Estonian language: Difference between revisions
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imported>Absolutiva Changing short description from "Finnic language mostly spoken in Estonia" to "Finnic language" |
imported>AnomieBOT m Dating maintenance tags: {{Citation needed}} |
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| nativename = {{lang|et|eesti keel}} | | nativename = {{lang|et|eesti keel}} | ||
| states = [[Estonia]] | | states = [[Estonia]] | ||
| region = | | region = Northern Europe | ||
| ethnicity = [[Estonians]] | | ethnicity = [[Estonians]] | ||
| speakers = {{sigfig|1.244850|2}} million | | speakers = {{sigfig|1.244850|2}} million | ||
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| fam2 = [[Finnic languages|Finnic]] | | fam2 = [[Finnic languages|Finnic]] | ||
| fam3 = Southern Finnic | | fam3 = Southern Finnic | ||
| script = [[Latin script|Latin]] ([[Estonian alphabet]])<br>[[Estonian Braille]] | | script = [[Latin script|Latin]] ([[Estonian alphabet]])<br />[[Estonian Braille]] | ||
| nation = | | nation = {{flag|Estonia}}<br />{{flag|European Union}} | ||
| agency = [[Institute of the Estonian Language]] / {{lang|et|Eesti Keele Instituut}} | | agency = [[Institute of the Estonian Language]] / {{lang|et|Eesti Keele Instituut}} | ||
| dia1 = North (Standard) Estonian | | dia1 = North (Standard) Estonian | ||
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==Classification== | ==Classification== | ||
Estonian belongs to the [[Finnic languages|Finnic]] (a.k.a. Baltic Finnic) branch of the [[Uralic languages|Uralic]] (a.k.a. Uralian, or [[Finno-Ugric languages|Finno-Ugric]])<ref>"Finno-Ugric" is sometimes used as a synonym for "Uralic".{{Cite journal |last=Bakró-Nagy |first=Marianne |author-link=Marianne Bakró-Nagy|date=2012 |title=The Uralic Languages |url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/rbph_0035-0818_2012_num_90_3_8272 |journal=Revue belge de Philologie et d'Histoire |volume=90 |issue=3 |pages=1001–1027 |doi=10.3406/rbph.2012.8272}}</ref> [[language family]]. Other Finnic languages include [[Finnish language|Finnish]] and several [[endangered language]]s spoken around the [[Baltic Sea]] and in northwestern Russia. Estonian is typically subclassified as a Southern Finnic language, and it is the second-most-spoken language among all the Finnic languages. | |||
Alongside Finnish, [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]] and [[Maltese language|Maltese]], Estonian is one of the only four (out of 24) [[Languages of the European Union|official languages of the European Union]] that are not [[Indo-European language]]s.{{ | Alongside Finnish, [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]] and [[Maltese language|Maltese]], Estonian is one of the only four (out of 24) [[Languages of the European Union|official languages of the European Union]] that are not [[Indo-European language]]s.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Language and Nationality: Social Inferences, Cultural Differences, and Linguistic Misconceptions|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kPdIEAAAQBAJ|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|date=2021-09-23|isbn=978-1-350-07165-0|language=en|first=Pietro|last=Bortone|pages=214}}</ref> | ||
In terms of [[Morphology (linguistics)|linguistic morphology]], Estonian is a predominantly [[agglutinative language]]. The loss of word-final sounds is extensive, and this has made its inflectional morphology markedly more [[Fusional language|fusional]], especially with respect to noun and adjective inflection.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ehala |first=Martin |date=2009 |title=Linguistic Strategies and Markedness in Estonian Morphology |journal=STUF – Language Typology and Universals |volume=62 |issue=1–2 |pages=29–48 |doi=10.1524/stuf.2009.0003 |s2cid=121233571}}</ref> The transitional form from an agglutinating to a fusional language is a common feature of Estonian typologically over the course of history with the development of a rich morphological system.<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last1=Rehm |first1=Georg |last2=Uszkoreit |first2=Hans |title=The Estonian Language in the Digital Age |chapter=Language Technology Support for Estonian |date=2012 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-642-30784-3 |series=White Paper Series |location=Berlin |pages=47–64 |doi=10.1007/978-3-642-30785-0_9}}</ref> | In terms of [[Morphology (linguistics)|linguistic morphology]], Estonian is a predominantly [[agglutinative language]]. The loss of word-final sounds is extensive, and this has made its inflectional morphology markedly more [[Fusional language|fusional]], especially with respect to noun and adjective inflection.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ehala |first=Martin |date=2009 |title=Linguistic Strategies and Markedness in Estonian Morphology |journal=STUF – Language Typology and Universals |volume=62 |issue=1–2 |pages=29–48 |doi=10.1524/stuf.2009.0003 |s2cid=121233571}}</ref> The transitional form from an agglutinating to a fusional language is a common feature of Estonian typologically over the course of history with the development of a rich morphological system.<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last1=Rehm |first1=Georg |last2=Uszkoreit |first2=Hans |title=The Estonian Language in the Digital Age |chapter=Language Technology Support for Estonian |date=2012 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-642-30784-3 |series=White Paper Series |location=Berlin |pages=47–64 |doi=10.1007/978-3-642-30785-0_9}}</ref> | ||
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During the Medieval and Early Modern periods, Estonian accepted many loanwords from [[Germanic languages]], mainly from [[Middle Low German]] (Middle Saxon) and, after the 16th-century Protestant [[Reformation]], from the [[Standard German]] language. | During the Medieval and Early Modern periods, Estonian accepted many loanwords from [[Germanic languages]], mainly from [[Middle Low German]] (Middle Saxon) and, after the 16th-century Protestant [[Reformation]], from the [[Standard German]] language. | ||
[[File:EstonianGrammar1637.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9| | [[File:EstonianGrammar1637.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|[[Estonian grammar|Estonian Grammar]] by [[Heinrich Stahl]], published in [[Tallinn]] (Reval) in 1637]] | ||
[[File:Perno Postimees, Nr 1.png|thumb|In 1857, the first Estonian weekly newspaper ''[[ | [[File:Perno Postimees, Nr 1.png|thumb|In 1857, editor [[Johann Voldemar Jannsen]] of the first Estonian-language [[weekly newspaper]] ''[[Perno Postimees]]'' welcomed readers with ''"Terre, armas Eesti rahwas!"'' ("Hello, dear Estonian people!")]] | ||
[[File:Russa literacy 1897.jpg|thumb|According to the [[1897 census]] 96.1% of the native Estonian-speaking population (age 10 and older, roughly equally for males and females) was [[literate]].]] | [[File:Russa literacy 1897.jpg|thumb|According to the [[1897 census]] 96.1% of the native Estonian-speaking population (age 10 and older, roughly equally for males and females) was [[literate]].]] | ||
[[File:Estonian language in the Russian Empire (1897).svg|thumb|Geographic distribution of Estonian in the Russian Empire according to the [[1897 census]]]] | [[File:Estonian language in the Russian Empire (1897).svg|thumb|Geographic distribution of Estonian in the Russian Empire according to the [[1897 census]]]] | ||
The oldest written records of the Estonian language date from the 13th century. The "Originates Livoniae" in the ''[[Livonian Chronicle of Henry]]'' contains Estonian place names, words and fragments of sentences. | |||
===Estonian literature=== | ===Estonian literature=== | ||
{{main article|Estonian literature}} | {{main article|Estonian literature}} | ||
The earliest extant samples of connected (north) Estonian have been found in the [[Kullamaa Manuscript]] ("Kullamaa prayers") dating from 1524 and 1528.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kurman |first=George |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=owQBH74N8CIC |title=The Development of Written Estonian |date=1997 |publisher=RoutledgeCurzon |location=London |isbn= | The earliest extant samples of connected (north) Estonian have been found in the [[Kullamaa Manuscript]] ("Kullamaa prayers") dating from 1524 and 1528.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kurman |first=George |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=owQBH74N8CIC |title=The Development of Written Estonian |date=1997 |publisher=RoutledgeCurzon |location=London |isbn=978-0-7007-0890-1}}</ref> In 1525, the first Estonian language book was printed. It contained a religious [[Lutheran]] text which, however, never reached its intended readers, as it was immediately censored and all printed copies were destroyed. | ||
The first extant Estonian book is a bilingual German-Estonian translation of the [[Luther's Large Catechism|Lutheran catechism]] by S.{{nbsp}}Wanradt and J.{{nbsp}}Koell dating to 1535, during the [[Protestant Reformation]] period. An Estonian grammar book to be used by priests was printed in German in 1637.<ref>{{cite book |last=Dalby |first=Andrew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CnckpL8auSIC |title=Dictionary of Languages: The Definitive Reference to More Than 400 Languages |date=2004 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=0-231-11569-5 |edition=rev. |location=New York |page=182}}</ref> The [[New Testament]] was translated into the variety of South Estonian called [[Võro language|Võro]] in 1686 (northern Estonian, 1715). The two languages were united based on Northern Estonian by [[Anton thor Helle]]. | The first extant Estonian book is a bilingual German-Estonian translation of the [[Luther's Large Catechism|Lutheran catechism]] by S.{{nbsp}}Wanradt and J.{{nbsp}}Koell dating to 1535, during the [[Protestant Reformation]] period. An Estonian grammar book to be used by priests was printed in German in 1637.<ref>{{cite book |last=Dalby |first=Andrew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CnckpL8auSIC |title=Dictionary of Languages: The Definitive Reference to More Than 400 Languages |date=2004 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=0-231-11569-5 |edition=rev. |location=New York |page=182}}</ref> The [[New Testament]] was translated into the variety of South Estonian called [[Võro language|Võro]] in 1686 (northern Estonian, 1715). The two languages were united based on Northern Estonian by [[Anton thor Helle]]. | ||
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In the period from 1525 to 1917, 14,503 titles were published in Estonian; by comparison, between 1918 and 1940, 23,868 titles were published.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Translation into Estonian – Ivextrans |url=https://www.ivextrans.eu/translated-languages/translation-into-estonian/ |access-date=2022-11-16 |website=www.ivextrans.eu}}</ref> | In the period from 1525 to 1917, 14,503 titles were published in Estonian; by comparison, between 1918 and 1940, 23,868 titles were published.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Translation into Estonian – Ivextrans |url=https://www.ivextrans.eu/translated-languages/translation-into-estonian/ |access-date=2022-11-16 |website=www.ivextrans.eu}}</ref> | ||
In modern times [[A. H. Tammsaare]], [[Jaan Kross]], | In modern times [[A. H. Tammsaare]], [[Jaan Kross]], {{citation needed|date=May 2026}} and [[Andrus Kivirähk]]<!--[[Jaan Kaplinski]]<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?as_q=&num=20&btnG=Google+Search&&as_auth=Jaan+Kaplinski Jaan Kaplinski] at Google Books</ref> and [[Viivi Luik]]--> are Estonia's best-known and most translated writers. | ||
Estonians lead the world in book ownership, owning on average 218 books per house, and 35% of Estonians owning 350 books or more (as of 2018).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zhou |first=Naaman |date=2018-10-12 |title=Novel news: world's biggest bookworms revealed in study |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/oct/12/the-more-books-in-a-house-the-brighter-your-childs-future-study-finds |access-date=2024-09-13 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> | Estonians lead the world in book ownership, owning on average 218 books per house, and 35% of Estonians owning 350 books or more (as of 2018).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zhou |first=Naaman |date=2018-10-12 |title=Novel news: world's biggest bookworms revealed in study |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/oct/12/the-more-books-in-a-house-the-brighter-your-childs-future-study-finds |access-date=2024-09-13 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> | ||
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When Estonia was invaded and reoccupied by the Soviet army in 1944, the status of Estonian effectively changed to one of the two official languages (Russian being the other one).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Colin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YgtSqB9oqDIC&pg=PA207 |title=Encyclopedia of Bilingualism and Bilingual Education |last2=Jones |first2=Sylvia Prys |date=1998 |publisher=Multilingual Matters |isbn=1-85359-362-1 |location=Clevedon |page=207}}</ref> Many immigrants from Russia entered Estonia under Soviet encouragement.<ref name="Rannut" /> In the 1970s, the pressure of bilingualism for Estonians was intensified<!--, resulting in the rapid spread of knowledge of Russian among the country's population. The Russian language was termed as "the language of friendship of nations" and was taught to Estonian children, sometimes as early as in kindergarten-->. Although teaching Estonian to non-Estonians in local schools was formally compulsory, in practice, the teaching and learning of Estonian by Russian-speakers was often considered unnecessary by the Soviet authorities.<ref name="Rannut" /> | When Estonia was invaded and reoccupied by the Soviet army in 1944, the status of Estonian effectively changed to one of the two official languages (Russian being the other one).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Colin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YgtSqB9oqDIC&pg=PA207 |title=Encyclopedia of Bilingualism and Bilingual Education |last2=Jones |first2=Sylvia Prys |date=1998 |publisher=Multilingual Matters |isbn=1-85359-362-1 |location=Clevedon |page=207}}</ref> Many immigrants from Russia entered Estonia under Soviet encouragement.<ref name="Rannut" /> In the 1970s, the pressure of bilingualism for Estonians was intensified<!--, resulting in the rapid spread of knowledge of Russian among the country's population. The Russian language was termed as "the language of friendship of nations" and was taught to Estonian children, sometimes as early as in kindergarten-->. Although teaching Estonian to non-Estonians in local schools was formally compulsory, in practice, the teaching and learning of Estonian by Russian-speakers was often considered unnecessary by the Soviet authorities.<ref name="Rannut" /> | ||
In 1991, with the restoration of Estonia's [[History of Estonia#Regaining independence|independence]], Estonian went back to being the only official language in Estonia.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Leclerc |first=Jacques |title=Estonie |url=http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/europe/estonie.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111175346/http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/europe/estonie.htm |archive-date=2012-11-11 |access-date=2014-08-23 |website=L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde |language=fr}}</ref> | In 1991, with the restoration of Estonia's [[History of Estonia#Regaining independence|independence]], Estonian went back to being the only official language in Estonia.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Leclerc |first=Jacques |title=Estonie |url=http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/europe/estonie.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111175346/http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/europe/estonie.htm |archive-date=2012-11-11 |access-date=2014-08-23 |website=L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde |language=fr}}</ref> When Estonia joined the EU in 2004, Estonian became one of its now 24 [[Official languages of the European Union|official languages]]. | ||
The return of former Soviet immigrants to their countries of origin at the end of the 20th century has brought the proportion of native Estonian-speakers in Estonia now back above 70%. Large parts of the first- and second-generation immigrants in Estonia have now adopted Estonian (over 50% as of the 2022 census).<ref name="Rannut" /> | The return of former Soviet immigrants to their countries of origin at the end of the 20th century has brought the proportion of native Estonian-speakers in Estonia now back above 70%. Large parts of the first- and second-generation immigrants in Estonia have now adopted Estonian (over 50% as of the 2022 census).<ref name="Rannut" /> | ||
== Dialects == | == Dialects == | ||
[[File:2.5-North-Estonian.png|thumb|300px|North Estonian dialects at the beginning of the 20th century<ref name=map1>{{Cite journal |last1=Rantanen |first1=Timo |last2=Tolvanen |first2=Harri |last3=Roose |first3=Meeli |last4=Ylikoski |first4=Jussi |last5=Vesakoski |first5=Outi |date=2022-06-08 |title=Best practices for spatial language data harmonization, sharing and map creation—A case study of Uralic |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=17 |issue=6 | | [[File:2.5-North-Estonian.png|thumb|300px|North Estonian dialects at the beginning of the 20th century<ref name=map1>{{Cite journal |last1=Rantanen |first1=Timo |last2=Tolvanen |first2=Harri |last3=Roose |first3=Meeli |last4=Ylikoski |first4=Jussi |last5=Vesakoski |first5=Outi |date=2022-06-08 |title=Best practices for spatial language data harmonization, sharing and map creation—A case study of Uralic |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=17 |issue=6 |article-number=e0269648 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0269648|doi-access=free |pmid=35675367 |pmc=9176854 |bibcode=2022PLoSO..1769648R }}</ref><ref name=map2>Rantanen, Timo, Vesakoski, Outi, Ylikoski, Jussi, & Tolvanen, Harri. (2021). ''Geographical database of the Uralic languages'' (v1.0) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4784188</ref>]] | ||
[[File:2.6-South-Estonian.png|thumb|300px|South Estonian dialects at the beginning of the 20th century<ref name=map1/><ref name=map2/>]] | [[File:2.6-South-Estonian.png|thumb|300px|South Estonian dialects at the beginning of the 20th century<ref name=map1/><ref name=map2/>]] | ||
[[File:Estonian-Voro-bilingual-parish-sign.JPG|thumb|Road sign in Estonian and Võro]] | [[File:Estonian-Voro-bilingual-parish-sign.JPG|thumb|Road sign in Estonian and Võro]] | ||
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The northern group consists of the {{lang|et|keskmurre}} or central dialect that is also the basis for the standard language, the {{lang|et|läänemurre}} or western dialect, roughly corresponding to [[Lääne County]] and [[Pärnu County]], the {{lang|et|saarte murre}} (islands' dialect) of [[Saaremaa]], [[Hiiumaa]], [[Muhu]] and [[Kihnu]], and the {{lang|et|idamurre}} or eastern dialect on the northwestern shore of [[Lake Peipus]]. | The northern group consists of the {{lang|et|keskmurre}} or central dialect that is also the basis for the standard language, the {{lang|et|läänemurre}} or western dialect, roughly corresponding to [[Lääne County]] and [[Pärnu County]], the {{lang|et|saarte murre}} (islands' dialect) of [[Saaremaa]], [[Hiiumaa]], [[Muhu]] and [[Kihnu]], and the {{lang|et|idamurre}} or eastern dialect on the northwestern shore of [[Lake Peipus]]. | ||
One of the pronunciation features of the Saaremaa dialect is the lack of the 'õ' vowel. A five-metre monument erected in 2020, marking the "border" between the vowels 'õ' and 'ö', humorously makes reference to this fact.<ref> | One of the pronunciation features of the Saaremaa dialect is the lack of the 'õ' vowel. A five-metre monument erected in 2020, marking the "border" between the vowels 'õ' and 'ö', humorously makes reference to this fact.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ö/Õ statue to mark dialect border |url=https://visitestonia.com/en/oo-statue-to-mark-dialect-border |access-date=2025-09-27 |website=visitestonia.com |language=en}}</ref> | ||
[[South Estonian]] consists of the Tartu, Mulgi, [[Võro language|Võro]] and [[Seto dialect|Seto]] varieties. These are sometimes considered either variants of South Estonian or separate languages altogether.<ref>{{cite web |title=Culture Tourism in South Estonia and Võru County: Situation Analysis |url=http://www.siksali.ee/cultour/EE_SituationAnalysisSummary_ENG.pdf |access-date=2 July 2013 |via=Siksali |archive-date=20 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120220115230/http://www.siksali.ee/cultour/EE_SituationAnalysisSummary_ENG.pdf | [[South Estonian]] consists of the [[Tartu dialect|Tartu]], [[Mulgi dialect|Mulgi]], [[Võro language|Võro]] and [[Seto dialect|Seto]] varieties. These are sometimes considered either variants of South Estonian or separate languages altogether.<ref>{{cite web |title=Culture Tourism in South Estonia and Võru County: Situation Analysis |url=http://www.siksali.ee/cultour/EE_SituationAnalysisSummary_ENG.pdf |access-date=2 July 2013 |via=Siksali |archive-date=20 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120220115230/http://www.siksali.ee/cultour/EE_SituationAnalysisSummary_ENG.pdf }}</ref> Also, Seto and Võro distinguish themselves from each other less by language and more by their culture and their respective Christian confession.<ref name="Rannut" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Eesti murded / Estonian Dialects |url=http://portaal.eki.ee/component/content/article/34-murded/46-murded.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140826113944/http://portaal.eki.ee/component/content/article/34-murded/46-murded.html |archive-date=2014-08-26 |access-date=2014-08-23 |website=Eesti Keele Instituut |language=et}}</ref> | ||
==Writing system== | ==Writing system== | ||
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Representation of palatalised consonants is inconsistent, and they are not always indicated. | Representation of palatalised consonants is inconsistent, and they are not always indicated. | ||
[[Voiced velar nasal|ŋ]] is an allophone of /n/ before /k/. | [<nowiki/>[[Voiced velar nasal|ŋ]]] is an allophone of /n/ before /k/. | ||
While peripheral Estonian dialects are characterized by various degrees of [[vowel harmony]], central dialects have almost completely lost the feature. Since the standard language is based on central dialects, it has no vowel harmony either. In the standard language, the front vowels occur exclusively on the first or stressed syllable, although vowel harmony is still apparent in older texts.<ref>Prillop, Külli et al. 2020. ''Eesti keele ajalugu''. Tartu Ülikooli Kirjastus. p. 133.</ref> | While peripheral Estonian dialects are characterized by various degrees of [[vowel harmony]], central dialects have almost completely lost the feature. Since the standard language is based on central dialects, it has no vowel harmony either. In the standard language, the front vowels occur exclusively on the first or stressed syllable, although vowel harmony is still apparent in older texts.<ref>Prillop, Külli et al. 2020. ''Eesti keele ajalugu''. Tartu Ülikooli Kirjastus. p. 133.</ref> | ||
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==Vocabulary== | ==Vocabulary== | ||
{{main|Estonian vocabulary}} | {{main|Estonian vocabulary}} | ||
Although Estonian and the [[Germanic languages]] have very different origins and the vocabulary is considered quite different from that of the Indo-European family,<ref name=":0" /> one can identify many similar words in Estonian and English, for example. This is primarily because Estonian has borrowed nearly one-third of its vocabulary from Germanic languages, mainly from Low Saxon ([[Middle Low German]]) during the period of [[History of Estonia#Estonian Crusade: The Middle Ages|German rule]], and [[High German]] (including [[standard German]]). The percentage of Low Saxon and High German loanwords can be estimated at 22–25 percent, with Low Saxon making up about 15 percent.<ref>{{cite web |title=Eesti kirjakeele sõnavara ajalugu |trans-title=History of Estonian Vocabulary |url=http://www.fillu.edu.ee/sisu.php?teema=2&id=30 | Although Estonian and the [[Germanic languages]] have very different origins and the vocabulary is considered quite different from that of the Indo-European family,<ref name=":0" /> one can identify many similar words in Estonian and English, for example. This is primarily because Estonian has borrowed nearly one-third of its vocabulary from Germanic languages, mainly from Low Saxon ([[Middle Low German]]) during the period of [[History of Estonia#Estonian Crusade: The Middle Ages|German rule]], and [[High German]] (including [[standard German]]). The percentage of Low Saxon and High German loanwords can be estimated at 22–25 percent, with Low Saxon making up about 15 percent.<ref>{{cite web |title=Eesti kirjakeele sõnavara ajalugu |trans-title=History of Estonian Vocabulary |url=http://www.fillu.edu.ee/sisu.php?teema=2&id=30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070721113833/http://www.fillu.edu.ee/sisu.php?teema=2&id=30 |archive-date=2007-07-21 |website=FILLU |language=et}}</ref> Prior to the wave of new loanwords from English in the 20th and 21st centuries, historically, Swedish and Russian were also sources of borrowings but to a much lesser extent.<ref>{{cite web |title=Eesti keele käsiraamat 2007 |url=http://www.eki.ee/books/ekk09/index.php?link=L_10 |access-date=2020-09-30 |website=Eesti Keele Instituut |language=et}}</ref> In borrowings, often 'b' and 'p' are interchangeable, for example 'baggage' becomes 'pagas', 'lob' (to throw) becomes 'loopima'. The initial letter 's' before another consonant is often dropped, for example 'skool' becomes 'kool', 'stool' becomes 'tool'. | ||
===''Ex nihilo'' lexical enrichment=== | ===''Ex nihilo'' lexical enrichment=== | ||
Estonian [[language planner]]s such as [[Ado Grenzstein]] (a journalist active in Estonia from the 1870s to the 1890s) tried to use formation ''[[Estonian vocabulary#Ex nihilo lexical enrichment|ex nihilo]]'' (''Urschöpfung'');<ref name="Zuckermann 2003 p149">{{cite book |last=Zuckermann |first=Ghil'ad |title=Language Contact and Lexical Enrichment in Israeli Hebrew |title-link=Language Contact and Lexical Enrichment in Israeli Hebrew |date=2003 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |isbn=978-1-4039-1723-2 |location=New York, NY |pages=[https://archive.org/details/languagecontactl00zuck/page/n159 149] |author-link=Ghil'ad Zuckermann}}</ref> i.e. they created new words out of nothing. | Estonian [[language planner]]s such as [[Ado Grenzstein]] (a journalist active in Estonia from the 1870s to the 1890s) tried to use formation ''[[Estonian vocabulary#Ex nihilo lexical enrichment|ex nihilo]]'' (''Urschöpfung'');<ref name="Zuckermann 2003 p149">{{cite book |last=Zuckermann |first=Ghil'ad |title=Language Contact and Lexical Enrichment in Israeli Hebrew |title-link=Language Contact and Lexical Enrichment in Israeli Hebrew |date=2003 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |isbn=978-1-4039-1723-2 |location=New York, NY |pages=[https://archive.org/details/languagecontactl00zuck/page/n159 149] |author-link=Ghil'ad Zuckermann}}</ref> i.e. they created new words out of nothing. | ||
The most well-known reformer of Estonian, [[Johannes Aavik]] (1880–1973), used creations ''ex nihilo'' (cf. 'free constructions', Tauli 1977), along with other sources of lexical enrichment such as derivations, compositions and loanwords (often from Finnish; cf. Saareste and Raun 1965: 76). In Aavik's dictionary (1921) lists approximately 4000 words. About 40 of the 200 words created by Johannes Aavik allegedly ''ex nihilo'' are in common use today. Examples are | The most well-known reformer of Estonian, [[Johannes Aavik]] (1880–1973), used creations ''ex nihilo'' (cf. 'free constructions', Tauli 1977), along with other sources of lexical enrichment such as derivations, compositions and loanwords (often from Finnish; cf. [[Andrus Saareste|Saareste]] and Raun 1965: 76). In Aavik's dictionary (1921) lists approximately 4000 words. About 40 of the 200 words created by Johannes Aavik allegedly ''ex nihilo'' are in common use today. Examples are ''ese'' 'object', ''kolp'' 'skull', ''liibuma'' 'to cling', ''naasma'' 'to return, come back', ''nõme'' 'stupid, dull'.<ref name="Zuckermann 2003 p149" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Eesti entsüklopeedia|trans-title=Aavik, Johannes |url=http://entsyklopeedia.ee/artikkel/aavik_johannes2 | ||
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