Notes on Gender Asymmetry of Personal Nouns in the Slovak Language Cover Image

Poznámky k rodovej asymetrii pomenovaní osôb v slovenčine
Notes on Gender Asymmetry of Personal Nouns in the Slovak Language

Author(s): Soňa Rešovská
Subject(s): Language studies, Language and Literature Studies, Applied Linguistics, Sociolinguistics, Western Slavic Languages
Published by: Jazykovedný ústav Ľudovíta Štúra Slovenskej akadémie vied
Keywords: personal nouns; gender asymmetry; lexical gaps; parallel designation with a semantic shift; epicene nouns; gender inclusive language

Summary/Abstract: The article deals with examples of gender asymmetry in contemporary Slovak word stock. It analyzes a selection of lexical units falling into one of three types of gender asymmetry – lexical gaps, parallel designation with a semantic shift and epicene nouns. The article is broken into sections dedicated to three types of asymmetry with each of them presenting various examples of lexical units considered asymmetrical. The analysis, based on comparison of lexicographic and corpus sources, also includes interpretation of possible causes for asymmetries in particular cases. With the inclusion of corpus-based checking of the analyzed lexical units, the article is also able to provide information on current state of asymmetries (especially those that were determined by social factors) under the increasing influence of implementation of gender inclusive language.

  • Issue Year: 88/2023
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 106-128
  • Page Count: 23
  • Language: Slovak