Rusyn language
Encyclopedia
East Slavic languages
The East Slavic languages constitute one of three regional subgroups of Slavic languages, currently spoken in Eastern Europe. It is the group with the largest numbers of speakers, far out-numbering the Western and Southern Slavic groups. Current East Slavic languages are Belarusian, Russian,...
language variety spoken by the Rusyns
Rusyns
Carpatho-Rusyns are a primarily diasporic ethnic group who speak an Eastern Slavic language, or Ukrainian dialect, known as Rusyn. Carpatho-Rusyns descend from a minority of Ruthenians who did not adopt the use of the ethnonym "Ukrainian" in the early twentieth century...
of Central Europe. Some linguists treat it as a distinct language and it has its own ISO 639-3 code; others treat it as a dialect of Ukrainian
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
. Each categorisation has controversial political implications.
Geographical distribution
Rusyn (and more specifically Carpatho-Rusyn) is the vernacular spoken in the Transcarpathian RegionZakarpattia Oblast
The Zakarpattia Oblast is an administrative oblast located in southwestern Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Uzhhorod...
of Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, in northeastern Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, southeastern Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
(where it is often described as łemkowski 'Lemko', from their characteristic word лем / lem 'only', or Lyshak) and Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
(where the people and language are called Ruten).
Ukrainian scholars and politicians do not recognise Rusyns
Rusyns
Carpatho-Rusyns are a primarily diasporic ethnic group who speak an Eastern Slavic language, or Ukrainian dialect, known as Rusyn. Carpatho-Rusyns descend from a minority of Ruthenians who did not adopt the use of the ethnonym "Ukrainian" in the early twentieth century...
as a separate ethnicity, despite the fact that some Rusyn speakers prefer to consider themselves as ethnically distinct from Ukrainians. Ukrainian linguists consider Rusyn a dialect of Ukrainian, related to the Hutsul dialect in the neighbouring Carpathian region of Ukraine.
Attempts to standardise the various variants of Rusyn have been unsuccessful. Rusyns live in four countries, and efforts are hampered because Rusyns living outside the traditional home region often do not speak the language fluently. Different orthographies
Orthography
The orthography of a language specifies a standardized way of using a specific writing system to write the language. Where more than one writing system is used for a language, for example Kurdish, Uyghur, Serbian or Inuktitut, there can be more than one orthography...
have been developed (in most cases using variants of the Cyrillic alphabet
Cyrillic alphabet
The Cyrillic script or azbuka is an alphabetic writing system developed in the First Bulgarian Empire during the 10th century AD at the Preslav Literary School...
) and a number of different grammatical standards exist, based on regional dialects.
The major cultural centres of Carpatho-Rusyns are located in Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
in Slovakia, Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod or Uzhgorod is a city located in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. It is the administrative center of the Zakarpattia Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Uzhhorodskyi Raion within the oblast...
and Mukacheve
Mukacheve
Mukachevo or Mukacheve is a city located in the valley of the Latorica river in the Zakarpattia Oblast , in southwestern Ukraine. Serving as the administrative center of the Mukachivskyi Raion , the city itself is also designated as a separate raion within the oblast...
in Ukraine, Krynica and Legnica
Legnica
Legnica is a town in south-western Poland, in Silesia, in the central part of Lower Silesia, on the plain of Legnica, riverside: Kaczawa and Czarna Woda. Between 1 June 1975 and 31 December 1998 Legnica was the capital of the Legnica Voivodeship. It is currently the seat of the county...
in Poland, Ruski Krstur
Ruski Krstur
Ruski Krstur is a village in Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina. It is located in the municipality of Kula, West Bačka District. The village has a Rusyn ethnic majority. Its population numbered 5,213 in the 2002 census...
in Vojvodina
Vojvodina
Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad...
and Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
in Hungary. There are many Rusyns living in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, the USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
.
It is not possible to make an accurate estimate of the number of fluent speakers of Rusyn, however their number is estimated at almost a million, primarily living in Ukraine and Slovakia.
Yugoslavia has recognized Rusyn, more precisely Pannonian Rusyn
Pannonian Rusyn language
Pannonian Rusyn or simply Rusyn is a Slavic language or dialect spoken by Pannonian Rusyns in north-western Serbia and eastern Croatia...
in Vojvodina
Vojvodina
Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad...
, as an official minority language. Since 1995, Rusyn has been recognized as a minority language
Minority language
A minority language is a language spoken by a minority of the population of a territory. Such people are termed linguistic minorities or language minorities.-International politics:...
in Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, enjoying the status of official language
Official language
An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...
in municipalities where more than 20 percent of the inhabitants speak Rusyn.
Rusyn is listed as a protected language by European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages is a European treaty adopted in 1992 under the auspices of the Council of Europe to protect and promote historical regional and minority languages in Europe...
in Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
and Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
.
Grammars and codification
Early grammars include Dmytrij Vyslockij's (Дмитрий Вислоцкий) Карпаторусский букварь (Karpatorusskij bukvar') Vanja Hunjanky (1931) and Metodyj TrochanovskijMetodyj Trochanovskij
Metodyj Trochanovskij , Lemko activist, was born in Binczarowa, Poland, when it was part of the province of Galicia of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, on May 5, 1885. At the onset of World War I, he was accused of treason against Austria-Hungary, arrested, prosecuted, and sentenced to death in 1916...
's Буквар. Перша книжечка для народных школ. (Bukvar. Perša knyžečka dlja narodnŷch škol.) (1935).
The Rusyn language is one of the newest Slavic literary languages, and was codified in Slovakia in 1995.
Newspapers
- Karpatska Rus'Karpatska Rus'Karpatska Rus is a Rusyn language newspaper published in the United States for the Rusyn-speaking Lemko immigrant community. It is the successor to Lemko, which began publication in 1927....
- Русинська бесіда
- Нанродны новинкы
- Podkarpatská Rus - Подкарпатська Русь
- Amerikansky Russky ViestnikAmerikansky Russky ViestnikAmerikansky Russky Viestnik was the longest-running Rusyn-American newspaper in the United States.The paper was the official publication of the Greek Catholic Union of Rusyn Brotherhoods, a fraternal benefit society based in Pennsylvania...
† - LemkoLemko (Philadelphia)Lemko was a weekly ethnic newspaper, published in the United States in Philadelphia by Lemkos for the immigrant population. It was succeeded by Karpatska Rus'....
†
Dialects
The Carpatho Rusyn language can be divided as follows:| Name | Language area | Annotation |
|---|---|---|
| Hutsul | In the mountainous part of Suceava County Suceava County Suceava is a county of Romania, in the historical region of Moldavia and few villages in Transylvania, with the capital city at Suceava.- Demographics :... and Maramures County Maramures County Maramureș is a county of Romania, in the Maramureș region. The county seat is Baia Mare.- History :* The 10th century frontier county of Borsova was founded by Stephen I of Hungary. Since then Máramaros served as the north-eastern border of the Hungarian Kingdom until 1920, the Trianon Peace... in Romania Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea... and the extreme southern parts of the Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Ivano-Frankivsk. As is the case with most other oblasts of Ukraine this region has the same name as its administrative center – which was renamed by the Soviets after the Ukrainian writer, nationalist... (province Administrative divisions of Ukraine Ukraine is subdivided into 24 oblasts , one autonomous republic, and two "cities with special status".- Overview :... ) of Ukraine Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia... (as well as in parts of the Chernivtsi Chernivtsi Oblast Chernivtsi Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine, bordering on Romania and Moldova. It has a large variety of landforms: the Carpathian Mountains and picturesque hills at the foot of the mountains gradually change to a broad partly forested plain situated between the Dniester and Prut rivers.... and Transcarpathian Oblasts), and on the northern slopes of the Carpathian Mountains. |
|
| Boyko | Northern side of the Carpathian Mountains in the Lviv Lviv Oblast Lviv Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Lviv.-History:The oblast was created as part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic on December 4, 1939... and Ivano-Frankivsk Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Ivano-Frankivsk. As is the case with most other oblasts of Ukraine this region has the same name as its administrative center – which was renamed by the Soviets after the Ukrainian writer, nationalist... Oblasts of Ukraine Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia... . It can also be heard across the border in the Subcarpathian Voivodship (province Administrative divisions of Poland The administrative division of Poland since 1999 has been based on three levels of subdivision. The territory of Poland is divided into voivodeships ; these are further divided into powiats , and these in turn are divided into gminas . Major cities normally have the status of both gmina and powiat... ) of Poland |
|
| Lemko | Outside Ukraine in the Prešov Region Prešov Region The Prešov Region is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions. It consists of 13 districts.-Geography:It is located in north-eastern Slovakia and has an area of 8,975 km². The region has diverse types of landscapes occurring in Slovakia, but mostly highlands and hilly lands dominate the... of Slovakia Slovakia The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south... along the southern side of the Carpathian Mountains. It was formerly spoken on the northern side of the same mountains, in what is now southeastern Poland, prior to Operation Vistula - now used in several diaspora communities scattered in northern Poland |
Being revived; in Poland it has the status of an ethnic minority language. A newspaper, Karpatska Rus' Karpatska Rus' Karpatska Rus is a Rusyn language newspaper published in the United States for the Rusyn-speaking Lemko immigrant community. It is the successor to Lemko, which began publication in 1927.... has been published in this dialect since 1939. |
| Dolinian Rusyn | Transcarpathian Oblast of Ukraine Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia... . |
|
| Subcarpathian Rusyn | ||
| Pryashiv Rusyn | The Prešov Region Prešov Region The Prešov Region is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions. It consists of 13 districts.-Geography:It is located in north-eastern Slovakia and has an area of 8,975 km². The region has diverse types of landscapes occurring in Slovakia, but mostly highlands and hilly lands dominate the... (in Rusyn: "Пряшів" Pryashiv) of Slovakia Slovakia The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south... , as well as by some émigré communities, primarily in the United States of America. |
|
| Pannonian Rusyn | Northwestern Serbia Serbia Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans... and eastern Croatia Croatia Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ... |
One of the official languages of the Serbian Autonomous Province of Vojvodina Vojvodina Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad... . |
| Bačka Backa Bačka is a geographical area within the Pannonian plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east of which confluence is located near Titel... |
Boiko, Hutsul, Lemko and Dolinian are identified (and for the same speakers) as Ukrainian dialects since most of their speakers identify themselves as Ukrainians.
Alphabet
| Capital | Small | Name | Translit. | Pronunciation International Phonetic Alphabet The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic... |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| А | а | a | a | /a/ | |
| Б | б | бы | b | /b/ | |
| В | в | вы | v | /v/ | |
| Г | г | гы | h | /ɦ/ | |
| Ґ | ґ | ґы | g | /ɡ/ | |
| Д | д | ды | d | /d/ | |
| Е | е | e | e | /e/ | |
| Є | є | є | je | /je/ | |
| Ё | ё | ё | jo | /jo/ | not present in Pannonian Rusyn |
| Ж | ж | жы | ž | /ʒ/ | |
| З | з | зы | z | /z/ | |
| И | и | и | y | /ɪ/ | |
| І | і | i | i | /i/ | not present in Pannonian Rusyn |
| Ы | ы | ы | y | /ɨ/ | |
| Ї | ї | ї | ji | /ji/ | |
| Й | й | йы | j | /j/ | |
| К | к | кы | k | /k/ | |
| Л | л | лы | l | /l/ | |
| М | м | мы | m | /m/ | |
| Н | н | ны | n | /n/ | |
| О | о | o | o | /o/ | |
| П | п | пы | p | /p/ | |
| Р | р | ры | r | /r/ | |
| С | с | сы | s | /s/ | |
| Т | т | ты | t | /t/ | |
| У | у | у | u | /u/ | |
| Ф | ф | фы | f | /f/ | |
| Х | х | хы | x, ch | /x/ | |
| Ц | ц | цы | c | /ts/ | |
| Ч | ч | чы | č | /t͡ʃ/ | |
| Ш | ш | шы | š | /ʃ/ | |
| Щ | щ | щы | šč | /ʃt͡ʃ/ | |
| Ѣ | ѣ | їть | /ji/, /i/ | Used before World War II World War II World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis... |
|
| Ю | ю | ю | ju | /ju/ | |
| Я | я | я | ja | /ja/ | |
| Ь | ь | мнягкый знак (ірь) | ′ | /ʲ/ | marks preceding consonant's palatalization |
| Ъ | ъ | твердый знак (ір) | ′ | not present in Pannonian Rusyn |
See also
- BesidaBesidaBesida is a journal edited by Petro Trochanowski in Krynica, Poland. It is known as a source of information about the Lemkos people....
- Alexander Duchnovič's Theatre
- Old RuthenianRuthenian languageRuthenian, or Old Ruthenian , is a term used for the varieties of Eastern Slavonic spoken in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and later in the East Slavic territories of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth....
- Pannonian RusynsPannonian RusynsRusyns in Pannonia, or simply Rusyns or Ruthenians , are a Slavic minority in Serbia and Croatia...
- RusynsRusynsCarpatho-Rusyns are a primarily diasporic ethnic group who speak an Eastern Slavic language, or Ukrainian dialect, known as Rusyn. Carpatho-Rusyns descend from a minority of Ruthenians who did not adopt the use of the ethnonym "Ukrainian" in the early twentieth century...
- Metodyj TrochanovskijMetodyj TrochanovskijMetodyj Trochanovskij , Lemko activist, was born in Binczarowa, Poland, when it was part of the province of Galicia of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, on May 5, 1885. At the onset of World War I, he was accused of treason against Austria-Hungary, arrested, prosecuted, and sentenced to death in 1916...
, Lemko Grammarian - Petro TrochanowskiPetro TrochanowskiPetro Trochanowski or Piotr Trochanowski was born in Silesia in the southwestern part of Poland to Lemko parents from Binczarowa. He is the editor of Besida, published in Krynica since 1989. He is a spokesperson for the Lemko ethnic group in Poland and internationally...
, contemporary Rusyn poet.
Further reading
- A new Slavic language is born. The Rusyn literary language in Slovakia. Ed. Paul Robert MagocsiPaul Robert MagocsiPaul Robert Magocsi is an American professor of history, political science, and Chair of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Toronto. He has been with the University since 1980, and became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1996...
. New York 1996. - Magocsi, Paul Robert. Let's speak Rusyn. . Englewood 1976.
- Aleksandr Dmitrievich Dulichenko. Jugoslavo-Ruthenica. Роботи з рускей филолоґиї. Нови Сад 1995.
- Taras Kuzio, "The Rusyn question in Ukraine: sorting out fact from fiction", Canadian Review of Studies in Nationalism, XXXII (2005)
- Elaine Rusinko, "Rusinski/Ruski pisni" selected by Nataliia Dudash; "Muza spid Karpat (Zbornik poezii Rusiniv na Sloven'sku)" assembled by Anna Plishkova. Books review. "The Slavic and East European Journal, Vol. 42, No. 2. (Summer, 1998), pp. 348-350. JSTOR archive
- Плішкова, Анна [Anna Plishkova] (ed.): Муза спід Карпат (Зборник поезії Русинів на Словеньску). [Muza spid Karpat (Zbornik poezii Rusiniv na Sloven'sku)] Пряшів: Русиньска оброда, 1996. on-line
- Marta Harasowska. "Morphophonemic Variability, Productivity, and Change: The Case of Rusyn", Berlin ; New York : Mouton de Gruyter, 1999, ISBN 3110157616.
- Book review by Edward J. Vajda, Language, Vol. 76, No. 3. (Sep., 2000), pp. 728–729
- I. I. Pop, Paul Robert MagocsiPaul Robert MagocsiPaul Robert Magocsi is an American professor of history, political science, and Chair of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Toronto. He has been with the University since 1980, and became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1996...
, Encyclopedia of Rusyn History and Culture, University of Toronto Press, 2002, ISBN 0802035663 - Plišková, Anna: Rusínsky jazyk na Slovensku: náčrt vývoja a súčasné problémy. Prešov : Metodicko-pedagogické centrum, 2007, 116 s. Slovak Rusyn