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Olga M. Mladenova
PhD in Slavic Historical Linguistics / BA honours in Classics Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bucharest University, Romania
Areas of Research
textual studies
I am currently engaged in the study of early attempts of writing in the vernacular in the Orthodox Christian space and cultural interactions that took place in the Balkans from the late 16th to the mid-18th century and were reflected in manuscripts produced at that time. Selected representative publications in English include: Vernacularization of Bulgarian Literacy in the Seventeenth Century: New Perspectives. To appear in <i>Canadian Slavonic Papers</i> in 2018; Towards a Classification of the Early Modern Bulgarian Vernacular Texts of Type Togizi. <i>Balkanistica</i> 28, 2015, 313-336; Early Modern Bulgarian Translations of Sermons by Ēlias Mēniatēs. <i>Zeitschrift für Slawistik</i> 59/4, 2014, 519-551; A Textual Onomastic Study: ‘Nicholas’ in the Orthodox Balkan Tradition. In: Manuela Nevaci (ed.) <i>Studia linguistica et philologica. Omagiu profesorului Nicolae Saramandu</i>. Bucureşti: Editura Universităţii, 2011, 563-576.
I am currently engaged in the study of early attempts of writing in the vernacular in the Orthodox Christian space and cultural interactions that took place in the Balkans from the late 16th to the mid-18th century and were reflected in manuscripts produced at that time. Selected representative publications in English include: Vernacularization of Bulgarian Literacy in the Seventeenth Century: New Perspectives. To appear in <i>Canadian Slavonic Papers</i> in 2018; Towards a Classification of the Early Modern Bulgarian Vernacular Texts of Type Togizi. <i>Balkanistica</i> 28, 2015, 313-336; Early Modern Bulgarian Translations of Sermons by Ēlias Mēniatēs. <i>Zeitschrift für Slawistik</i> 59/4, 2014, 519-551; A Textual Onomastic Study: ‘Nicholas’ in the Orthodox Balkan Tradition. In: Manuela Nevaci (ed.) <i>Studia linguistica et philologica. Omagiu profesorului Nicolae Saramandu</i>. Bucureşti: Editura Universităţii, 2011, 563-576.
Slavic historical linguistics
I have extensively studied over the years the origin and history of the Slavic lexicon (especially in Russian and Bulgarian), and explored grammatical change claimed to have been caused by bi- or multilingualism. Selected representative publications in English include: Bulgarian ta. <i>Balkanistica</i> 23, 2010, 237-266; On Morphosyntactic Change in Bulgarian: Case and Definiteness. <i>Diachronica</i> 26/3, 2009, 408-436; Diachrony of Bulgarian Quantification. <i>Balkanistica</i> 22, 2009, 89-131; <i>Definiteness in Bulgarian: Modelling the Processes of Language Change</i>. New York, Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 2007 [Trends in Linguistics. Studies and Monographs, 182].
I have extensively studied over the years the origin and history of the Slavic lexicon (especially in Russian and Bulgarian), and explored grammatical change claimed to have been caused by bi- or multilingualism. Selected representative publications in English include: Bulgarian ta. <i>Balkanistica</i> 23, 2010, 237-266; On Morphosyntactic Change in Bulgarian: Case and Definiteness. <i>Diachronica</i> 26/3, 2009, 408-436; Diachrony of Bulgarian Quantification. <i>Balkanistica</i> 22, 2009, 89-131; <i>Definiteness in Bulgarian: Modelling the Processes of Language Change</i>. New York, Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 2007 [Trends in Linguistics. Studies and Monographs, 182].
Balkan linguistics
A central research interest of mine is the study of the interactions between Slavic, Romance and Greek in the Balkans, a multicultural and multilingual area with a millennial recorded history. Selected representative publications in English include: Balkanisms in the Context of the Markedness Theory of Linguistic Change. In: Kahl, T., M. Metzeltin, H. Schaller (eds.). <i>Balkanismen Heute – Balkanisms Today – Balkanizmy Segodnja</i>. 2012, Wien, Münster: Lit Verlag, 21-29; Politeness in Transition: The Balkan Evidence. In: Mariana Mangiulea (ed.) <i>In Honorem Gheorghe Mihăilă</i>. Bucureşti: Editura Universităţii din Bucureşti, 2010, 232-252; Neuter Designations of Humans and Norms of Social Interaction in the Balkans. <i>Anthropological Linguistics</i> 43/1, 2001, 18-53; Riddle Coding and Lexical Motivation. In: Tzitzilis, Christos und Charalambos Symeonidis (eds.) <i>Balkanlinguistik. Synchronie und Diachronie</i>. Thessaloniki: Linguistische Abteilung der Philosophischen Fakultät der Aristoteles-Universität Thessaloniki, 2000, 167-174.
A central research interest of mine is the study of the interactions between Slavic, Romance and Greek in the Balkans, a multicultural and multilingual area with a millennial recorded history. Selected representative publications in English include: Balkanisms in the Context of the Markedness Theory of Linguistic Change. In: Kahl, T., M. Metzeltin, H. Schaller (eds.). <i>Balkanismen Heute – Balkanisms Today – Balkanizmy Segodnja</i>. 2012, Wien, Münster: Lit Verlag, 21-29; Politeness in Transition: The Balkan Evidence. In: Mariana Mangiulea (ed.) <i>In Honorem Gheorghe Mihăilă</i>. Bucureşti: Editura Universităţii din Bucureşti, 2010, 232-252; Neuter Designations of Humans and Norms of Social Interaction in the Balkans. <i>Anthropological Linguistics</i> 43/1, 2001, 18-53; Riddle Coding and Lexical Motivation. In: Tzitzilis, Christos und Charalambos Symeonidis (eds.) <i>Balkanlinguistik. Synchronie und Diachronie</i>. Thessaloniki: Linguistische Abteilung der Philosophischen Fakultät der Aristoteles-Universität Thessaloniki, 2000, 167-174.
language-culture interface
Since language is a phenomenon of culture, I believe that it can and should be studied from this perspective. Having started with studies in the vein of European etholinguistics, an interdisciplinary area between historical linguistics and ethnology, I eventually discovered the potential of anthropological linguistics, located at the intersection of synchronic linguistics with cultural and social anthropology. Selected representative publications in English include: Migration, Bilingualism and Ethnolinguistics: Wagon Terminology in the Bulgarian Dialects in Romania. <i>Revue des études sud-est européennes</i> 54/1-4 2006, 423-447; <i>Russian Second-Language Textbooks and Identity in the Universe of Discourse. A Contribution to Macropragmatics</i>. München, Verlag Otto Sagner, 2004; Language Use and Enforcement of Cultural Values. <i>Canadian Slavonic Papers</i> 45/1-2, 2003, 11-45; <i>Grapes and Wine in the Balkans. An Ethno-Linguistic Study</i>. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 1998 [Balkanologische Veröffentlichungen, Band 32]; Honour and Shame in Reverend Minčo Kănčev’s “Vidrica”. An Ethno-Linguistic Study. <i>Linguistique balkanique</i> 38/2, 1996, 153-160.
Since language is a phenomenon of culture, I believe that it can and should be studied from this perspective. Having started with studies in the vein of European etholinguistics, an interdisciplinary area between historical linguistics and ethnology, I eventually discovered the potential of anthropological linguistics, located at the intersection of synchronic linguistics with cultural and social anthropology. Selected representative publications in English include: Migration, Bilingualism and Ethnolinguistics: Wagon Terminology in the Bulgarian Dialects in Romania. <i>Revue des études sud-est européennes</i> 54/1-4 2006, 423-447; <i>Russian Second-Language Textbooks and Identity in the Universe of Discourse. A Contribution to Macropragmatics</i>. München, Verlag Otto Sagner, 2004; Language Use and Enforcement of Cultural Values. <i>Canadian Slavonic Papers</i> 45/1-2, 2003, 11-45; <i>Grapes and Wine in the Balkans. An Ethno-Linguistic Study</i>. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 1998 [Balkanologische Veröffentlichungen, Band 32]; Honour and Shame in Reverend Minčo Kănčev’s “Vidrica”. An Ethno-Linguistic Study. <i>Linguistique balkanique</i> 38/2, 1996, 153-160.
digital humanities
The computer era has radically changed the way how humanities scholars go about their business in terms of both their research methodology and the research questions they now can ask. My own textual studies (see above) would not have been possible before the advent of computerization. A different ongoing project within digital humanities, this time in language documentation and conservation, is the <i>Transdanubian Electronic Corpus. Supplement to Bulgarian Dialects in Romania by Maxim Mladenov</i> (www.corpusbdr.info) of which I am the team leader.
The computer era has radically changed the way how humanities scholars go about their business in terms of both their research methodology and the research questions they now can ask. My own textual studies (see above) would not have been possible before the advent of computerization. A different ongoing project within digital humanities, this time in language documentation and conservation, is the <i>Transdanubian Electronic Corpus. Supplement to Bulgarian Dialects in Romania by Maxim Mladenov</i> (www.corpusbdr.info) of which I am the team leader.
Supervising degrees
Languages, Literatures and Cultures - Masters: Accepting Inquiries
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