Inf lectional morphology 153

If these proper names are used by themselves, not in apposition, they do decline, and animate names of books are treated as animate: Z, yfghbvth, yt dbltk <fqrfkf, hfpkbdf J,b d tt ecnmt ‘I, for one, have not seen Baikal, the bay of the Ob at its mouth’; Yfxfn hf,jnf yfl ≤Djqyjq<ins sg> b vbhjv<ins sg>≥ ‘Work was begun on War and Peace’; Ytcrjkmrj hfp jy lf;t wbnbhetn ≤<hfnmtd<acc=gen> Rfhfvfpjds[≥ b ≤Blbjnf≥<acc=gen> Ljcnjtdcrjuj ‘Several times he even cites

The Brothers Karamazov and The Idiot of Dostoevsky’.

3.7.5 Names

With names of people, the gender is determined by reference. A name has feminine syntactic gender if it is used in reference to a woman, masculine if used in reference to a man. Whether a name is declined depends largely on how well its phonological shape matches the declension appropriate to the referential gender and how familiar the name is.

Native names: Most native Russian surnames have an adjectival suffix, and distinguish masculine and feminine forms in the singular, and decline. Such are: suffixed names in {-ov}: msc <jh∫cjd, fem <jh∫cjdf; suffixed names in

{-in}: msc Géirby, fem Géirbyf; suffixed names in {-sk-}: msc Gtnhj´dcrbq, fem

Gtnhj´dcrfz, msc Rhégcrbq, fem Rhégcrfz. Names formed with the suffixes {-ov} and {-in} have a declension mixed between adjectives and nouns. Those in {-sk-} have a fully adjectival declension. Other names have a pure nominal declension: nom sg Vfyltkminƒv, ins sg Vfyltkminƒvjv, gen pl Vfyltkminƒvjd, ins pl

Vfyltkminƒvfvb. Surnames that are frozen genitive case forms do not decline:

Xthyß[, :bdƒuj.

Borrowed adjectival names: Names borrowed from other Slavic languages (Polish and Czech) that have an adjectival declension in the source language are treated like Russian adjectival names and decline, including in the feminine:

[25] nfr yfpdfk Vbwrtdbx	that is how Mickiewicz dubbed Maria
Vfhb/ Ibvfyjdcre/;	Szymanowska; the life of Szymanowska;
,bjuhfabz Ibvfyjdcrjq; c	with Szymanowska
Ibvfyjdcrjq

[26]vfnx 33-ktnytq Эdthn b a match of the 33-year-old Evert and the

31-ktnytq Yfdhfnbkjdjq

31-year-old Navratilova

These names decline regardless of how the nominative is spelled, whether according to the Russian fashion (usual for the masculine, Kfgbwrbq ‘Lapicki’, possible for the feminine, Rfvbycrfz ‘Kaminska’)´ or the source language (possible

154A Reference Grammar of Russian

Djqybwrb ‘Wojnicki’, usual Dsibycrf ‘Wyszynska’)´ .33 Note also nom sg Yttlks, gen sg Yttlkjuj, from Czech Nejedlé, Nejedl†ho.

Foreign names ending in {-V}: Names of foreign origin that end in vowels other than {-a} do not decline, whether in reference to males or females:

[27]	ghtrhfcyst hbceyrb bcgfycrjuj	the wonderful sketches of the Spanish
	[elj;ybrf Cfkmdfljhf Lfkb	artist Salvador Dali
[28]	e,bqcndj L;jyf Rtyytlb	the murder of John Kennedy
[29] abkmv c exfcnbtv <hbl;bn <fhlj		a film starring Brigitte Bardot
[30] c ;bdjq Bylbhjq Ufylb		with the living Indira Gandhi

The prohibition covers surnames ending in {-ko} and {-(en)ko}. Names of this type, though historically suffixed and historically of Slavic origin, generally do not decline in literary Russian, whether in reference to men ([31--33]) or women ([34]):

[31]	rjkjybz F. C. Vfrfhtyrj	the colony of A. S. Makarenko
[32]	gbcmvj {jlpmrj	the letter of Chod´zko
[33]	lkz Uhjvsrj	for Gromyko

[34]ljcnb;tybt, ecnfyjdktyyjt ujl the triumph, accomplished a year ago by

yfpfl Kfhbcjq Cfdxtyrj b	Larisa Savchenko and Svetlana
Cdtnkfyjq Gfh[jvtyrj	Parkhomenko

Still, informally these names can decline ([35--36]), especially in the plural ([37-- 38]):

[35]E Yfevtyrb gjlkbyybr Naumenko has the original in her file. kt;bn.

[36]	hfpdjl c Ibktqrjq	divorce from Shileiko
[37]	Gj ldjhe ,tufkb b lheubt	Around the yard ran other little
	vfktymrbt Rexthtyrb.	Kucherenkos.

[38]d jlyjv ljvt c Ujhtyrfvb in the same house with the Gorenkos

First names that end in {-o} decline according to Declension<Ia>, if the final vowel is stressed, as in Gtnhj´, Gtnhƒ, Gtnhé, Gtnhj´v, etc., though there is a tendency toward non-declension. In nouns like Lfy∫kj, Vb[ƒqkj, the unstressed final vowel is pronounced as [ə], the same as an unstressed {-a} in Declension<II>. In standard Russian, these nouns decline according to Declension<II> ([39]):

[39]Vb[fqke yt edbltk; jn [he] didn’t see Mikhailo; from Mikhailo; to

Vb[fqks; r Vb[fqkt; c

Mikhailo; with Mikhailo

Vb[fqkjq

33 Kalakutskaia 1970.

Inf lectional morphology 155

Foreign names ending in {-C}: Names that end in consonants fit the expected shape of Declension<Ia>, which contains only masculine nouns. In reference to males (or mixed groups), such names, including foreign names, generally decline.

[40]	j ghbtplt {tvbyueэz	about the arrival of Hemingway
[41]	gjhnhtns </y/эkz	portraits of Bunuel˜

[42]cnfhjt dshf;tybt utythfkf an old expression of General De Gaulle lt Ujkkz

[43] hfdyj rfr b c Rjyljkbpjq	similarly with Condaleezza Rice
Hfqc b c <eifvb	and the Bushes

Included are stems which end in a palatalized consonant (lt Ujkkm) or [j] ({tvbyueэq). An exception is monosyllabic Korean names such as Gfr, Rbv, not declined by a majority of speakers a quarter of a century ago.34

Names that end in a consonant do not have a feminine nominative singular form and cannot decline when used in reference to females:

[44]	htxm V. Nэnxth	the speech of M. Thatcher
[45]	cvthnm :jh; Cfyl	the death of George Sand

[46]ujl yfpfl pf vtcnf d abyfkt a year ago places in the finals were

,jhjkbcm, rfr b ctqxfc, contested, as now, by Navratilova with Chris

Yfdhfnbkjdf c Rhbc Эdthn, f Evert, and Graf with Pam Shriver.

Uhfa -- c Gfv Ihfqdth.

In reference to men, these names decline: ;tyf ujcgjlbyf Nэnxthf ‘Mr. Thatcher’s wife’.

The prohibition against declining women’s surnames ending in a consonant holds also for names that have long been used in a Russian-language context. There is no distinct nominative singular feminine form for Ubyp,ehu or Abuyth, and these names do not decline in reference to women:

[47]rybuf Tdutybb Ubyp,ehu the book of Evgeniia Ginzburg Into the

≤Rhenjq vfhihen≥.	Whirlwind
[48] d Jltcce r Dtht Abuyth	to Odessa to Vera Figner

There is no feminine form, and hence no declension, of names made with the et-

ymologically Slavic suffixes {-ic} or {-uk} used in reference to women: Trfnthbyf

‹

Ybrjkftdyf {fhrtdbx, j Pjt Ybrjkftdyjq Ufkbx, r Cjyt Ufyxer.

Foreign names ending in {-a}: Names ending in {-a} are complicated. Some native roots and assimilated non-native roots are used as names, and they decline in reference to males: gjhnhtn yb ,jktt yb vtytt rfr cfvjuj Zujls -- ukfdyjuj

34 Kim 1970.

156 A Reference Grammar of Russian

gfkfxf yfitq cnhfys ‘a portrait of no one less than Iagoda himself -- the main hangman of our country’.

Names ending in {-a} borrowed from other Slavic languages and assimilated names in {-a} decline in reference to men:

[49]	abkmv Dfqls	a film of Wajda
[50]	pf Cvtnfyjq	after Smetana
[51]	j Zyt :b;rt	ˇ
		about Jan Zizkaˇ
[52]	dvtifntkmcndj <thbb;	the interference of Beria; murder by Beria;
	e,bqcndj <thbtq; <thb/	Zhukov arrested Beria
	fhtcnjdfk :erjd
[53]	gtcyb Jrel;fds	the songs of Okudzhava

[54]bcnjhbz Relbhrb; Relbhre the story of Kudirkas; they called Kudirkas

gjpdfkb r yfxfkmybre

in to see the head of the prison

n/hmvs

With less assimilated foreign surnames used in reference to males, there is variation. Certainly many names decline:

[55] gjhnhtns Kjhrb

portraits of Lorca

[56]ghfdbntkmcndj Gfnhbcf the government of Patrice Lumumba

Kevev,s

[57]	gthtl gjkjnyfvb Ujqb	before the canvases of Goya
[58]	≤Ghjwtcc≥ Rfarb	Kafka’s Trial
[59]	;fkb here Nheэ,s;	they shook the hand of Trueba; agreement
	cjukfitybt c Nheэ,jq	with Trueba
[60]	hf,jnf Bjibvehs;	the work of Yoshimura; unknown to
	ytbpdtcnyj Bjibveht	Yoshimura
but declension is not automatic for unfamilar names.
[61]	d hf,jnf[ {bltwevb	in the works of Hidezumi Terazawa
	Nthfpfdf

Occasionally, there is variation for a given name, within one text:

[62]Lt-Gthhtue jcdj,jlbkb De Perregaux was freed before the end of

ljchjxyj.	his sentence.
[63] yjvth Lt-Gthhtuf	the hotel room of de Perregaux

Stress on the {-ƒ} makes declension impossible, even in widely used nouns:

[64]≤Nhb veirtnthf≥ L/vƒ

[65]d bcreccndt Эlufhf Ltuƒ

[66]ndjhxtcndj Pjkz´

[67]ljxm V.B. Gtnbgƒ

The Three Musketeers of Dumas in the art of Edgar Degas the creative work of Zola

the daughter of M. I. Petipa

Inf lectional morphology 157

The trend is evidently towards non-agreement. A work from the turn of the previous century declined Lope de Vega ([68]) but contemporary speakers do not:

[68]dkbzybt yf Kjgt lt Dtue; influence on Lope de Vega; activity of Lope

ltzntkmyjcnm Kjgt lt Dtub; de Vega; interest in Lope de Vega; written

bynthtc r Kjgt lt Dtut;

about Lope de Vega

yfgbcfyj j Kjgt lt Dtut

In reference to women, only highly assimilated names in {-a} decline ([69] vs. [70--71]).

[69] ,bjuhfabz K.Y. Cnjkbws

the life of L. N. Stolitsa

[70]e Vfkmds Kfylf; Vfkmde in the possession of Malva Landa; [they]

Kfylf dyjdm fhtcnjdfkb	arrested Malva Landa again
[71] d ndjhxtcndt V. {zhvf	in the creative work of M. Harma

[72]dvtcnj Rfhkjnns <hbfywf; in place of Carlotta Brianca; to replace

pfvtybnm Rfhkjnne	Carlotta Brianca
{?<hbfywe <hbfywf}

The accusative was actually used in [72], from a memoir written by the paramour of Nicholas I, but for modern speakers the accusative is only <hbƒywf for this famous ballerina.

Russian is generous with respect to first names that refer to females, and declines any noun whose nominative can be construed as ending in {-a} in Russian:

[73]F hfpdt Geirby yt gbcfk j Did not Pushkin write about Cleopatra?

Rktjgfnht?

[74]	c Bylbhjq Ufylb	with Indira Gandhi
[75]	c Cbvjyjq Cbymjht	with Simone Signoret

Summaries of soap operas in the new Russian-American press decline the names of heroines <trrf, Эhbrf, <tkbylf, Ahfyxtcrf, because the nominative ends in {-a}, but they do not decline first names referring to women that end in consonants or vowels other than {-a}: Hfrtkm, Jgfk, {эqkb.

The usage of surnames discussed above can be summarized in tabular form (see Table 3.37).

Overall, names decline to the extent they are understood to fit the Russian pattern of gender and declension. The different forms of gender need to line up: it must be possible to assign the noun to a recognizable declension class (formal gender), and the referential gender (male vs. female) must be appropriate for the declension class. Names ending in vowels other than {-a} cannot decline at all,

158 A Reference Grammar of Russian

Table 3.37 Declension of surnames

	referring to a man	referring to a woman
Russian surnames	yes	yes
in {-in}, {-ov}	yes: Dfqlf, Ukbyrf, Dtxthrf	yes: Yfdhfnbkjdf
Slavic surnames in {-a}
assimilated surnames in {-a}	yes: Jrel;fdf	rarely yes: Cnjkbwf //
		usually no: <hbfywf
assimilated surnames in {-C}	yes: Ubyp,ehu	no: [Tdutybz] Ubyp,ehu
Slavic surnames in	yes: Ufkbx	no: [Cjyz] Ufyxer
{-iˇc}, {-uk}	yes: Htqufy, L;trcjy,	no: [Rhbc] Эdthn
foreign surnames in {-C}
	Эqyintqy, </y/эkm
foreign surnames in {-a}	often yes: Bjibvehf, Ujqz,	no: [Vbyf] {fhvf
	Kjhrf // no: L/vf
Slavic surnames in {-o}	no: Vfrfhtyrj but pl yes:	no: [Kfhbcf] Cfdxtyrj
	Rexthtyrb
foreign surnames in {-V}	no: Rtyytlb, Lfkb	no: [Bylbhf] Ufylb, Ctymjht

because they fit no declension class; nouns ending in consonants cannot decline in reference to women, there being no feminine gender nouns in Declension<Ia>. Perhaps paradoxically, foreign names in {-a} often decline in reference to men, but not in reference to women -- even though a noun in {-a} would seem to be a perfect candidate for membership as a feminine of Declension<II>.