Filiation of Meanings of the Word Toliko/tol’ko in Old Russian: Pronominal Quantity Adverb — Focal Particle — Conjunction
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: The paper analyzes semantics of the Russian word tol’ko during Old Russian period (11th–15th centuries) when it had functions of quantitative adverb, focal particle and conjunction. The main goal of the study was to verify whether the data of Old Russian support the typological generalizations about the origins of exclusive focus particles like only and their subsequent grammaticalization into conjunctions. The material of the study are Old Russian written monuments contained in the National Corpus of Russian Language. Additionally, data on the presence of tol’ko in the subcorpora of Old Russian epigraphics and birch bark manuscripts is included. The usages of tol’ko and its alternative form toliko are described and classified according to the type of meaning. We explore the connections between the discovered types of meaning and propose the potential routes of their development.
Author: E.A. Kolobrodova
Institution: Lomonosov Moscow State University
Language: English
Subfield: Language and Linguistics
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4410955341