A nyelvérintkezés sajátosságai a soknemzetiségű Kárpátalján
The Characteristics of Language Contact in Multinational Transcarpathia

Author(s): Krisztina Zékány
Subject(s): Language studies, Language and Literature Studies, Applied Linguistics
Published by: Scientia Kiadó
Keywords: Transcarpathia; language contact; linguistic contact phenomena; Hungarisms; doublets;
Summary/Abstract: This paper focuses on the status of the Hungarian language within the Carpathian Basin, with particular emphasis on Transcarpathia, where linguistic interactions are especially intense due to the multi-ethnic environment. These interactions are not only rooted in a shared historical past but also form the foundation of today’s coexistence. Because of political fluctuations, the already diverse ethnic composition of the region has been artificially expanded over the past century. Transcarpathia has experienced seventeen changes in government: five different state languages have been used during this time. Each era has left its linguistic imprint. Therefore, it is entirely natural that while my mother intends to go to Stalin Square, I accompany her to Reunification Square, and my daughter joins us, referring to it as Petőfi Square. The mutual influence of languages has not only led to the accumulation of foreign linguistic elements in the speech of Transcarpathian Hungarians but has also resulted in the adoption of numerous Hungarian words, phrases, and idiomatic expressions into the other languages of the region. Due to constant linguistic interaction, a distinct “Transcarpathian language” has emerged, characterized by the dynamic variation of linguistic elements from different languages, depending on the interlocutor’s linguistic competence. Hungarian loanwords have gradually adapted to the phonetic and morphological rules of Transcarpathian Ukrainian, Rusyn, Romanian, and Slovak dialects. Consequently, individual words may exhibit variations from one district or village to another. Such linguistic doublets further enrich the “Transcarpathian language”.

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