Refine
Document Type
- Article (6)
Language
- German (6)
Has Fulltext
- yes (6)
Is part of the Bibliography
- no (6)
Keywords
- Transylvanian-Saxon (6) (remove)
We start from the premise that the 240 Transylvanian-Saxon dialects in the Transylvanian-Saxon dictionary are treated according to scientific principles, while the Northern Transylvanian-Saxon dictionary documents the 48 Northern dialects. When reviewing the vocabulary of both dictionaries it could be noted that they complement each other with respect to vocabulary and meaning, especially as far as the “grammatical category of the verb” is concerned. Case in point is my research of the verbs meaning “to rummage for, to search, to dig” which I have grouped and analyzed according to specific criteria.
The article initially covers the historical information regarding two biblical saints „Saint Bartholomew“ and „John the Baptist“ and their birthdays. In vernacular documents from 1900 to 1980 inclusively, the Transylvanian-Saxon names „Bartholomew“ and „John“ were related to the respective saint. The vernacular documents show that their birthdays were playing a role in seasonal determination for peasant work as well as being used in descriptive country sayings, in idioms and in traditional customs. The case examples are taken from the TransylvanianSaxon Dictionary, the North Transylvanian Dictionary, as well as relevant specialist and vernacular literature.
The meaning of the verb „heischen“ occurs in standard German in special context only, especially in poetic language. In some Rhenish idioms of the German language space this lexeme is documented with the same meaning as in the Transylvanian Saxon idiom. Notable is the meaning “to woo”, “to ask for the bride’s hand” and idioms with a special wording that is specific to the Transylvanian-Saxon idiom only. This case study exemplifies how Transylvanian Saxon, removed from the German language space, is handling the linguistic thesaurus brought over centuries ago via emigration from the old country and how it adds its own meanings through a mixture and balance of language, a phenomenon specific to the colonial idioms.
There was always a close connection between human beings and plants, mammals and insects, but also birds, which enlivened yards and gardens, fields and forests with their flight, playfulness and their voices. Therefore it does not come as a surprise that some of our linguists and folklorists like the North-Transylvanian linguist Gustav Kisch and the South-Transylvanian linguist and folklorist Pauline Schullerus refer in some minor works to wellknown bird names as they appear in traditions, fairy tales, rhymes, idioms (sayings) and proverbs. But they never mention any owl species. This presentation provides the names of certain owl species as they appear in Transylvanian-Saxon and neighboring languages, as they were grouped by certain criteria according to their appearance. Descriptive idiomatic examples reflect their specific features and way of life.
The Transylvanian-Saxon Dictionary (SSWB) documents the general thesaurus of the Transylvanian Saxons by means of meaningful idiomatic samples. In addition there are certified documents of Transylvanian sources of the German language from the mid 13th to mid 10th century, which are of relevance for the idiomatic influence upon the literary German written language in Transylvania or the history of the German language. From this point of view some lexemes are absorbed into the dictionary, which refer to established legal agreements and mandatory services pertaining to a specific time period. The case studies in the following article are documented sources, extracted from the SSWB and the Transylvanian vernacular literature.
The aim of this article is to elaborate on the nouns listed in the title based on selected vernacular records, which in a certain phrase, but also by themselves, express the meanings making troubles/difficulties and seeking excuses/evasions. First of all, Transylvanian Saxon and High German respectively the German colloquial language have these lexemes in common, as well as vernacular words that do not belong to this linguistic level. Furthermore, it should be clarified that these vernacular words are attested in different sound variants from case to case in the Rhenish, in the Palatine and in the Bavarian-Austrian vernaculars, in the same or similar meanings in corresponding vernacular dictionaries. Transylvanian Saxon proper vocabulary is represented by a borrowing from Latin and two borrowings from Romanian. The dialect documents presented in the article are taken from the Transylvanian-Saxon Dictionary, its archive, the North Transylvanian Dictionary as well as from dialect and specialist literature. The etymological explanations respectively the etymological considerations of the analyzed lexemes have been prepared mainly based on relevant specialist dictionaries.