The Russian language can rightfully be considered a great asset of the entire Slavic people. On the path of his formation, he faced many different transformations, including the decline of the reduced ones. Changes in the history of the formation of the language took place in all its spheres and sections: vocabulary, grammar, phonetics. Of course, many people would be interested in studying each of these areas for a more complete presentation and objective formation of the picture of the modern Russian language.
People have the widest scope for research and various new knowledge, as well as opportunities for predicting further development. The history of the Russian language is one of those blocks of information in which it is necessary to navigate to everyone whose occupation is somehow connected with the humanities. It is for this reason, among other subjects that students who graduate from universities, a huge number of disciplines affecting the history and development of the language, which include the fall of reduced in Russian. All the knowledge gained contributes to the expansion of a holistic view of history and linguistics with philology. All the industries studied are undoubtedly closely interconnected. Thus, some lexical transformations occurred precisely due to phonetic changes.
Historical phonetics
This section in the history of the formation of the language is one of the most important for study and general understanding. He is engaged in studying the system of sounds and its modification in the course of time. In addition, scientists in this area identify certain patterns that are used to predict future changes. One of the main topics that affects the historical phonetics, was the fall of the reduced. Particularly noteworthy are the consequences of this process, however, everything should be told in order. During this transformation, a fundamental restructuring took place in the Proto-Slavic language in all its spheres and areas, and in particular the process affected the phonetic system.
The difference between the two languages
If we summarize all the results of the process, we can safely say that this change is the fundamental difference between the current state of the language and the most ancient. If an old Russian person met a typical resident of Russia of the present time, then it is likely that they would simply not understand each other. Writing at that time was also very different from modern, so reading the Old Slavonic letters is not easy for an ordinary person who is not interested in studying this topic. That is why it is so important and it should be given special attention. First, we discuss the basic terms and concepts, introduce the reader to the course of things.
The basics
First, let's answer the main question: what does the term "reduction b and b" mean? If you did not know about this before, then in the ancient Slavic language there were two vowels of incomplete education - b ("er") and b ("er"). With their pronunciation, the vocal cords practically did not strain, and therefore they were called reduced. According to historical data, the use of such vowels has spread among all Slavic languages, but in the future they underwent some changes. Linguists from around the world believe that these letters, or rather, the sounds represented a semblance of the modern “and short” and “short” that disappeared forever. In modern phonetics, these letters do not carry a special semantic load, but serve only to facilitate the reading of words. However, one can not ignore that in the language of our ancestors, these vowels and consonants of the phonemes were completely independent.
Interesting fact
I would like to draw your attention to the fact that in some literary monuments above "ery" and "ery" there are special musical signs. They indicate their publicity when reading. It was customary to indicate the same sign above vowels that we are used to.
Location effect
Before the reduction, their location in the word strongly influenced the pronunciation. Thus, they could be pronounced with different longitudes depending on the position in which they stood. Strong positions mean stretching sounds and their long pronunciation, and weak, respectively, short pronunciation.
Strong vowels of incomplete education
- Before reduced in a weak position.
- In position under stress.
In this case, they were pronounced continuously.
Weak positions "er" and "er"
- At the end of a word.
- Before a vowel of complete education.
In this case, they were pronounced briefly.
Global change
Around the 12th century, significant changes took place in the Old Russian language, which entailed the decline of the reduced. This process was finally completed only by the end of the 13th century. Before such global changes, all vowels were not divided into shock and unstressed, and therefore were pronounced the same way. The pronunciation of all words was also significantly different from the usual one in modern Russian. However, the general changes did not end there, as soon the speech accelerated significantly, and all the vowels began to be pronounced more briefly than before. The fall of the reduced ones resulted in the appearance of vowels such as "o" and "e" in a strong position for them and the disappearance of two phonemes. The most radical restructuring of the entire language in its history has occurred.
Modifications Summary
The language has become closer to the modern and familiar to us by ear and in writing.
- The Russian language has gained many closed syllables and monosyllables.
- Some words got a zero ending after the disappearance of "ep" and "yer".
- Some morphemes began to consist of a single letter.
- Prepositions and conjunctions consisting of only letters appeared.
- Runaway and alternating vowels appeared in the roots.
In addition to all of the above, there have been many other changes that you can familiarize yourself with if you seriously study this topic.
One thing is for sure and with certainty. The fall of the reduced caused significant transformations in all sectors of the Russian language, which contributed to its further development and progress in general. It is thanks to them that we read and speak as we do now. These transformations are reflected in the entire further development of the sound system. In addition to all of the consequences described above, one cannot but pay attention to the fact that such “mutations” entailed modifications in the morphology of the Russian language. They also provoked transformations in the phonetics of words.
Conclusion
Let's hope that this article has been useful to you, and you read it to the end. And we can only wish you good luck in further studying the history and culture of the Slavic people, their speech and writing.