Features of the use of pronouns in Tatar works of the kyssa genre of the second half of the XIX – early XX century

Gilemshin Fler Foatovich ORCID: 0000-0003-1957-5042 PhD in Philology Scientific Associate, Center for Islamic Studies, Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan; leading researcher,  Laboratory of Multivariate Humanitarian Analysis and Cognitive Philology of Kazan Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Docent, the department of Russian and Tatar Languages, Kazan State Medical University 420111, Россия, Республика Татарстан, г. Казань, ул. Баумана, 20, каб. 308 Fler.Gilemshin@yandex.ru Other publications by this author

Tatar literature, like many literatures of the peoples of the world, is characterized by a diversity of genres. A worthy place among them is occupied by the genre of kissa. The works "Kissa-i Yusuf" by Kul Gali, "Kissas al-Anbiya" by Nasruddin Rabguzi and others have been popular among Tatars for a long time. The origins of the kissa genre originate under the influence of Oriental literature. For a long time, the literary fund was enriched with works of this genre.

The works of Kyss were especially widespread in the Tatar literature of the XIX century. It was during this period that translations of the masterpieces of the East appeared – "One Thousand and One Nights" ("Alf layla vayla") by F. Khalidi, "Tutiname" ("Tutyinama") and "Kalila and Dimna" ("Kalila v Dimna") by G. Fayezkhanov, "The Story of Forty Vezirs" ("Kyryk vazir kyissasy") and "Abugalisina" ("Abugalisina kyissasy") K. Nasyri, etc. These literary works have become the object of our present research.

 The language of these works is distinguished by a mixed format, in which the forms of folk-spoken and written literary language are intertwined. The study of the linguistic features of these works makes it possible to identify the specifics of the formation of the modern Tatar literary language. Since the language of Kyss's works is narrative in nature, they pay a lot of attention to descriptions of various situations and the desire of translators to avoid repetition in the text forced them to use a wide range of pronouns.

A pronoun is a part of speech that includes words that indicate objects, signs, quantities, or the order of the account, but do not name them [3:215].

The purpose of our research is to show the peculiarities of the use of personal and interrogative pronouns in the works of the kissa genre.

Personal pronouns in the studied texts are expressed actively and differ in phonetic variability. For example, the pronoun I of the singular person ‘I’ is transmitted by the forms b?n, m?n and m i n. The parallel use of two or three forms in the language of one work can be explained by the writer's desire to find the most suitable form close to the vernacular language. In the texts of the Tatar translation of the fairy tales "One Thousand and One Nights", the synchronous functioning of the forms b?n and m?n is observed: balalar en m?n k?b qajyda... [8:4] ‘I am very worried about the children...’; ?f?ndem, b?n any ni?ek tabyb kiter?jem? [8:6] ‘My lord, how can I find him?’; b?n ber d? awaz qyl?anym juq... [8: 6] ‘I didn't say anything...’.

In the works "Kyryk vazir", "Kalila and Dimna" and "Abugalisina kissasy" preference is given to the form m ? n ‘I’: m ? n ? en t ? gelder[6: 43] ‘I'm not a djinn…’ m?n bulmasam m?ml?k?t sine? quly n dan mo n ar?y kitk?n bulyr ide [15: 68] ‘If it wasn't for me, you would have lost your kingdom long ago';m a n s a ne n e enese n d a n bula toryb, m a? a bu tozaqny belderm a de n ... [14: 10] ‘I'm your kinsman, and you didn't warn me about this trap.’

The form with the initial [b], as is known, was widely used in the Old Tatar literary language until the XIX century. The use of the personal pronoun of the 1st person singular with the initial [m] and [b] is also observed in the Turkic-language works of the XIII-XIV centuries [5: 171].

In the book "Tutyname" only the form m i n 'I' is used for this purpose: m i n d?xi ?ulaj qotylyb kit?rmen [13: 83] 'This way I can get rid of (her)...’; mine satyb alasy n da olu ? fajdalar ? a irese n[13:5] ‘Will you buy me and you will make big profits’; saba jile, x ?b?re n, barmy minem j?r?k ?anymdan ber n ?s? kiterde n me?  [13: 7] ‘Morning wind, do you have a message from my beloved?’.

As these examples show, in parallel with the traditional variants peculiar to the written language, in the analyzed works there is an increase in the activity of the vernacular variants of the pronoun I of the singular m i n ‘I’.

The pronoun I of the plural bez ‘we’ is used to denote a group of persons to which the speaker refers himself: bez qa?anya ?aqly bu tar ojamyzda jabylyb toryrmyz [14:7] ‘Until when will we be locked up in our cramped nest?’; bezd? tuj baradyr [7:  191] ‘We are having a wedding’; bez ?ulaj id?rmez... [15: 23] ‘We will do so...’; ? ? j ? d bezl ? r ? stenlek tabarmyz [KB, p. 26] ‘Perhaps we will overcome (them)...’; bez baryb (...) kilermez[6: 44] ‘We're going there...’; bezg? h?r zaman baryb j?rer ide[7:196] ‘He always visited us’; b ezne firaq utyna saldy n [6: 44] ‘Threw us into the fire of separation...’.

The collection of fairy tales "One Thousand and One Nights" also records the functioning of the pronoun bezl?r 'we', which is used to express persons in the plural: ?j Sindbad bezl?r sine k?b m?x?bb?t ideb ? yjzz?t w? x?rm?t ?jl?dem [Thousand, 4:91] ‘O, Sinbad, we love you very much, cherish and respect you'; bezl?r bu qar?yqny ezl?b j?rimez ... [Thousand, 5:8] ‘We are looking for this old lady’; bezl?r s?wd?g?rl?rmez [Thousand, 2:43] ‘We are merchants...’; bezl?r r?x?tsez qaldyq ... [Thousand, 5: 45] ‘We have lost our calm.’

       The use of double plurality was a characteristic phenomenon for the classical Turkic language. As V.H. Khakov notes, this form was widely used in a high-flown style to express politeness and deep respect [4:36].

In the texts of kyssa , the pronoun of the second person singular sin / s?n is used to address the interlocutor . ‘you'. In the collection of fairy tales "One Thousand and One Nights" there is a parallel use of these forms: sin x?rm? a?ab, ten atar irk?n... [7:13] ‘It turns out that you are eating dates and throwing stones around you...’; s?ne h?l?k idkem... [7:  14]  ‘I will definitely kill you.’

In the works "Kalila and Dimna", "Kyryk vazir" and "Abugalisina kissasy", the form s?n "you" prevails: ? j, jeget, s?n kem? [6:45] ‘Hey, guy, who are you?; s ? ne monda kiterg ? n uldyr[6: 34] ‘The (person) who brought you here...’; s?ne abystaj ?aqyra digen [15: 153] ‘Tell me that the hostess invites you’; s ? n d ? xi m ?? a j ? min it[15: 5] ‘You give me the word...’; s?n kitablardan uqymady n my... [14: 11] ‘Haven't you read in books...’; s?n irt? tor ? a? h?rd?n ?y ? yb k?nn ?y ? y?y ja ?yna qarab j?r... [14:2] ‘When you get up in the morning, leave the city and go east.’

In the book "Tutyinama" preference is given to the form sin ‘you’: sine bu r?we?le b?l?g? julyqtyrmy? [13: 83] ‘So he brought you to a tragedy...’; min bel?men ki sine n mi n a m?x?bb?te n xaqdyr [13: 6] ‘I know that your love for me is real’; ?j ana, sine n ?jtk?n s?zl?re n d?n ba? tartmamyn [13: 35] ‘Oh, Mom, I don't reject the words you said...’.

In the texts of the works of Kyss , personal pronouns of the second person plural sez ‘you‘ are used when politely addressing one person, mainly to the shahs, viziers, or when addressing a group of persons: ?j ?aqylly w?zir, sez n?be?ezd?n ?ten?bez [8:9] ’O wise vizier, we implore you...'; sez alyb kitk?n xatyn m?nem x?l?lemder [15:35] ‘The woman you took away is my wife’;  sez oly?ylyq iteb m?nem bu quwu?yma trif ide?ez [14:3] ‘You, having respected me, visited my cave...’; sezne? monda jalanya? tormaqy?yzny? s?b?be nider [13: 83] ‘What is the reason for finding you naked in this place?’; sez qajdaide?ez? [6: 44] ‘Where have you been?’; sez b?lki qabul itm?ssez [13:4] ‘Perhaps you won't accept...’.

To express the plurality of interlocutors, as well as to address them politely, the form sezlar, formed from the word sez, is used in the texts of the kissa genre ‘you‘ and plural endings -l ?r: sezl ?r fis?bil l?hi ory ?qa ?yqya? n ? en qurqasyz [8: 29] 'Since you went out to fight for your faith, why are you afraid then?’; sezl?rd?n ?ten?men, bu tuyryda jax?y ujlab ... mi?a ki bire?ez [14:6] ‘I ask you to think carefully and give me advice’; b?yzysy sezl?rne ist?b... [8:19] ‘Some wanted (were looking for) you ...’.

This form of the pronoun is actively used in many Turkic-speaking written monuments. As the well-known scientist G. F. Blagova points out, the pronoun sezl?r is a polite form of the pronoun, applied to one person and to many persons [1: 299].

 The pronoun of the third person singular ul ‘he’, ‘she’ or ‘the one’ is used to indicate someone who does not participate in the dialogue: ul kilg ?arij ? l ?rg ? i?ar ? t qylyb[6: 44] ‘When he comes, give a sign to the slaves...’; ul ?g?r t?lkene? s?zen totmasa ide [13: 82] ‘If she had not listened to the words of the fox...’; ul qojyny n t ? ben ? qarady[6: 60] ‘He looked at the bottom of the well...’ etc.

Pronoun ul ‘he', ‘she’ or ‘that’ in the kissa tests very often performs the function of an indicative pronoun and serves to express the state of certainty of an object or person: ul qyz atasyn hafa k?rg ... [7:7] ‘That girl, seeing the frightened father...’; ul jeget ?ul bikne? xezm?tend? ?ayynda [15:40] ‘When that guy was in beck's service...’; ul sandyqny ayya?ny? k?l?g?sen? qujyb, sandyqny a?ty... [7:6] ‘He put that chest in the shade of a tree and opened it...’; ul w?zir padi?ahny? aldyna ber tabaq bal kiterde [15:40] ’This vizier brought the king a basin of honey’; ul jazu t' mam buldy [14:6] ‘This letter ended with (the words)…’; ul jeget d?xi qyzny xalas it?rg? s?z bireb   [13:  82] ‘This guy promised to save the girl’; ul qyzny n ?zen k?r ? ... ...[6:11] ‘... when he saw the girl herself...’.

Third person plural pronoun alar / anlar ‘they‘ expresses a group of people who do not participate in the conversation process: alar sine diwana bul ? anlyqdan ? jd ? n ? y ? yb kitk ? n dib ... [13: 84] ’They (will think) that you left home in a nervous state...'; alarny n mujynnaryn syndyrsa. ihan tyny ? bulyr [14:4] ‘If he breaks their necks, the world will be better off’; alarny ?ltererg? x?kem itde [6: 52] ‘Sentenced them to death ...’; xamm?l (...) anlar il? qaldy... [7:53] ‘The porter stayed with them...’; anlarny k?rg... [7:  144] ‘Seeing them...’.

The texts of the kissa genre are dominated by the alar form, which has become the literary norm of the modern Tatar language.

In the works of Kyss, interrogative pronouns are also actively used. For example, the pronouns ni? and n ‘what', ‘what?’ are used in relation to objects and phenomena: s?n ni e?l?m?k?e bulasy [8:6] ‘What are you going to do?’; qar?yq n? disen... [11:116] ‘What can an old lady say...’;mind?nniist?rse? ? [6:39] ‘What do you want from me?’;n ? b ? h? [8:283] ‘What is the price?’;bun? x?jl?der[6: 11] ‘What kind of trick is this?’.

In the work "Abugalisina" the interrogative pronoun ni‘what', combined with the word waqyt ‘time’ is used to express the concept of ‘when?’: ni waqyt m? ? ar? qapusy a?ylyr dib k?teb toryrlar ide [9:7] ‘Waiting for the cave gate to open...’.

As we can see from the examples, in the works, the phonetic variant n (na) is inferior in activity to the pronoun ni (ni), which subsequently took root in the literary language.

 The interrogative pronoun nik? in the texts of the works "Kyryk vazir kyssasy" and "Abugalisina" appears in the meaning of "why?’: m?nd?n nik qa?asy? [15: 6] ‘Why are you running away from me?’; anynikxalyq?amlumit?sez? [6: 5] ‘Why are you divulging this to the public?’.

In the works under study, the interrogative pronoun ni?ek? ‘how?’, ‘in what way?’ is used to express a question about a feature or a mode of action: uyylym, s?jl?, ja?end? bulyanny? xik?j?se ni?ekder? [10:183] ‘Tell me, son, what will be the story of a three-year-old child?’; atamyzny? i?ar?te ni?ek ide? [15:49] ‘What was our father's instruction?’; ni?ek jax?y k?rs?, ?ulaj itsen [14:5] ‘As he sees fit, let him do so’; ul xik?j? ni?ek, s?jl? [13:88] ‘What is this story, speak..’; mondyjolu? x?mm?mbinaqylmaq ni?ek m?mkinbulyr[6: 9] ‘How could such a huge bathhouse be built...’.

Interrogative pronouns n?/ni qad?r? ‘how much?’ and ni ‘how much?’ are used to denote the number of persons or objects: n? qad?r Bayydad ?ask?re Afr?dijun ?ask?rend?n az bulsa da... [8:22] ‘Despite how many times the Baghdad army was smaller than Afradiyun's army...’; ni jyl buldy... [11:  6] ‘How many years have passed...’; ni m ? rt ? b ? atasyndan soradym, birm ? de [6:10] ‘How many times I asked her father, I didn't give...’.

In the texts of works of the kyssa genre , the interrogative pronoun n?rs? ‘what?’can act in the meaning of ‘thing’: ul n?rs?l?r arasynda pulad jozaq bel?n bikl?ng?n ber sandyq tabyldy [14:3] ‘Among the things there was also a chest locked with a steel lock...’; ser didekl?re n?rs? b?nem qar?ymda saqlanmaq en ber b?lm?g? quj ? an n?rs? kebider, ul b?lm?ne n bikl?b a?qy?lary ju ? al ? an da, j?n? joza ? y ?zren? m?xer orylmy?dyr... [11:11] ‘A secret is such a thing that has been put for storage in a separate office, the keys to which are lost, and a seal is installed on the lock case’; k?rde: ber zur jylan jatqan, bu su kebek aq yan n ?rs? any n z ?h?re [7: 33] ‘I saw that there was a big snake lying, and this thing that flows like water is its poison...’.

In the work "Abugalisina" the lexeme n?rs?, combined with the word ber ‘some’, used in the meaning of ‘something': aja ?yna ber n?rs? t ? rteleb qulyndan ?i t ? ? eb uwaldy [6: 112] ‘... something caught his leg, the bottle fell and broke...’.

The use of the pronoun n?rs? in this meaning is one of the important features of the spoken language, which is also evidenced by studies of modern colloquial speech: “the interrogative pronoun n?rs? (what) is very specific, which acts as a desemanticized word and is used to name various objects, phenomena, subjects” [2:50].

Pronoun qaj d a? ‘where?’, in addition to its main meaning, is used to express the meaning of 'where’: qaj d a telim ?unda j?r... [11: 77] ‘Wherever I want, you will go...’; bar, qara, yz, qajda kitk, n... [6:73] ‘Go and see where he's gone...’.

The interrogative pronoun kem? ‘who?’ is used to express a rational being: ?j jeget, s?n kems?n? [6:45] ‘Hey man, who are you?’t?se bujy da Mapsug ? a ?ul qad?r ox?ady kem k?rg?n xu?a Mapsug dib xisab qylyr ide [13:4] ‘Outwardly he looked so much like Mansur that whoever saw him was sure that this was Mansur’; kemne bir?jek? [6: 61] ‘Who will we give up?’; sez keml?rsez, qajsy jird?nsez? [15: 9] ‘Who are you, where are you from?’.

To express the question of time in the texts of kyss, the pronoun qa?an is used? / qaj?an? ‘when?’: bez qa?an?a ?aqly bu tar ojamyzda jabylyb toryrmyz? [14:7] ‘How long will we be locked up in our cramped nest?’; qaj?an m?xb?be julyq?an bulyr ide??  [13:96] ‘When would you meet your beloved...’.

The interrogative pronoun ni ??en ‘why?’ in the texts it is used to clarify the causes of processes and actions: ni en maly ny juqqa beter?se n? [15: 59] ‘Why are you wasting your wealth?’; xatun ? a kileb ni en taraq birm?de n didelar ... [10:186] ‘Approached the woman and told her ‘Why didn't she give the comb... ‘; ni enmondyjjerenserl?rnes?jl?b… [13: 9] ‘Why did you reveal these secrets?’; ni en bolaj id?se?? [15: 53] ‘Why are you doing this?’.

Thus, in the texts of the works of the kyssa genre, personal and interrogative pronouns are represented by Turkic-Tatar lexemes and differ in ambiguity. Phonetic variability is manifested in the use of personal pronouns.

As a result of the analysis of the functional features of pronouns, it turned out that the authors of the works operated with a rich spectrum of pronoun semantics common in the Tatar spoken language.

To express the plurality of interlocutors in the texts of the kissa genre, the following forms are used: bezl?r ‘we', sez lar'you'. Form sez l?r ‘you’ also serves to address the interlocutor politely.

Pronoun ul ‘he’, ‘she’ or ‘that’ very often performs the function of an indicative pronoun and serves to express the state of certainty of an object or person.

In the works of Kyss, interrogative pronouns are actively used: ni and n?‘what’, ‘what’, nik? ‘why?’, kem? ‘who?’, qa?an? / qaj?an? ‘when?’, ni?ek? ‘how?’, qaj d a ‘where?’, etc. and serve to convey a wide range of meanings.

The interrogative pronoun n?rs ‘what?’ is mainly used to convey the meaning of ‘thing', as well as being combined with the word ber ‘some’, expresses the meaning of ‘something', pronoun qaj d a ‘where?’, in addition to transmitting the main meaning, is used in texts to express the meaning of ’where'.

In the texts, phonetic variants of pronouns b?n ‘I’, m?n ‘I’, bezl?r ‘we’, sez l?r ‘you', anlar‘they', n?‘what?’ are inferior in activity to the pronouns min, bez, sez, alar, ni, which later took root in the Tatar literary language.

The use of lexemes of the vernacular and Old Tatar written language within the framework of one work demonstrates the peculiarities of the formation of the modern Tatar literary language.