Slavistics
Encyclopedia
Slavic studies or Slavistics (borrowed from Russian славистика) is the academic field of area studies
concerned with Slavic
areas, Slavic languages
, literature, history, and culture. Originally, a Slavist or Slavicist was primarily a linguist
or philologist who researches Slavistics, a Slavic (AmE
) or Slavonic (BrE
) scholar. Increasingly historians and other humanists and social scientists who study Slavic area cultures and societies have been included in this rubric.
Slavistics emerged in late 18th and early 19th century, simultaneously to the national revival
among various nations of Slavic origins
and failed ideological attempts to establish a common sense of Slavic community, exemplified by the Pan-Slavist movement
. Among the first scholars to use the term was Josef Dobrovský
. A Slavic specialist is also known as a Slavist (borrowed from Russian славист).
The history of Slavic studies is generally divided onto three periods. Until 1876 the early slavists concentrated on documentation and printing of monuments of Slavic languages, among them the first texts written in national languages. It was also then that the majority of Slavic languages received their first modern dictionaries
, grammars and compendia. The second period, ending with World War I
, was marked by fast development of Slavic philology
and linguistics
, most notably, outside of Slavic countries themselves, in the circle formed around August Schleicher
and August Leskien
at the University of Leipzig
.
After World War I
Slavic studies scholars focused on dialectology
, while the science continued to develop in countries with large populations having Slavic origins. After World War II
centres of Slavic studies, and much greater expansion into other humanities and social science disciplines, were also formed in various universities around the world. Indeed, partly due to the political concerns in Western European and the United States about the Slavic world nurtured by the Cold War, Slavic studies flourished in the years from World War II into the 1990s and remains strong (though university enrollments in Slavic languages have declined since the nineties).
Area studies
Area studies are interdisciplinary fields of research and scholarship pertaining to particular geographical, national/federal, or cultural regions. The term exists primarily as a general description for what are, in the practice of scholarship, many heterogeneous fields of research, encompassing...
concerned with Slavic
Slavic peoples
The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...
areas, Slavic languages
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
, literature, history, and culture. Originally, a Slavist or Slavicist was primarily a linguist
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
or philologist who researches Slavistics, a Slavic (AmE
AME
Ame, AME, or AmE may refer to* Anomalous Microwave Emission* Amé, a soft drink* Adaptive multithreaded encryption* African Methodist Episcopal Church* African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church* AME Accounting Software...
) or Slavonic (BrE
BRE
- Computing :*Barren Realms Elite, a multi-player bulletin board system strategy game*Basic regular expression, expressions used for computerized text matching*Business rules engine, a software system to manage and execute business rules- Organisations :...
) scholar. Increasingly historians and other humanists and social scientists who study Slavic area cultures and societies have been included in this rubric.
Slavistics emerged in late 18th and early 19th century, simultaneously to the national revival
Romantic nationalism
Romantic nationalism is the form of nationalism in which the state derives its political legitimacy as an organic consequence of the unity of those it governs...
among various nations of Slavic origins
Slavic peoples
The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...
and failed ideological attempts to establish a common sense of Slavic community, exemplified by the Pan-Slavist movement
Pan-Slavism
Pan-Slavism was a movement in the mid-19th century aimed at unity of all the Slavic peoples. The main focus was in the Balkans where the South Slavs had been ruled for centuries by other empires, Byzantine Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Venice...
. Among the first scholars to use the term was Josef Dobrovský
Josef Dobrovský
Josef Dobrovský was a Bohemian philologist and historian, one of the most important figures of the Czech national revival.- Life & Work :...
. A Slavic specialist is also known as a Slavist (borrowed from Russian славист).
The history of Slavic studies is generally divided onto three periods. Until 1876 the early slavists concentrated on documentation and printing of monuments of Slavic languages, among them the first texts written in national languages. It was also then that the majority of Slavic languages received their first modern dictionaries
Dictionary
A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often listed alphabetically, with usage information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other information; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a lexicon...
, grammars and compendia. The second period, ending with World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, was marked by fast development of Slavic philology
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
and linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
, most notably, outside of Slavic countries themselves, in the circle formed around August Schleicher
August Schleicher
August Schleicher was a German linguist. His great work was A Compendium of the Comparative Grammar of the Indo-European Languages, in which he attempted to reconstruct the Proto-Indo-European language...
and August Leskien
August Leskien
August Leskien was a German linguist active in the field of comparative linguistics, particularly relating to the Baltic and Slavic languages.-Biography:...
at the University of Leipzig
University of Leipzig
The University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...
.
After World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
Slavic studies scholars focused on dialectology
Dialectology
Dialectology is the scientific study of linguistic dialect, a sub-field of sociolinguistics. It studies variations in language based primarily on geographic distribution and their associated features...
, while the science continued to develop in countries with large populations having Slavic origins. After 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...
centres of Slavic studies, and much greater expansion into other humanities and social science disciplines, were also formed in various universities around the world. Indeed, partly due to the political concerns in Western European and the United States about the Slavic world nurtured by the Cold War, Slavic studies flourished in the years from World War II into the 1990s and remains strong (though university enrollments in Slavic languages have declined since the nineties).
Areas of interest
- By country:
- BelarusBelarusBelarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
: languageBelarusian languageThe Belarusian language , sometimes referred to as White Russian or White Ruthenian, is the language of the Belarusian people...
, literature, culture, historyHistory of BelarusThis article describes the history of Belarus. The Belarusian ethnos is traced at least as far in time as other East Slavs.After an initial period of independent feudal consolidation, Belarusian lands were incorporated into the Kingdom of Lithuania, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and later in the...
. - Bosnia and HerzegovinaBosnia and HerzegovinaBosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
: languageBosnian languageBosnian is a South Slavic language, spoken by Bosniaks. As a standardized form of the Shtokavian dialect, it is one of the three official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina....
, literature, culture, historyHistory of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Pre-Slavic Period :Bosnia has been inhabited at least since Neolithic times. In the late Bronze Age, the Neolithic population was replaced by more warlike Indo-European tribes known as the Illyrians. Celtic migrations in the 4th and 3rd century BCE displaced many Illyrian tribes from their former...
. - BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
: languageBulgarian languageBulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
, literatureBulgarian literatureBulgarian literature is literature written by Bulgarians or residents of Bulgaria, or written in the Bulgarian language; usually the latter is the defining feature...
, culture, historyHistory of BulgariaThe history of Bulgaria spans from the first settlements on the lands of modern Bulgaria to its formation as a nation-state and includes the history of the Bulgarian people and their origin. The first traces of human presence on what is today Bulgaria date from 44,000 BC...
. - CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , 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 ...
: languageCroatian languageCroatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...
, literatureCroatian literatureCroatian literature is a definition given to the compilation of novels, dramas, short stories, poems and other various work of written kind entirely attributed to the medieval and modern culture of the Croats and the Croatian language....
, cultureCulture of CroatiaThe culture of Croatia has roots in a long history: the Croatian people have been inhabiting the area for fourteen centuries, but there are important remnants of the earlier periods still preserved in the country.- Ancient Heritage :...
, historyHistory of CroatiaCroatia first appeared as a duchy in the 7th century and then as a kingdom in the 10th century. From the 12th century it remained a distinct state with its ruler and parliament, but it obeyed the kings and emperors of various neighboring powers, primarily Hungary and Austria. The period from the...
. - Czech RepublicCzech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
: languageCzech languageCzech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
, literatureCzech literatureCzech literature is the literature written by Czechs or other inhabitants of the Czech state, mostly in the Czech language, although other languages like Old Church Slavonic, Latin or German have been also used, especially in the past. Modern authors from the Czech territory who wrote in other...
, culture, historyHistory of the Czech landsThe history of the Czech lands includes the following periods:* Slavs: Bohemians and Moravians – arrival into Czech area during the 6th century * Samo’s realm * Moravian principality in Moravia* Great Moravia...
. - MacedoniaRepublic of MacedoniaMacedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
: languageMacedonian languageMacedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
, literatureEthnic Macedonian literatureMacedonian literature is a term that refers to the literary written works in Macedonian. The first written works in the dialects of the Macedonian recension, are from the period of the Ohrid Literary School and that medieval literature was religious. It was established by St. Clement of Ohrid in...
, cultureMacedonian culture (Slavic)Macedonian culture is the culture of the ethnic Macedonian population of the Balkan region, known in the 20th century as Vardar Macedonia or the current Republic of Macedonia...
, historyHistory of the Republic of Macedonia- Ancient period :In antiquity, most of the territory that is now the Republic of Macedonia was included in the kingdom of Paeonia, which was populated by the Paeonians, a people of Thracian origins, but also parts of ancient Illyria and Dardania, inhabited by various Illyrian peoples, and...
, MacedonisticsMacedonisticsMacedonistics or sometimes called Macedonian Studies is a science that studies the Macedonian language. The person that studies the Macedonian language is called Macedonist or in Macedonian Македонист / Makedonist...
. - MontenegroMontenegroMontenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
: languageMontenegrin languageMontenegrin is a name used for the Serbo-Croatian language as spoken by Montenegrins; it also refers to an incipient standardized form of the Shtokavian dialect of Serbo-Croatian used as the official language of Montenegro...
, cultureCulture of MontenegroThe culture of present-day Montenegro is as pluralistic and diverse as its history and geographical position would suggest. Montenegro's culture has drawn influences mainly from ancient Greece, ancient Rome, Christianity, Islam, Byzantine Empire, Bulgarian Empire, Serbian Empire, Ottoman Empire,...
, historyHistory of MontenegroThe History of Montenegro begins in the early Middle Ages, into the former Roman province of Dalmatia that forms present-day Montenegro.-Illyria:...
. - PolandPolandPoland , 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...
: languages (PolishPolish languagePolish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
, KashubianKashubian languageKashubian or Cassubian is one of the Lechitic languages, a subgroup of the Slavic languages....
, Silesian), literature (PolishPolish literaturePolish literature is the literary tradition of Poland. Most Polish literature has been written in the Polish language, though other languages, used in Poland over the centuries, have also contributed to Polish literary traditions, including Yiddish, Lithuanian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, German and...
, Kashubian), culture, historyHistory of PolandThe History of Poland is rooted in the arrival of the Slavs, who gave rise to permanent settlement and historic development on Polish lands. During the Piast dynasty Christianity was adopted in 966 and medieval monarchy established...
. - RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
: languageRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
, literatureRussian literatureRussian literature refers to the literature of Russia or its émigrés, and to the Russian-language literature of several independent nations once a part of what was historically Russia or the Soviet Union...
, cultureRussian cultureRussian culture is associated with the country of Russia and, sometimes, specifically with ethnic Russians. It has a rich history and can boast a long tradition of excellence in every aspect of the arts, especially when it comes to literature and philosophy, classical music and ballet, architecture...
, historyHistory of RussiaThe history of Russia begins with that of the Eastern Slavs and the Finno-Ugric peoples. The state of Garðaríki , which was centered in Novgorod and included the entire areas inhabited by Ilmen Slavs, Veps and Votes, was established by the Varangian chieftain Rurik in 862...
. - SerbiaSerbiaSerbia , 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...
: languageSerbian languageSerbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
, literatureSerbian literatureSerbian literature refers to literature written in Serbian and/or in Serbia.The history of Serbian literature begins with theological works from the 10th- and 11th centuries, developing in the 13th century by Saint Sava and his disciples...
, cultureSerbian cultureSerbian culture refers to the culture of Serbia and of ethnic Serbs.The Serbian culture starts with that of the South Slavic peoples that lived in the Balkans. Early on, Serbs may have been influenced by the Paleo-Balkan peoples...
, historyHistory of SerbiaThe history of Serbia, as a country, begins with the Slavic settlements in the Balkans, established in the 6th century in territories governed by the Byzantine Empire. Through centuries, the Serbian realm evolved into a Kingdom , then an Empire , before the Ottomans annexed it in 1540...
. - SlovakiaSlovakiaThe 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...
: languageSlovak languageSlovak , is an Indo-European language that belongs to the West Slavic languages .Slovak is the official language of Slovakia, where it is spoken by 5 million people...
, literatureSlovak literature-Middle Ages:The first monuments of literature in present-day Slovakia are from the time of Great Moravia . Authors from this period are Saint Cyril, Saint Methodius and Clement of Ohrid...
, cultureCulture of SlovakiaThe culture of Slovakia is the result of various folk traditions and because of its position in the Central Europe, it is also influenced by Austrian, German, Hungarian and Slavic cultures....
, historyHistory of SlovakiaThis article discusses the history of the territory of Slovakia.- Palaeolithic :Radiocarbon dating puts the oldest surviving archaeological artifacts from Slovakia - found near Nové Mesto nad Váhom - at 270,000 BCE, in the Early Paleolithic era...
. - SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
: language, literature, cultureCulture of SloveniaSlovenia's first book was printed by the Protestant reformer Primož Trubar . It was actually two books, Katekizem and Abecednik, which was published in 1550 in Tübingen, Germany....
, historyHistory of SloveniaThe history of Slovenia chronicles the period of the Slovene territory from the 5th Century BC to the present times. In the Early Bronze Age, Proto-Illyrian tribes settled an area stretching from present-day Albania to the city of Trieste. The Holy Roman Empire controlled the land for nearly 1,000...
. - UkraineUkraineUkraine 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...
: languageUkrainian languageUkrainian 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....
, literatureUkrainian literatureUkrainian literature is literature written in the Ukrainian language. Ukrainian literature had a difficult development because, due to constant foreign domination over Ukrainian territories, there was often a significant difference between the spoken and written language...
, culture, historyHistory of UkraineThe territory of Ukraine was a key center of East Slavic culture in the Middle Ages, before being divided between a variety of powers. However, the history of Ukraine dates back many thousands of years. The territory has been settled continuously since at least 5000 BC, and is also a candidate site...
.
- Belarus
- Other languages: Upper Sorbian, Lower Sorbian, KashubianKashubian languageKashubian or Cassubian is one of the Lechitic languages, a subgroup of the Slavic languages....
, PolabianPolabian languageThe Polabian language is an extinct West Slavic language that was spoken by the Polabian Slavs in present-day North-Eastern Germany around the Elbe river, from which derives its name...
, RusynRusyn languageRusyn , also known in English as Ruthenian, is an East Slavic language variety spoken by the Rusyns 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...
, Old Church Slavonic.
Notable Slavists
- Johann Christoph JordanJohann Christoph JordanJohann Christoph Jordan or Johann Christoph de Jordan was an author who published in 1745 in Latin the history of Slavic Peoples, De Originibus Slavicis.-External links:*...
, the author of an early scholarly work in Slavic studies - Josef DobrovskýJosef DobrovskýJosef Dobrovský was a Bohemian philologist and historian, one of the most important figures of the Czech national revival.- Life & Work :...
(1753–1829) from BohemiaBohemiaBohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague... - Jernej KopitarJernej KopitarJernej Bartol Kopitar was a Slovene linguist and philologist working in Vienna. He also worked as the Imperial censor for Slovene literature in Vienna...
(1780–1840) from SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of... - Alexander VostokovAlexander VostokovAlexander Khristoforovich Vostokov was one of the first Russian philologists.He was born in Arensburg, Governorate of Livonia, and studied at the Imperial Academy of Arts. As a natural son of Baron von Osten-Sacken, he received the name Osteneck, which he later chose to render into Russian as...
(1781–1864) from RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... - Pavel Jozef ŠafárikPavel Jozef ŠafárikPavol Jozef Šafárik Pavol Jozef Šafárik (Safáry / Schaffáry/ Schafary/ Saf(f)arik / Šafarík/ Szafarzik, Czech Pavel Josef Šafařík, German Paul Joseph Schaffarik, Serbian Павле Јосиф Шафарик, Latin Paulus Josephus Schaffarik, Hungarian Pál József Saf(f)arik) Pavol Jozef Šafárik (Safáry /...
(1795–1861) from SlovakiaSlovakiaThe 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... - Mykhaylo MaksymovychMykhaylo MaksymovychMykhailo Oleksandrovych Maksymovych was a famous Ukrainian naturalist, historian and writer....
(1804–1873) from UkraineUkraineUkraine 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... - Izmail SreznevskyIzmail SreznevskyIzmail Ivanovich Sreznevsky was a towering figure in 19th-century Slavic studies.His father, Ivan Sreznevsky, was a prolific translator of Latin poetry who taught at the Demidov Lyceum in Yaroslavl before moving to Kharkov University. It was in Kharkov that Sreznevsky graduated in philology and...
(1812–1880) from Ukraine/Russia - Franc MiklošičFranc MiklošicFran Miklošič , was a Slovene philologist.-Biography:Miklošič was born in the small village of Radomerščak near the Lower Styrian town of Ljutomer, then part of the Austrian Empire....
(1813–1891) from SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of... - Fyodor BuslaevFyodor BuslaevFedor Ivanovich Buslaev ]], 1818, Kerensk, Penza Guberniya–July 31 , 1898, Moscow Guberniya) was a Russian philologist, art historian, and folklorist who represented the Mythological school of comparative literature and linguistics. He was profoundly influenced by Jacob Grimm and Theodor...
(1818–1898) from RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... - August SchleicherAugust SchleicherAugust Schleicher was a German linguist. His great work was A Compendium of the Comparative Grammar of the Indo-European Languages, in which he attempted to reconstruct the Proto-Indo-European language...
(1821–1868) from GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... - Anton JanežičAnton JanežicAnton Janežič, also known in German as Anton Janeschitz was a Carinthian Slovene linguist, philologist, author, editor, literary historian and critic.- Life :...
(1828–1869) from SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of... - Oleksandr Potebnia (1835–1891) from Ukraine/Russia
- Vatroslav JagićVatroslav JagicVatroslav Jagić was a Croatian language researcher and a famous expert in Slavic languages in the second half of the 19th century.-Life:...
(1838–1923) from CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , 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 ... - August LeskienAugust LeskienAugust Leskien was a German linguist active in the field of comparative linguistics, particularly relating to the Baltic and Slavic languages.-Biography:...
(1840–1916) from Germany - Jan Niecisław Baudouin de Courtenay (1845–1929) from PolandPolandPoland , 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...
- Filipp Fortunatov (1848–1914) from Russia
- Aleksander BrücknerAleksander BrücknerAleksander Brückner was a Polish scholar of Slavic languages and literatures , philologist, lexicographer and historian of literature. He is among the most notable Slavicists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and the first to prepare complete monographs on the history of Polish language...
(1856–1939) from eastern Galicia. - Matija MurkoMatija MurkoMatija Murko also known as Mathias Murko was a Slovene scholar, known mostly for his work on oral epic traditions in the Serbo-Croatian language .- Life :...
(1861–1952) from SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of... - Aleksey ShakhmatovAleksey ShakhmatovAleksey Aleksandrovich Shakhmatov was an outstanding Russian philologist credited with laying foundations for the science of textology.-Biography:...
(1864–1920) from Russia - Antoine MeilletAntoine MeilletPaul Jules Antoine Meillet was one of the most important French linguists of the early 20th century. Meillet began his studies at the Sorbonne, where he was influenced by Michel Bréal, Ferdinand de Saussure, and the members of the Année Sociologique. In 1890 he was part of a research trip to the...
(1866–1936) from FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... - Holger PedersenHolger Pedersen (linguist)Holger Pedersen was a Danish linguist who made significant contributions to language science and wrote about 30 authoritative works concerning several languages....
(1867–1953) from DenmarkDenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark... - Josip Tominšek (1872–1954) from SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
- André Mazon (1881–1967) from France
- Max VasmerMax VasmerMax Vasmer was a Russian-born German linguist who studied problems of etymology of Indo-European, Finno-Ugric and Turkic languages and worked on history of Slavic, Baltic, Iranian, and Finno-Ugric peoples....
(1886–1962) from RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... - André Vaillant (1890–1977) from France
- Dmytro Chyzhevsky (1894–1977) from UkraineUkraineUkraine 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...
- Roman JakobsonRoman JakobsonRoman Osipovich Jakobson was a Russian linguist and literary theorist.As a pioneer of the structural analysis of language, which became the dominant trend of twentieth-century linguistics, Jakobson was among the most influential linguists of the century...
(1896–1982) from RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
/United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... - Josef Matl (1897–1974) from AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
- Zdzisław Stieber (1903–1980) from PolandPolandPoland , 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...
- Dmitry LikhachevDmitry LikhachevDmitry Sergeyevich Likhachov was an outstanding Soviet Russian scholar who was considered the world's foremost expert in Old Russian language and literature. He has been revered as "the last of old St Petersburgers", "a guardian of national culture", and "Russia's conscience".-Biography:Likhachov...
(1906–1999) from RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... - George ShevelovGeorge ShevelovGeorge Yurii Shevelov . , - Slavic linguist, philologist, essayist, literary historian, and literary critic...
(1908–2002) from UkraineUkraineUkraine 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... - Jaroslav RudnyckyjJaroslav RudnyckyjJaroslav Bohdan Rudnyckyj, OC was a Ukrainian Canadian linguist, lexicographer with a specialty in etymology and onomastics, folklorist, bibliographer, travel writer, and publicist. He was one of the pioneers of Slavic Studies in Canada and one of the founding fathers of Canadian "Multiculturalism"...
(1910–1995) from eastern Galicia - Horace G. Lunt (1918–2010) from United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
- Blaže KoneskiBlaže KoneskiBlaže Koneski was one of the most distinguished Macedonian poets, writers, literary translators, and linguistic scholars...
(1921–1993) from MacedoniaRepublic of MacedoniaMacedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991... - Yuri LotmanYuri LotmanYuri Mikhailovich Lotman – a prominent Soviet literary scholar, semiotician, and cultural historian. Member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences...
(1922–1993) from Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
/EstoniaEstoniaEstonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies... - Thomas Schaub NoonanThomas Schaub NoonanThomas Schaub Noonan was an American historian, Slavicist and anthropologist who specialized in early Russian history and Eurasian nomad cultures....
(1938–2001) from the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... - Vladislav Illich-SvitychVladislav Illich-SvitychVladislav Markovich Illich-Svitych was a Russian linguist and accentologist, also a founding father of comparative Nostratic linguistics.Of Ukrainian descent, he was born in Kiev but later moved to work in Moscow. He resuscitated the long-forgotten Nostratic hypothesis, originally expounded by...
(1934–1966) from Russia - Henrik Birnbaum (1925–2002) from PolandPolandPoland , 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...
/United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... - Krste MisirkovKrste MisirkovKrste Petkov Misirkov was a philologist, slavist, historian, ethnographer, publicist author of the first book and scientific magazine in Macedonian, where he for the first time outlined the principles of the literary Macedonian language...
(1874-1926) from Macedonia/Bulgaria/Russia.
Contemporary Slavists
- Edward Stankiewicz (1920–) from Poland/United States
- Nicholas V. RiasanovskyNicholas V. RiasanovskyNicholas Valentine Riasanovsky was a professor at the University of California, Berkeley and the author of numerous books on Russian history. He was born in Harbin, China to lawyer Valentin A. Riasanovskii and Antonia Riasanovskii, a novelist...
(1923–) Russian-American - Alexander M. SchenkerAlexander M. SchenkerAlexander M. Schenker is a notable American Slavist, professor emeritus of Slavic linguistics at Yale University, and the winner of the Award for Distinguished Contributions to Slavic Studies for his contributions to the field of Polish studies, as well for the general contributions to the...
(1924–) from United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... - Irwin WeilIrwin WeilIrwin Weil is a Professor Emeritus in the at Northwestern University.He is noted for his work in promoting cultural exchange and mutual understanding betweenthe USA and the USSR/Russia,and for attracting large numbers of studentsto his courses....
(1928–) from United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... - Vladimir DyboVladimir DyboVladimir Antonovich Dybo is a Russian linguist whose areas of research include the Slavic languages, Indo-European, Nostratic, and Nilo-Saharan....
(1930–) from RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... - Radoslav KatičićRadoslav KaticicRadoslav Katičić is a Croatian linguist, classical philologist, Indo-Europeanist, Slavist and Indologist, one of the most prominent Croatian scholars in the field of humanities.-Biography:...
(1930–) from CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , 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 ... - Stefan Brezinski (1932–) from BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
- Andrey ZaliznyakAndrey ZaliznyakAndrey Anatolyevich Zaliznyak, is a Russian linguist who specializes in the research of linguistic monuments of Old Novgorod....
(1935–) from RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... - Boris UspenskyBoris UspenskyBoris Andreyevich Uspensky is a Russian philologist and mythographer.Uspensky graduated from Moscow University in 1960. He delivered lectures in Moscow until 1982, but later moved on to work in Harvard University, Cornell University, Vienna University, and the University of Graz...
(1937–) from RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... - Branko MikasinovichBranko MikasinovichBranko Mikasinovich is a scholar of Yugoslav and Serbian literature as well as a noted Slavist. He has edited Introduction to Yugoslav Literature , a representative anthology of modern Yugoslav prose and poetry in English, Five Modern Yugoslav Plays , a unique collection of plays written between...
(1938–) from United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... - Frederik KortlandtFrederik KortlandtFrederik Herman Henri Kortlandt is a professor of descriptive and comparative linguistics at Leiden University in the Netherlands. He is an expert on Baltic and Slavic languages, the Indo-European languages in general, and Proto-Indo-European, though he has also published studies of languages in...
(1946–) from NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders... - Gary Saul MorsonGary Saul MorsonGary Saul Morson is an American literary critic and Slavist, currently Frances Hooper Professor of the Arts and Humanities at Northwestern University. He was Chair of the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures at the University of Pennsylvania for many years prior to leaving for...
(1948–) from United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... - Alexander F. Tsvirkun (1953–) from UkraineUkraineUkraine 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...
- Blaže RistovskiBlaže RistovskiBlaže Ristovski is Macedonian literary historian, linguist, folklorist and historian....
(1931--) from Macedonia - Victor FriedmanVictor FriedmanVictor A. Friedman is an American linguist. He is currently Andrew W. Carnegie Professor in the humanities at the University of Chicago. He holds a joint appointment in linguistics and Slavic languages and literatures with an associated appointment in anthropology...
(1949-) from the USA. - Christina KramerChristina KramerChristina Elizabeth Kramer is Professor of Slavic and Balkan languages and linguistics at the University of Toronto and Chair of the university's Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures which is part of the Faculty of Arts and Science....
from the USA.
Journals and book series
- Die Welt der Slaven (http://www.slavistik.uni-muenchen.de/Publikationen/weltslav.htm)
- International Journal of Slavic Linguistics and Poetics
- Journal of Slavic Linguistics
- The Russian ReviewThe Russian ReviewThe Russian Review is a major independent peer-reviewed multi-disciplinary academic journal devoted to the history, literature, culture, fine arts, cinema, society, and politics of the Russian Federation, former Soviet Union and former Russian Empire. The journal was established in 1941 and is...
- Sarmatian ReviewSarmatian ReviewSarmatian Review is an English language peer reviewed academic journal on the Slavistics published by Polish Institute of Houston at Rice University three times a year in January, April, and September...
- Scando-Slavica
- Slavic and East European Journal, published by the American Association of Teachers of Slavic and Eastern European LanguagesAmerican Association of Teachers of Slavic and Eastern European LanguagesThe American Association of Teachers of Slavic and Eastern European Languages is an academic organization founded in 1941.AATSEEL holds an annual conference each December and publishes the Slavic and East European Journal , a peer-reviewed journal of Slavic studies.AATSEEL is currently run by...
- Slavic ReviewSlavic ReviewSlavic Review is a leading international peer-reviewed academic journal publishing scholarly studies and book reviews in all disciplines concerned with Russia, Central Eurasia, and Eastern and Central Europe...
, published by the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic StudiesAmerican Association for the Advancement of Slavic StudiesThe Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies is a scholarly society dedicated to the advancement of knowledge about the former Soviet Union and Eastern and Central Europe... - Studies in Slavic and General LinguisticsStudies in Slavic and General LinguisticsStudies in Slavic and General Linguistics is an academic book series that was founded in 1980 and is published by Rodopi.SSGL is mainly devoted to the field of descriptive linguistics. Although SSGL is primarily intended to be a means of publication for linguists from the Low Countries, the...
- The Slavonic and East European ReviewThe Slavonic and East European ReviewThe Slavonic and East European Review , the journal of the School of Slavonic and East European Studies at University College London, is an international peer-reviewed multidisciplinary academic journal in the fields of social sciences and humanities founded in...
- Croatica et slavica iadertina
- Slovenski jezik/Slovene Linguistic Studies (http://www.ku.edu/~slavic/sj-sls)
- Russian linguistics
- Interdisciplinaria Archaeologica – Natural Sciences in Archaeology a regional archaeology journal
Conferences
- American Association for the Advancement of Slavic StudiesAmerican Association for the Advancement of Slavic StudiesThe Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies is a scholarly society dedicated to the advancement of knowledge about the former Soviet Union and Eastern and Central Europe...
- Formal Approaches to Slavic LinguisticsFormal Approaches to Slavic LinguisticsFASL redirects here. For other uses, please see Fas ligandThe Annual Workshop on Formal Approaches to Slavic Linguistics is one of the most reputable international academic conferences in the field of formal Slavic linguistics...
- Perspectives on Slavistics
Schools and institutes
- School of Slavonic and East European StudiesSchool of Slavonic and East European StudiesThe UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies is a school of University College London . It is the largest centre for the study and research of Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe, and Russia in the United Kingdom...
- Harvard Ukrainian Research InstituteHarvard Ukrainian Research InstituteThe Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute is a research institute affiliated with Harvard University devoted to Ukrainian studies studying the history, culture, language, and politics of Ukraine. Other areas of study include Ukrainian literature, archaeology, art, economics, and anthropology...
- Centre for Ukrainian Canadian StudiesCentre for Ukrainian Canadian StudiesThe Centre for Ukrainian Canadian Studies was founded in 1981, as a joint creation between the University of Manitoba and St. Andrew's College. The mission of the Centre is to create, preserve and communicate knowledge dealing with Ukrainian Canadian culture and scholarship...
- Collegium RussicumCollegium RussicumThe Collegium Russicum is a Catholic college in Rome dedicated to studies of the culture and spirituality of Russia....
(Vatican) - Old Church Slavonic InstituteOld Church Slavonic InstituteThe Old Church Slavonic Institute is Croatian public institute founded in 1952 by the state for the purpose of scientific research on the language, literature and paleography of the mediaeval literary heritage of the Croatian vernacular and the Croatian recension of Church Slavonic.-History:The...
See also
- Croatian studiesCroatian studiesCroatian studies is an academic discipline within Slavic studies which is concerned with the study of Croatian language, literature, history and culture...
- Czech studiesCzech studiesCzech studies is the field of humanities that researches, documents and disseminates Czech language and literature in both its historic and present-day forms...
- Polish studiesPolish studiesPolish studies is the field of humanities that researches, documents and disseminates Polish language and literature in both its historic and present-day forms...
- Russian studiesRussian StudiesRussian studies is a field of study first developed during the Cold War. It is an interdisciplinary field crossing history and language studies. It is closely related to Soviet and Communist studies...
(studies centers). - Ukrainian studiesUkrainian studiesUkrainian studies - interdisciplinary field of research dedicated to Ukrainian language, literature, history and culture in a broad sense.- Ukrainian studies outside Ukraine :A number of research institutes outside of Ukraine focus on Ukrainian studies...
- List of linguists
- MacedonisticsMacedonisticsMacedonistics or sometimes called Macedonian Studies is a science that studies the Macedonian language. The person that studies the Macedonian language is called Macedonist or in Macedonian Македонист / Makedonist...
External links
- Slavonic and East European studies: a guide to resources (British Library)
- Slavic Studies: A Research Guide (Harvard)
- Slavic Studies Guide (NYU)
- Slavic Studies Guide (Duke)
- Slavic & East European Collections (Yale)
- Slavic and East European Internet Resources (University of Illinois)
- List of Journals in Russian, Eurasian, and East European Studies at Slavic Review
- American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies (AAASS)
- Slavistik-Portal The Slavistics Portal (Germany)