Deminutiv-hypokoristische Verbalformen in der belarussischen Sprache

Abstract

The aim of our research is a historical analysis of a specific, rare phenomenon of Belarusian word formation – the diminution of infinitives in colloquial tender speech with small children. The investigation base consists of representative data from the main Belarusian dictionaries and grammars of the 19th and 20th centuries. The article describes the results of the following: suffixation (suffixes and their variability), morpheme structure and word stress of diminutive infinitives; substantival and adjectival origin of diminutive verbal suffixes; historical and functional change of hypocoristic infinitives on the background of Russian language policy; remarks on hypocoristic verbal forms in East-Slavonic and West-Slavonic languages.