A semantic description of two meanings of elvan in the dialect of Nyitragerencsér

Abstract

The present paper offers a semantic description of two meanings of the verb elvan (consisting of the preverb el- ’away’ and the verb van ’be’) in the dialect of Nyitragerencsér. Compared to the standard language variety, the lexeme has an additional meaning in the dialect in question, namely the marking of constant spatial distance. The analysis makes it clear how the preverb contributes to meaning generation. Whereas in the dialectal meaning ’be far’, the preverb does not affect the temporal reference of van ’be’, it does so in the second meaning (’passes time by having fun’), where the ongoing, enduring nature of the activity is in profile.

Cognitive semantics aims primarily at the description of meanings by exploring the building up and schematisation of conceptual structures. Linguistic units, which can be schematised or specific to varying degrees, are studied in context, i.e. against the background of texts derived from natural speech situations. In this way, cognitive semantics breaks with the tradition of describing language as an end in itself, and complies with the requirements of functionalist linguistics (cf. Ladányi–Tolcsvai Nagy 2008: 33). As Gábor Tolcsvai Nagy puts it, “the self-reflexive experiential sphere and Erwartungshorizont of the new millenium is aware of, and demands, usage data (...)” (Tolcsvai Nagy 2011). Accordingly, my study relies on corpus data collected and recorded by the dialectologist Ferenc Sima. Sima collected the dialectal vocabulary of the Nyitra region, including that of the village of Nyitragerencsér, with the aim of preparing a dialectal dictionary. However, his illness prevented him from completing this task (Sándor 2007).

The paper adopts the theoretical and descriptive framework of Ronald Langacker (1987, 2008), in which the preverb and the verb are to be interpreted as forming a composite structure. I have previously offered a description based on the notion of blending (Tóth 2013);
however, an account in terms of composite structures promises to be more detailed and precise. The analysis aims to contribute to our understanding of semantic extensions affecting the preverb el ‘away’, and to shed light on the basis of functional variability.