ones, therefore a short form is used.

As already described in the examples of using the short form nov, the short form star is also used in combination with indefinite pronouns, which are markers of uncertainty. With the adjective star – 4 examples: Počutim se kot kak star bend... (I feel like some old band...); se najde kakšen star stol... (there will be some old chair...).

The full form of the adjective stari is also found in situations where it is a question of a specific person or object or, if necessary, to emphasize a certain feature (Nov motocikel za novo tisočletje. Pa spet ne tako zelo spremenjen, da bi stari model postal odpadno železo. – A new motorcycle for the new millennium. But it is not so modified that the old model becomes unnecessary scrap metal; Stari mož na tej sliki... – The old man in this photo ...), however, there are a number of features:

1. The full form of stari is used when describing geographical / historical objects (5 examples): stari mejni prelaz Ljubelj (old Lubel border crossing); saj je stari kontinent s formulo ena že preveč nasičen (after all, the old continent is already fed up with Formula 1); Petru Velikemu se je stari Kremelj zdel mračen (Peter the Great old The Kremlin seemed gloomy);

2. The full form of stari is used in combinations dobri stari (good old) – 2 examples – and novi stari (old new) – 9 examples: med katerimi je najbolj opazen prav dobri stari tvid (among which the good old tweed stands out the most); Novi stari župan Maribora Franc Kangler (the new old mayor of Maribor Franz Kangler); Stari novi srbski predsednik Boris Tadić (old new Serbian President Boris Tadic). In these examples, the use of the full form of the adjective is explained by the stability of the expression.

We observe a similar situation with the forms of the adjective mlad / mladi. At the first mention of a person or an object in the text, a short form is used (Pred njim je stal postaven mlad pastir in se naslanjal na bližnje drevo. – A handsome young shepherd stood in front of him, leaning against a nearby tree); the full form occurs when describing an already familiar object or face (Osemnajstletni M. R. iz Ormoža je z neregistriranim avtom schirocco in brez vozniškega dovoljenja vozil proti križišču z lokalno cesto za naselje Breg... Mladi voznik se je očitno ustrašil posledic in odpeljal, a so ga kmalu izsledili v bližnjem gozdu. – Eighteen-year-old M. R. from Ormozhe without a driver's license was driving an unregistered car and was driving to the intersection with the exit to the side road towards the settlement of Breg... The young driver was probably afraid of the consequences and disappeared, but he was soon found in a nearby forest); the full form is used with the demonstrative pronoun (Ta mladi fant iz Nemčije ima veliko potenciala. – This young guy from Germany has a lot of opportunities); with indefinite pronouns, the short form of the adjective is used (Nek mlad moški s Kosova je na mednarodnem letališču v Frankfurtu streljal na avtobus z ameriškimi vojaki in pri tem ubil dva cloveka, še dva pa huje ranil. – A certain young man from Kosovo at Frankfurt International Airport opened shooting at a bus carrying the American military, two people were killed, two more were seriously injured).

It is important to note that the short forms of adjectives can act as part of the IG in a predicative function. We find similar examples with the adjective star (4 examples: Pa sem star clovek, ki ga uspehi v družbi [...], ne zanimajo več (But I am an old man who is no longer interested in success at work [...]); Ker sem že star upokojenec... (Since I am already an old pensioner...)) and mlad (1 example: Če si danes mlad in če imaš srečo, da kljub pomanjkanju izkušenj vendarle najdeš službo, še ne pomeni, da si na konju. – If you are young today and you are lucky to find a job, despite your lack of experience, this does not mean that you are on a horse).

In addition to the short and full forms of adjectives in the nominative case, we have also considered the forms of the accusative case of the masculine singular in the expression of inanimation in order to trace the peculiarities of the use of short and full forms of adjectives in the position of complement. The frequency of use is reflected in the following table:

According to the table, the short forms nov and star are used more often than the full ones (the nov form is used 5 times more often, and the star form is 1.4 times more often); in the case of the adjective mlad / mladi, the situation is reversed: the full form is used 1.6 times more often than the short one. However, if we compare with the use of the considered forms in the nominative case, then we can notice that the forms of adjectives in the accusative case are used much less often (the exception is nov: in the accusative case, the form occurs 2.7 times more often).

The short form of the adjective nov in the accusative case, as in the nominative case, is used primarily when mentioning an object or person for the first time when the object was previously unknown to the reader: da je prehod na nov režim v Talinu deloval... (that the transition to a new regime in Tallinn worked ...); že pripravljajo material za nov album... (they are already preparing material for a new album...); Prve dni septembra je ekipa RTV Slovenija na rajhenburškem gradu snemala kadre za nov slovenski celo večerni film... (in the first days of September, the RTV Slovenia team shot footage for a new Slovenian feature film in the Reigenburg castle...).

The short form nov is also used in combination with the verbs začeti/pričeti (to start), which also means a new process (only 2 examples): Agencija za radioaktivne odpadke je v ponedeljek, 14. aprila, začela nov projekt... (The Agency for Radioactive Waste on Monday, April 14, launched a new project...); Vernik še vedno lahko prične nov postopek... (Vernik can still start a new process...).

The short form is also used in combination with indefinite pronouns, which are also markers of uncertainty in the text (6 examples in total): Čeprav je veliko oboževalcev čakalo in upalo, kdaj bo posnela tudi kakšen nov material z Black Eyed Peas, pa očitno do tega ne bo prišlo... (Although many fans waited and hoped that she will also shoot some new material with Black Eyed Peas, but obviously this will not happen); Poskušajmo ga navdušiti za kak šport ali nov konjiček ... (let's try to inspire him to some kind of sport or a new hobby ...). Two examples of the use of the short form in combination with the adverb povsem (completely/absolutely), which emphasizes a certain quality, were also noted.: Nova plošča Into Oblivion pomeni povsem nov nivo... (the new album Into Oblivion marks a completely new level...); bodo trgu ponudili povsem nov kompakten model (a completely new compact model will be offered to the market ...).

It is also interesting to note that the short form of the adjective nov is often used in ad texts in combination with the verbs kupiti (buy) / prodati (sell): Prodam nov pleten koš... (I will sell a new wicker basket...); Kupim ... hladilnik ..., nov ali rabljen (I will buy ... a refrigerator ..., new or used). In the case of the verb kupiti, the short form is used because it is not about a specific refrigerator, and in the case of the verb prodati, the short form signals that the reader is not familiar with the subject.

The full form of novi is also used in texts when expressing certainty and concreteness: V Nemčiji že sprejemajo naročila za novi audi S4 cabrio... (Orders for a new Audi S4 cabrio are already being accepted in Germany...); Clani ruske Komunistične partije (KP) so obsodili novi film o pustolovskem arheologu Indiani Jonesu... (Members of the Russian Communist Party a new film about the adventurer, archaeologist Indiana Jones was condemned...). In these examples, readers are informed about specific/specific subjects that readers are already familiar with. In the example Kupila sem namreč novi avtomobil, zato je treba urediti vse potrebne papirje (I bought a new car, so I need to issue all the necessary documents...), the object is also specified – the object is familiar to the speaker.

The full form is also used in combination with demonstrative and possessive pronouns (18 examples in total): Priznan glasbenik Gal Gjurin bo v petek, 15. aprila, v Novi Gorici predstavil svoj novi album Duša in telo... (Recognized musician Gal Gyurin on Friday, April 15, in Novaya Gorica will present his new album “Soul and the body”...); Da bi staršem podrobno predstavili ta novi način osnovnega šolanja... (To introduce this new type of primary education to parents...).

The short form of the adjective star is used when the sign being expressed is not important and is not significant for the whole combination: Doma imam star motocikel ... (I have an old motorcycle at home ...); ko so v cerkvi našli star hlevček ... (when a small old stable was found in the church ...).

The short form is also used when it comes to an object that does not stand out from among similar objects: Ljudje zbiramo vse mogoče, [...] slike, star denar, znamke... (People collect everything they can, [...] paintings, old money, stamps...); učenci še vedno zbirajo star papir... (students are still collecting waste paper...).

The full form of the adjective stari is standardly used to denote an object or phenomenon already known to the speaker and readers/listeners: Vrnili smo se na stari sistem vadbe... (We returned to the old training system...); ga bodo popravili in mu vrnili stari sijaj (its (decoration) will be repaired and restored to its former luster).

The full form is also used with demonstrative and possessive pronouns (18 examples in total): Če ste močno navezani na svoj stari nakit... (If you are strongly attached to your old decoration ...); gre za isti stari boj za privileges ... (we are talking about the same old struggle for privileges ...).

The stari form is also used in 23 cases when naming geographical objects and describing historical concepts, expressing their certainty: Že 6. leto zapored bo organizirana Kolesarska dirka na Stari vrh (For the sixth year in a row, a bicycle race to the Old Top will be organized); ki so že navzven prestavljale stari fevdalni sistem (which represented the old feudal system).

In the case of the adjective mlad / mladi, the short and full form in most cases turns out to be interchangeable – in a similar context, both the short and full form of the adjective can be used, for example: Pripravimo solato: v posodi skuhamo mlad krompir, ki naj ostane še nekoliko čvrst. – Prepare a salad: in a saucepan, boil new potatoes, which it should stay a little undercooked. / Mladi krompir oščetkajte in operite ter ga narežite na tanjša kolesca. – Peel the new potatoes, rinse and cut into thin circles. // Poleg tega okusnega prigrizka ponudimo kislo smetano ali mlad sirček in kruh. – In addition to this delicious snack, serve sour cream or young cheese and bread. / Če kdaj kaj ostane, naredi skuto, smetano ali mladi sir. – If there is anything left, make cottage cheese, cream or young cheese. Probably, the use of both forms of adjectives in similar situations is more related to the choice and presentation of the communicant himself.

Thus, adjectives in the nominative case are used in writing much more often than in the accusative (330.225 and 180.615 times, respectively). The use of short and full forms of adjectives in both cases correlates with the functions of articles in Western European languages. The choice of the article in Western European languages depends on the context: the indefinite article is used at the first mention of an object in the text, it signals to the reader that you need to be more attentive to the text, because the information is new.

We accept the terminology proposed by K.G. Krushelnitskaya ^[5] and use the concepts of "given" and "new": "given" is known information, "new" is new information. In Slovene, we see the same influence of context on the choice of adjective form in both nominative and accusative cases. Full forms serve to express an already known object, to denote its definiteness and concreteness – the "given". The short form of adjectives expresses the uncertainty of the subject, does not distinguish it from other similar subjects and emphasizes the insignificance of the attribute – "new".

In both cases under consideration, the full form of the adjective was used in combination with possessive and demonstrative pronouns, short forms – in stable combinations (with verbs kupiti/prodati/začeti, with adverbs povsem/čisto, etc.). The cases of the use of short and full forms of adjectives described by us in the Slovenian language correlate with the functions of adjectives proposed by J. Toporishich ^[6], which is confirmed in our work by the typical use of short and full forms, depending on the context and composition of the IG.