Course Description
An introduction to Old Church Slavic, the earliest written Slavic language. The grammar of Old Church Slavic, reading and translation of texts, and the prehistory of the Slavic language family.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
1) selected readings from the scholarly literature on
historical Slavic linguistics (in addition to the textbook and
other course materials required for undergraduate students);
2) a final project consisting of an annotated translation of
an early Slavic text or a critical review of primary research
on a topic in historical Slavic linguistics;
3) additional exam questions designed to demonstrate the
students’ understanding of problems in historical Slavic
phonology and morphology (beyond the basic factual knowledge
required of undergraduate students).
Athena Title
Old Church Slavic
Non-Traditional Format
Knowledge of a Slavic language or experience with another case language strongly recommended.
Prerequisite
Permission of department
Semester Course Offered
Offered spring
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
This course will introduce students to Old Church Slavic, the earliest written Slavic language. They will acquire an understanding of the essential aspects of Old Church Slavic grammar and learn to read and translate Old Church Slavic texts. In addition, the course will provide students with a basic understanding of the historical development of the Slavic language family from Proto-Indo-European.
Topical Outline
1. The Old Church Slavic language and its history 2. The writing systems of Old Church Slavic (the Glagolitic and Cyrillic alphabets), their standard transliteration, and the phonology of Old Church Slavic 3. Declension of nouns 4. Declension of pronouns 5. Declension of adjectives 6. Conjugation of verbs 7. Basic principles of Old Church Slavic syntax 8. Historical Slavic phonology and morphology
Syllabus