SLAV2053 · Slavic & Eastern Languages and Literatures

Introduction to Comparative Slavic Linguistics

Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences

An introduction to the history and linguistic typology of the Slavic languages. We will begin with a brief survey of the reconstructed Common Slavic proto-language and its relationship to the other branches of the Indo-European language family. We will examine the disintegration of Late Common Slavic into three main subgroups: East, South, and West Slavic. Our survey of the modern Slavic languages will focus on the most important similarities and differences with regard to their writing, sound, nominal and verbal systems. Using a variety of modern Slavic languages as examples, we will also address topics of current interest to linguists worldwide: language, ethnic identity, and political borders; language ideology and standardization; the role of language contact in linguistic evolution, and language endangerment and language revitalization.