Course: Introduction to Slavic Studies

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Course title Introduction to Slavic Studies
Course code KSR/7ZKS
Organizational form of instruction Lecture + Seminar
Level of course Bachelor
Year of study 2
Semester Winter and summer
Number of ECTS credits 2
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory, Compulsory-optional
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Course availability The course is available to visiting students
Lecturer(s)
  • Komendová Jitka, doc. Mgr. Ph.D.
Course content
1. The place of Slavic languages among the languages of the world. Genetic classification of languages. Proto-Indo-European. Indo-European studies as a scientific discipline. Comparative linguistics. 2. Ethnogenesis of the Slavs. Proto-Slavic. Disputes about Baltic-Slavic unity. 3. Phonetic-phonological processes in late Proto-Slavic. The formation of three branches of Slavic languages. 4. Old Church Slavonic and Old Church Slavonic culture. Paleoslavic studies as a scientific discipline. 5. Church Slavonic from its origins to the present day, its influence on other Slavic languages, especially Russian and Ukrainian. 6. The formation of modern nations and languages. The Slavs and the "national revival". 7. Main features of selected Slavic languages I: West Slavic languages. Slovak in comparison with Czech. The Czechoslovak language. 8. Main features of selected Slavic languages II: Lusatian Serbs and Lusatian Serbian. Kashubians and Kashubian. 9. Main features of selected Slavic languages III: South Slavic languages. Balkan language union. 10. Main features of selected Slavic languages IV: Serbo-Croatian vs. Serbian and Croatian. Macedonian in the context of political disputes in the Balkans. 10. Main features of selected Slavic languages V: East Slavic languages. Language as a political issue. 11. The linguistic situation in Ukraine. Surzhyk. Rusyn. 12. The linguistic situation in Belarus. 13. Slavic studies in the 19th to 21st centuries. The current situation in Slavic studies. Main trends and directions of research.

Learning activities and teaching methods
Lecture, Monologic Lecture(Interpretation, Training), Dialogic Lecture (Discussion, Dialog, Brainstorming), Work with Text (with Book, Textbook)
  • Homework for Teaching - 25 hours per semester
  • Attendace - 25 hours per semester
Learning outcomes
The aim of this course is to provide a wider Slavic context for the Russian studies. This course presents the students with an outline of Slavic languages and the position of Russian among them. This course prepares the students for diachronic studies of the language. The seminar will discuss: demonstration of the parallels and differences between the separate branches of Slavic languages on selected texts, discussing selected problems in comparative Slavic studies.
Students will gain an awareness of the individual branches of Slavic languages and the basic developmental processes in the evolution of Slavic languages from the earliest times to the present day, and will understand the role of language in the formation of modern national identities.
Prerequisites
A practical knowledge of Russian, at least B1 level of the European Framework of Reference for Languages and theoretical as well as practical knowledge of synchronic grammar.

Assessment methods and criteria
Written exam, Seminar Work

- active participation in seminars (maximum 2 absences) - preparation of a seminar paper on a given subtopic in the form of a PowerPoint presentation - successful completion of the final written assignment (colloquium)
Recommended literature
  • Černý, J. (1996). Dějiny lingvistiky. Olomouc: Votobia.
  • Hroch M. (1986). Evropská národní hnutí v 19. století. Praha.
  • Mareš, P. (2014). Úvod do lingvistiky a lingvistické bohemistiky. Praha.
  • Řezník, M. (2003). Formování moderního národa: (Evropské "dlouhé" 19. století). Praha: Triton.
  • Šatava L. (2013). Etnicita a jazyk: teorie, praxe, trendy. Brno.
  • Večerka, R. (2009). Jazyky v komparaci. Praha: Euroslavica.
  • Večerka, R. (1999). Počátky slovanského spisovného jazyka: studie z dějin staroslověnského písemnictví a jazyka do konce 11. století. Praha: Univerzita Karlova. Filozofická fakulta.
  • Večerka, R. (2013). Slovník českých jazykovědců v oboru bohemistiky a slavistiky. Brno: Masarykova univerzita.
  • Vepřek, M. (2011). Iskoni bě slovo. Texty ke studiu diachronní slavistiky a bohemistiky. Olomouc.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Russian Philology (2019) Category: Philological sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Russian Philology (2022) Category: Philological sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Russian Philology Aimed at Translation and Business (2019) Category: Philological sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Russian Philology (2019) Category: Philological sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Russian Philology Aimed at Translation and Business (2025) Category: Philological sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Russian Philology (2025) Category: Philological sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Russian Philology (2025) Category: Philological sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer
Faculty: Faculty of Arts Study plan (Version): Russian Philology (2019) Category: Philological sciences 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer