- My main subject is paremiology (proverb research). I am an independent researcher closely connected to the Finnish Li... moreMy main subject is paremiology (proverb research). I am an independent researcher closely connected to the Finnish Literature Society in Helsinki, Finland. My social psychological dissertation deals with use of proverbs and my other specialization bases on the composing of The Matti Kuusi International Type System of Proverbs. https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/(My main subject is paremiology (proverb research). I am an independent researcher closely connected to the Finnish Literature Society in Helsinki, Finland. My social psychological dissertation deals with use of proverbs and my other specialization bases on the composing of The Matti Kuusi International Type System of Proverbs. https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/)edit
Esitelmä Suomen Kansantietouden Tutkijain Seuran VII Kevätkoulussa 15.-16.5. 2014 Helsingissä
Research Interests:
Proverbs and proverbial phrases are not the best choice for communicating intimate emotions and personal feelings. These are not among the functions of proverbial speech (Lauhakangas 2004). In stead, proverbs and proverbial phrases... more
Proverbs and proverbial phrases are not the best choice for communicating intimate emotions and personal feelings. These are not among the functions of proverbial speech (Lauhakangas 2004). In stead, proverbs and proverbial phrases addressed to persons arouse different feelings. They are often meant to teach or provoke you into correcting your behavior and showing respect to elderly people. Another thing is, how these utterances are understood, accepted and adopted by targeted persons (See e.g. Granbom-Herranen 2008). A Finnish Facebook group 'Aristotele's heel' is dedicated to our language use, especially its missteps and deviations. Thanks to an initiator of a social media group discussion we got the material for this small-scale study. The initiator of the discussion was interested in people's recollection of snubbing proverbial phrases they used to hear when they were young. He wanted to bring to mind sayings that were anything but encouraging. An important subject of discussion is the sense of humor and atmosphere in which proverbs and proverbial sayings are used in family contexts. One aim of the presentation is to show the variation of proverbial sayings used throughout Finland. Another aim is to analyze attitudes towards proverbs and sayings of those participating in the discussion and opinions about the traditional ways of raising children.
Research Interests:
Abstract. The general question of how patterns function in proverb lore is the starting point of this article. Both traditional and unusual patterns of thought seem to be behind the survival and favor of proverb lore. The Matti Kuusi... more
Abstract. The general question of how patterns function in proverb lore is the starting point of this article. Both traditional and unusual patterns of thought seem to be behind the survival and favor of proverb lore. The Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs is used as the source of these linguistic patterns and cognitive models. Cultural comparison and contextual research on unique proverb use is a way to reach a better understanding of the functions and creativity of this speech genre. Proverbs are often rhetorical device for foregrounding statements. Are they still universal argumentative tools that people use when justifying or explaining
their attitudes?
Key words: proverb-types, conceptual structures, socio-logic, argumentation, universality
their attitudes?
Key words: proverb-types, conceptual structures, socio-logic, argumentation, universality
Research Interests:
The premise of this study is to expect that proverbs live by being reinterpreted or transformed to suit pluralistic and ambiguous commonplace situations. The proverbs are either transformed or framed in the situations in order to be... more
The premise of this study is to expect that proverbs live by being reinterpreted or transformed to suit pluralistic and ambiguous commonplace situations. The proverbs are either transformed or framed in the situations in order to be interpreted according to the aims of their users. The content of proverbs, interpreted through metaphors or without, emphasis concrete, reasonable and pre dictable things as esteemed aims. A familiar proverb justifies a decision, which supports traditional procedures. But in ambiguous decision situations these nor mally agreed upon values do not always function. This study aims to clarify, how a familiar proverb pattern may serve as a triggering factor for the acceptance of otherwise doubtful opinions. The Matti Kuusi international typology of proverbs is used for measuring the emphasis of common values in traditional proverb lore. General patterns make impressive modifications possible. The author will demonstrate, how the modifications work in traditio...
Research Interests:
Pitkänlinjan Afrikan tuntija dosentti Raimo Harjula kertailee ja jäsentää itäafrikkalaisten heimokulttuurien sananlaskujen käytännöllistä viisautta uudesta näkökulmasta tuoreimmassa Yliopistopainon kustantamassa kirjassaan Monia sateita... more
Pitkänlinjan Afrikan tuntija dosentti Raimo Harjula kertailee ja jäsentää itäafrikkalaisten heimokulttuurien sananlaskujen käytännöllistä viisautta uudesta näkökulmasta tuoreimmassa Yliopistopainon kustantamassa kirjassaan Monia sateita nähnyt. Afrikkalaisia sananlaskuja ikääntymisen taidosta. Hänen 1960-luvun lopulla saamansa ensikosketus vieraan kulttuurin vaikeasti avautuviin kerrostumiin liittyi sananlaskujen tulkintavaikeuksiin.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
INTRODUCTION The vague difference between proverbs and other constantly repeated sayings has been almost established since Archer Taylor's1 legendary conclusion that only an experienced scholar's intuition ultimately helps to identify an... more
INTRODUCTION
The vague difference between proverbs and other constantly repeated sayings has been almost established since Archer Taylor's1 legendary conclusion that only an experienced scholar's intuition ultimately helps to identify an expression as a proverb. The only commonly agreed distinction between proverbs and other set phrases is that proverbs are expressed as undeniable truth statements. Oxford Dictionary defines 'set phrase' as «an unvarying phrase having a specific meaning, such as ‘raining cats and dogs’, or being the only context in which a word appears». For 'proverb' OD gives a definition: «A short, well-known pithy saying, stating a general truth or piece of advice». From the linguistic or lexicographic point of view it would be reasonable to finish searching for distinctions between proverbs and other set phrases here. But the folkloristic approach to proverb lore
directs us to ask for a special status of proverbs in language use. The general hypothesis to describe the aim of this article is said in an African proverb «Although the river dries up, it preserves its name».
This proverb reminds of the general inclination of human communities to preserve the status of their language resources if those resources are socially functional. The status of proverbs among set phrases will be distinguished by studying the social functions of proverbs and proverb speech.
The vague difference between proverbs and other constantly repeated sayings has been almost established since Archer Taylor's1 legendary conclusion that only an experienced scholar's intuition ultimately helps to identify an expression as a proverb. The only commonly agreed distinction between proverbs and other set phrases is that proverbs are expressed as undeniable truth statements. Oxford Dictionary defines 'set phrase' as «an unvarying phrase having a specific meaning, such as ‘raining cats and dogs’, or being the only context in which a word appears». For 'proverb' OD gives a definition: «A short, well-known pithy saying, stating a general truth or piece of advice». From the linguistic or lexicographic point of view it would be reasonable to finish searching for distinctions between proverbs and other set phrases here. But the folkloristic approach to proverb lore
directs us to ask for a special status of proverbs in language use. The general hypothesis to describe the aim of this article is said in an African proverb «Although the river dries up, it preserves its name».
This proverb reminds of the general inclination of human communities to preserve the status of their language resources if those resources are socially functional. The status of proverbs among set phrases will be distinguished by studying the social functions of proverbs and proverb speech.
Research Interests:
The general question of how patterns function in proverb lore is the starting point of this article. Both traditional and unusual patterns of thought seem to be behind the survival and favor of proverb lore. The Matti Kuusi international... more
The general question of how patterns function in proverb lore is the starting point of this article. Both traditional and unusual patterns of thought seem to be behind the survival and favor of proverb lore. The Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs is used as the source of these linguistic patterns and cognitive models. Cultural comparison and contextual research on unique proverb use is a way to reach a better understanding of the functions and creativity of this speech genre. Proverbs are often rhetorical device for foregrounding statements. Are they
still universal argumentative tools that people use when justifying or explaining their attitudes?
Key words: proverb-types, conceptual structures, socio-logic, argumentation, universality
still universal argumentative tools that people use when justifying or explaining their attitudes?
Key words: proverb-types, conceptual structures, socio-logic, argumentation, universality
Research Interests:
The premise of this study is to expect that proverbs live by being rein- terpreted or transformed to suit pluralistic and ambiguous commonplace situations. The proverbs are either transformed or framed in the situations in order to be... more
The premise of this study is to expect that proverbs live by being rein-
terpreted or transformed to suit pluralistic and ambiguous commonplace situations. The proverbs are either transformed or framed in the situations in order to be interpreted according to the aims of their users. The content of proverbs, interpreted through metaphors or without, emphasis concrete, reasonable and predictable things as esteemed aims. A familiar proverb justifies a decision, which supports traditional procedures. But in ambiguous decision situations these normally agreed upon values do not always function. This study aims to clarify, how a familiar proverb pattern may serve as a triggering factor for the acceptance of otherwise doubtful opinions. The Matti Kuusi international typology of proverbs is used for measuring the emphasis of common values in traditional proverb lore. Gen-
eral patterns make impressive modifications possible. The author will demonstrate, how the modifications work in traditional and social media.
Key words: typology of proverbs, proverb usage, patterns of proverbs, social media
terpreted or transformed to suit pluralistic and ambiguous commonplace situations. The proverbs are either transformed or framed in the situations in order to be interpreted according to the aims of their users. The content of proverbs, interpreted through metaphors or without, emphasis concrete, reasonable and predictable things as esteemed aims. A familiar proverb justifies a decision, which supports traditional procedures. But in ambiguous decision situations these normally agreed upon values do not always function. This study aims to clarify, how a familiar proverb pattern may serve as a triggering factor for the acceptance of otherwise doubtful opinions. The Matti Kuusi international typology of proverbs is used for measuring the emphasis of common values in traditional proverb lore. Gen-
eral patterns make impressive modifications possible. The author will demonstrate, how the modifications work in traditional and social media.
Key words: typology of proverbs, proverb usage, patterns of proverbs, social media
Research Interests:
Finnish literal culture is not as old and sophisticated as in many European countries, but we have exceptional collections of oral culture in our folklore archives. My intention is to detect different contexts of proverb use both in old... more
Finnish literal culture is not as old and sophisticated as in many European countries, but we have exceptional collections of oral culture in our folklore archives. My intention is to detect different contexts of proverb use both in old Finnish folk poetry, which is the basis for our national epic and on the other hand to find proverb occurrences in new means of communication. My claim or belief is that proverbs have since ancient times been part of everyday poetry in our culture. Although Finnish proverbs are mostly loan proverbs, at least synonyms to European and Asian proverb types, they have had their own life in the variety of Finnish use of language. The knowledge of real contexts of social interaction is of course limited concerning ancient times, but importance of proverbs can be speculated. A quite new opportunity to get knowledge of proverb use is offered on internet forums. Some old Finnish proverb wordings have disappeared from everyday usage, but others still exist as such. Finnish people seem to prefer proverb-like sayings to ordinary expressions in many connections. I relate people's skill to use proverbs to the properties of social skills and abilities. Collective expressions and their modifications have become part of people's personal means of expression.
Research Interests:
Pavel Kats from Jerusalem and Outi Lauhakangas from Helsinki arranged a general session on proverbial databases and their future possibilities during the ICP09 in Tavira. They brought forward different approaches making international... more
Pavel Kats from Jerusalem and Outi Lauhakangas from Helsinki arranged a general session on proverbial databases and their future possibilities during the ICP09 in Tavira. They brought forward different approaches making international proverb collections in the traditional way and by the new technology. Both Kats and Lauhakangas have experience in constructing proverb databases. Lauhakangas has transferred the database system of Matti Kuusi's large international proverb corpus with bibliography of proverb collections to the Internet. She also planned a classification system with academician Kuusi during the nineties. Kats has realized a multilingual database of proverbs called WikiProverbs designed directly for users of the Internet. The aim of their session in
Research Interests:
The recent history of the paremiology of Finnish and Estonian languages has been quite active, although we do not yet have published together much. The previous great work of academician Matti Kuusi, academician Arvo Krikmann et al. was... more
The recent history of the paremiology of Finnish and Estonian languages has been quite active, although we do not yet have published together much. The previous great work of academician Matti Kuusi, academician Arvo Krikmann et al. was Proverbia Septentrionalia (Kuusi et al. 1985). It is an analytic collection of 900 most common and primarily mutual proverbs of the Baltic-Finnish peoples or the Finno-Ugric cognate languages spoken around the Baltic Sea. The follow-up of that study started ten years later on Krikmann’s initiative. This time the proverbs chosen to the corpus were less common than in the first stage. The big database brought about and the analysis of each proverb has been in use but neither digitally nor as a book published.
The challenge of defining mutual proverb types of close cognate languages led us to study in greater detail the criteria for mutuality. I have described this process through our correspondence with Krikmann during these years. (Lauhakangas 2010) The contacts and shared history with other neighbors speaking Indo-European languages has done this study interesting from the point of view of the international proverb lore. I will exemplify the differences and similarities of the Baltic-Finnish and the Indo-European (Swedish, German and Russian) proverbs in this article. The best tool for this analysis is the Matti Kuusi international typology and database of proverbs. (Lauhakangas 2001)
Key-words: proverb types; proverb ideas; Baltic-Finnish languages; Finno-Ugric cognate languages; comparative research; typology
The challenge of defining mutual proverb types of close cognate languages led us to study in greater detail the criteria for mutuality. I have described this process through our correspondence with Krikmann during these years. (Lauhakangas 2010) The contacts and shared history with other neighbors speaking Indo-European languages has done this study interesting from the point of view of the international proverb lore. I will exemplify the differences and similarities of the Baltic-Finnish and the Indo-European (Swedish, German and Russian) proverbs in this article. The best tool for this analysis is the Matti Kuusi international typology and database of proverbs. (Lauhakangas 2001)
Key-words: proverb types; proverb ideas; Baltic-Finnish languages; Finno-Ugric cognate languages; comparative research; typology
Research Interests:
The aim of my paper is to deal with classification of functions of proverbs in social interaction. My additional aim is to show how different approaches – from different scholarly or other points of view – lead to different emphases of... more
The aim of my paper is to deal with classification of functions of proverbs in social interaction. My additional aim is to show how different approaches – from different scholarly or other points of view – lead to different emphases of how we interpret people’s motives to use proverbs.
In my dissertation (Lauhakangas 2004) I took for my task to construct a structure as multidimensional as possible to illustrate the functions of proverbial speech. I wanted to test with contextual examples the observations and conclusions made by previous scholars. I went
through several studies from different cultures. At the same time I kept a diary of contextual use of proverbs in newspapers, TV-programs and everyday situations. I analyzed previous contextual examples and compared other scholars’ points of views. Based on this knowledge I decided to make a main division to three points of view.
In my dissertation (Lauhakangas 2004) I took for my task to construct a structure as multidimensional as possible to illustrate the functions of proverbial speech. I wanted to test with contextual examples the observations and conclusions made by previous scholars. I went
through several studies from different cultures. At the same time I kept a diary of contextual use of proverbs in newspapers, TV-programs and everyday situations. I analyzed previous contextual examples and compared other scholars’ points of views. Based on this knowledge I decided to make a main division to three points of view.
Research Interests:
The personification of an animal is a quite reasonable way of thinking even for modern human beings. We might call this also anthropocentrism or humanizing of nature and things. In proverb-lore of northern folks there are also more... more
The personification of an animal is a quite reasonable way of thinking even for modern human beings. We might call this also anthropocentrism or humanizing of nature and things. In proverb-lore of northern folks there are also more interesting types of personification. Things, which in our point of view are spiritless entities or abstract concepts, have been treated as beings with clear opinions. They tell their comments in forms of proverbs. The best known examples of these proverbs are those with personifications of red-letter days, but we find other kind of abstract subjects speaking in proverbial voice, too. Wellerisms are also compared to this special kind of proverbs. Is this a universal way of thinking and do most cultures with proverb-lore also have personification proverbs?
Research Interests:
The aim of this paper is to map the use of proverbs during one week (May 7−13, 2012) in newspaper texts. In order to increase reliability of conclusions made by quite small material the 2012 material was compared to proverbial texts and... more
The aim of this paper is to map the use of proverbs during one week (May 7−13, 2012) in newspaper texts. In order to increase reliability of conclusions made by quite small material the 2012 material was compared to proverbial texts and contexts during another week (February 11−17, 2013). Proverbs are defined according to their usage and recognition in proportion to main databases of proverbs. Thus, phrases and other imagery are excluded, if they have no connection point to that definition. Focus is on living use of traditional moulds of proverbs. The analysis of collected material with text contexts concentrates on differentiating the text genres, in which proverbs and proverb-like expressions are used. The object of study, Helsingin Sanomat is published in the capital of Finland, but it is also the most widely read Finnish newspaper. It has c. 900|000 readers all over the country (and abroad) and we can assume that its articles and stories are edited to be generally interesting. Results of this study verified that journalists in Helsingin Sanomat newspaper prefer using an interviewee's proverbial expression or an authentic line of a person they tell about. There were quite few proverbs or their fragment used in newspaper texts: only c. 20 items in each material. The most common text genre included in four different departments of the newspaper proved to be political writing. Proverbs in letters to the editor were not as general as was expected. Only in the follow-up study proverbs were found in send letters to confirm opinions. There are individual editors, in the 2012 material a sports editor who used his repertoire of proverbs and phrases to flavor and intensify his text. Writers and interviewees use mostly proverb fragments by which they refer to proverb ideas.
Research Interests:
Proverbs at their best are human universals. According to the definition of the proverb genre an apt proverb can be applicable to different situations without losing its freshness during centuries. The applicability ideal connected to... more
Proverbs at their best are human universals. According to the definition of the proverb genre an apt proverb can be applicable to different situations without losing its freshness during centuries. The applicability ideal connected to proverbs shows that their rhetoric depends a lot on their generalizing capacity. If it is possible to interpret a situation through some general, regular or seemingly natural statement, the expression has social value. Generalizations are also the main reason for generating stereotypes and prejudices of "others" compared to "us". Opposites as linguistic means of proverbs also need generalizing. This presentation deals both with linguistic means and social functions of proverbs.
Research Interests:
The articles of the six previous ICP Actas-Proceedings volumes will be scanned through in order to find new concepts applied by the scholars contributing to paremiology in the Tavira colloquiums. The first task is to read anew some basic... more
The articles of the six previous ICP Actas-Proceedings volumes will be scanned through in order to find new concepts applied by the scholars contributing to paremiology in the Tavira colloquiums. The first task is to read anew some basic texts of three bygone paremiological classics, Archer Taylor, Grigori Permyakov and Matti Kuusi and reappraise their observations, concepts and generalizations. Have new approaches of linguistics, folkloristics, literary research, study of cultural history and social psychology opened new ways to understand the genre of proverbs and the former findings? And in turn, have some important remarks and observations of the classics have passed unnoticed? Are there misunderstandings and bias concerning former research and terminology that should be brought up? The second task is to survey the published ICP articles in order to get an overview of the aims our participants have in relation to paremiology or to research dealing with proverbs. This article is an analysis with some statement in order to lay outlines for further discussion.
Research Interests:
What does Emanuel Strauss' huge dictionary of European proverbs tell us about European proverb-lore? Strauss published the collection in three volumes in 1994 and each part consists of over 600 pages. Nowadays, the dictionary is digitized... more
What does Emanuel Strauss' huge dictionary of European proverbs tell us about European proverb-lore? Strauss published the collection in three volumes in 1994 and each part consists of over 600 pages. Nowadays, the dictionary is digitized and available online (www.questia.com). In my presentation I compared Strauss' semantic clusters with Matti Kuusi's international type system of proverbs but I found this inappropriate, because Strauss' dictionary wasn't systematic enough. I went through all the 1804 entries in Strauss' collection and added references to Kuusi's database. Some of Kuusi's subgroups seemed to be missing but on the other hand I had to add new Straussian proverb types into some type groups. I'll discuss reasons for the lack of Strauss' references to Kuusi's international thematic groups as well as Strauss' European observations that hadn't as yet been a part of Kuusi's system.
Research Interests:
Use of proverbs is largely based on felicitous hits. Right timing and fitness are important in proverb use as well as in good jokes. This does not mean that proverb use always had connection to humor. There are much more functions of... more
Use of proverbs is largely based on felicitous hits. Right timing and fitness are important in proverb use as well as in good jokes. This does not mean that proverb use always had connection to humor. There are much more functions of proverb use that serve other needs of social interaction. If we listen to or read proverb texts as such, we often find thumbnail descriptions of social situations or interpersonal (most often inter-animal) setups. Very often they are hyperbolas or otherwise exceptional in their wording. This makes them material for comics. Familiar proverbs come to situations that include some kind of tension and often release it. Proverbs or proverbial expressions are sometimes used to mockery. Thus, releasing of emotional tension is realized in cost of minorities, retarded or otherwise weaker people. But humor of proverb use also gives a possibility to laugh at people in higher social classes. Sometimes humor is created when an old proverb gives a new point of view to unequal relations. By studying the use and variation of one proverbial expression on the Internet it was possible to show the way, how use of proverbial expressions and humor associated to person's own background and community is connected to his or her identity.
Research Interests:
The aim of the article is to study the use of proverbs and their modifications on the Internet. The author combines her social psychological point of view to the ethnologic research-based knowledge of proverb use. Former conclusions made... more
The aim of the article is to study the use of proverbs and their modifications on the Internet. The author combines her social psychological point of view to the ethnologic research-based knowledge of proverb use. Former conclusions made about the functions of proverb use in speech situations lead the research to the discussion forums on the Internet. Commenting on "The question of the day" in a Finnish newspaper turned out to be an ideal substratum for proverbs. The question was dicotomic, and there was a need to give reasons to one's answer. No clear facts about discharging the profitable author were available and her personal style evoked strong feelings. The research data, 344 comments, dealt with the break of Sofi Oksanen, a famous Finnish novelist, with her publishing house. The base for proverb use was favourable, since proverbs were employed in 17 % of the comments. Texts were compared to and recognized with the Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs. In all, there were 46 different proverb types and some phraseal expressions. A surprising result was that only a few modifications of proverbs were used.
Research Interests:
There are numerous possibilities to approach animals in proverbs. An interesting article is written by our former colleague Arvo Krikmann (2001) Proverbs on Animal Identity. Typological Memoirs. Folklore: Electronic Journal of Folklore,... more
There are numerous possibilities to approach animals in proverbs. An interesting article is written by our former colleague Arvo Krikmann (2001) Proverbs on Animal Identity. Typological Memoirs. Folklore: Electronic Journal of Folklore, Vol. 17, pp. 7–84. In our colloquiums on proverbs in Tavira we have heard presentations of animal proverbs at least about the following topics, published in the corresponding proceeding books: Anete Costa Fereira’s Popular sayings about Amazon animals (2017), Simion Cristea’s Os animais nos provérbios – Animals in proverbs (2016), František Čermák’s and Hilkka Lindroos’ Dog and cat proverbs: a comparison of English, Czech, Finnish and other languages (2011) continuing the next year (2012) and Ana Vrajitoru’s Proverbs in literature: the use of proverbs in Chinua Achebe’s Things fall apart (2010).
Animals can be observed as signs of weather or calendar prognosis. We can find the origin or coexistence of many animal proverbs in fables. Domestic animals have different values and positions in each culture. In some cultures dogs are man’s best friends or workmates and in another culture their main character is to eat excrement and they are kept far from people. If women are juxtaposed in the same proverb where animals are mentioned, we can ask about the message of the proverb.
In this article it is studied in which theme groups of the Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs the animal metaphors are most frequent. What do animals represent in the speech dealing with human characters and interaction?
Key-words: animal proverbs, typology, Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs, Arvo Krikmann
Animals can be observed as signs of weather or calendar prognosis. We can find the origin or coexistence of many animal proverbs in fables. Domestic animals have different values and positions in each culture. In some cultures dogs are man’s best friends or workmates and in another culture their main character is to eat excrement and they are kept far from people. If women are juxtaposed in the same proverb where animals are mentioned, we can ask about the message of the proverb.
In this article it is studied in which theme groups of the Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs the animal metaphors are most frequent. What do animals represent in the speech dealing with human characters and interaction?
Key-words: animal proverbs, typology, Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs, Arvo Krikmann
Research Interests:
The first Interdisciplinary Colloquium on Proverbs in November 2007 brought together a great variety of themes and people from Europe and other continents. Proverbs brought together enthusiasts of culture, teachers, folklorists, students... more
The first Interdisciplinary Colloquium on Proverbs in November 2007 brought together a great variety of themes and people from Europe and other continents. Proverbs brought together enthusiasts of culture, teachers, folklorists, students of literature, librarians, philologists, linguists,
psychologists, ethnographers and lexicographers. As organizers of the meeting we have now good reasons to continue this synergy and maintain Tavira as a home town of paremiologists! An important aim of the Tavira Colloquium was to show how traditional aesthetics of any language finds its way to everyday discussion and texts. Many presentations touched just this question. Different experiences and approaches to study people’s ways to remember, use and modify proverbs opened quite new challenges for further research.
psychologists, ethnographers and lexicographers. As organizers of the meeting we have now good reasons to continue this synergy and maintain Tavira as a home town of paremiologists! An important aim of the Tavira Colloquium was to show how traditional aesthetics of any language finds its way to everyday discussion and texts. Many presentations touched just this question. Different experiences and approaches to study people’s ways to remember, use and modify proverbs opened quite new challenges for further research.
Research Interests:
The aim of the article is to study the use of proverbs and their modifications on the Internet. The author combines her social psychological point of view with the ethnological research-based knowledge of proverb use. Former conclusions... more
The aim of the article is to study the use of proverbs and their modifications on the Internet. The author combines her social psychological point of view with the ethnological research-based knowledge of proverb use. Former conclusions that were reached about the functions of proverb use in speech situations led the research to the discussion forums on the Internet. Commenting on ”the question of the day” in a Finnish newspaper turned out to be an ideal substratum for proverbs. The particular question of the day dealt with the break of Sofi Oksanen, the famous Finnish novelist, with her publishing house. The question was posed in a dichotomic way, and it clearly provoked the need to substantiate the answer. There were few facts available about the case in question, and the personal style of the author evoked strong feelings. The research data amounted to 344 comments. The base for proverb use was favourable, since proverbs were employed in 17 % of the comments. Texts were compared ...
Research Interests:
The author of this presentation have already in the earlier Colloquia dealt with the functions of proverbs in social interaction. For example, humor or easy generalizations seem to belong to use of proverbs. Proverbs often belong to... more
The author of this presentation have already in the earlier Colloquia dealt with the functions of proverbs in social interaction. For example, humor or easy generalizations seem to belong to use of proverbs. Proverbs often belong to contexts, where there is some tension between people or uncertainty of the justification of action. Although proverbs may not have originally got their form as answers to questions, it is obvious that they have often been used as responses to real or imagined questions. We can study differences of cultures concerning the social status of those who are expected to make questions and give answers. How does this reflect to discussion in the public forums like those in the Internet?
Research Interests:
Proverbs are a genre of folklore that seems to be common to all cultures around the world. They may have always had different status in social interaction in different cultures. In my case, their importance in communication and as a tool... more
Proverbs are a genre of folklore that seems to be common to all cultures around the world. They may have always had different status in social interaction in different cultures. In my case, their importance in communication and as a tool of social control has changed during times. The functions of proverb use have certainly changed according to changes in the means of livelihood in any culture. Even the shared meaning of an outwardly same proverb in one culture may differ from the shared meaning in another culture - and during times. We may search for general reasons for cultural differences in attitudes towards proverbs and proverb use.
But finally, can we claim that the importance of proverbs and proverb like sayings has generally decreased in people's minds?
https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/ the new address of the typology and DB
But finally, can we claim that the importance of proverbs and proverb like sayings has generally decreased in people's minds?
https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/ the new address of the typology and DB
Outi Lauhakangas had the privilege to communicate with academician Arvo Krikmann during the Finnish-Estonian project on common proverb types of the Balto-Finnic people, Proverbia Septentrionalia II. In the beginning of the project she was... more
Outi Lauhakangas had the privilege to communicate with academician Arvo Krikmann during the Finnish-Estonian project on common proverb types of the Balto-Finnic people, Proverbia Septentrionalia II. In the beginning of the project she was eager to ask, by e-mail, anything that seemed interesting for close differentiation and Krikmann was patient enough to answer her, often in thorough detail. Lauhakangas obtained a new approach to proverb types that differed from her routines for dealing with the international type-system of proverbs by academician Matti Kuusi. She had to look at proverbs and the motives for using them from a closer perspective. Could we really understand the situations and archaic mentality connected to some cryptic texts without any further information or supporting evidence given by authentic users? And on the other hand, how exclusive has the use of some proverbs originally been? Lauhakangas reexamines and reappraises the intensive paremiological correspondence from a temporal distance after some experience of proverb studies.
Research Interests:
The database and classification of proverbs presented in this article is named “The Matti Kuusi International Type System of proverbs” (Lauhakangas 2001). The database consists of three core elements: 1. A special library of proverb... more
The database and classification of proverbs presented in this article is named “The Matti Kuusi International Type System of proverbs” (Lauhakangas 2001). The database consists of three core elements:
1. A special library of proverb collections in the folklore archives of the Finnish Literature Society in Helsinki,
2. A database of international proverb types and literature references on the internet,
3. A thematic and structural classification of international proverbs.
The author has published 2001 a book "The Matti Kuusi International Type System of Proverbs". FF Communications 275. Helsinki: Academia Scientiarum Fennica. *)the book is also available in Acad.edu
The new address of the typology and database is https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/
1. A special library of proverb collections in the folklore archives of the Finnish Literature Society in Helsinki,
2. A database of international proverb types and literature references on the internet,
3. A thematic and structural classification of international proverbs.
The author has published 2001 a book "The Matti Kuusi International Type System of Proverbs". FF Communications 275. Helsinki: Academia Scientiarum Fennica. *)the book is also available in Acad.edu
The new address of the typology and database is https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
In this paper, we shall go through different ways of classifying proverb material, both unilingual and multilingual. The history, background, aims and motives of these efforts will broaden the perspective to two serious attempts to... more
In this paper, we shall go through different ways of classifying proverb material, both
unilingual and multilingual. The history, background, aims and motives of these efforts
will broaden the perspective to two serious attempts to systemize international proverb lore and open the way for new attempts to categorize this special genre of folklore.Secondly, a critical point of view to a huge number of popular and systematic proverb collections, cultural comparisons and multilingual data banks will be offered. The idea is to develop the proverb literacy of readers so that they are able to analyze, evaluate and create questions concerning their own research material. Ultimately, we shall provide a summary of the different needs in constructing categorizations of proverb corpora and also review the possible bias in applying conventional classification methods to proverbs. On the base of these conclusions we shall try to make an outline of the best possible universal database of proverbs that should take into account culture-specific challenges and discuss the practical conditions for it.
These three aims tell about the difficulty of scientific proverb research but perhaps
particularly these challenges and open questions have been one reason for the
constant enthusiasm for collecting and interpreting proverbs through the centuries.
Proverbs have become separate items like esteemed quotations that seem to bear
probed wisdom and useful knowledge within them. This industrious, prolonged, large
scale and often purposeful collecting has resulted in a huge number of collections of
proverbs. Most of them are either unilingual or contrastive between two languages but
there have also long been multilingual collections. Paremiologists like to construct
order in their material that seems to tell more about universal human experience than
any other source. NOTE. The new address of M.Kuusi's typology and DB:
https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/
unilingual and multilingual. The history, background, aims and motives of these efforts
will broaden the perspective to two serious attempts to systemize international proverb lore and open the way for new attempts to categorize this special genre of folklore.Secondly, a critical point of view to a huge number of popular and systematic proverb collections, cultural comparisons and multilingual data banks will be offered. The idea is to develop the proverb literacy of readers so that they are able to analyze, evaluate and create questions concerning their own research material. Ultimately, we shall provide a summary of the different needs in constructing categorizations of proverb corpora and also review the possible bias in applying conventional classification methods to proverbs. On the base of these conclusions we shall try to make an outline of the best possible universal database of proverbs that should take into account culture-specific challenges and discuss the practical conditions for it.
These three aims tell about the difficulty of scientific proverb research but perhaps
particularly these challenges and open questions have been one reason for the
constant enthusiasm for collecting and interpreting proverbs through the centuries.
Proverbs have become separate items like esteemed quotations that seem to bear
probed wisdom and useful knowledge within them. This industrious, prolonged, large
scale and often purposeful collecting has resulted in a huge number of collections of
proverbs. Most of them are either unilingual or contrastive between two languages but
there have also long been multilingual collections. Paremiologists like to construct
order in their material that seems to tell more about universal human experience than
any other source. NOTE. The new address of M.Kuusi's typology and DB:
https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
In this work the author will describe the background of the construction of the Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs. Kuusi's different approaches (binary oppositions, basic images and formulae) are discussed. The thematic... more
In this work the author will describe the background of the construction of the Matti Kuusi international type system of proverbs. Kuusi's different approaches (binary oppositions, basic images and formulae) are discussed. The thematic classification and its problems are gone through. The possibilities of cross-references as alternative bases for classification is considered. The subgroups are compared by the character and structure of proverb types. One result of this study is the recognition of c. 700 universal proverb types. Literature references are an essential part of the Matti Kuusi database. The proverb collections are introduced.
NOTE. The new address of Kuusi's typology and DB is: https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/
NOTE. The new address of Kuusi's typology and DB is: https://www.mattikuusiproverbtypology.fi/