TERMINIJOS SMULKMENOS IR LEIDINIAI

JURGIS ELISONAS AND HIS MEMORIAL BOOK

The Institute of Ecology has published a memorial book about the prominent teacher, public figure, and active naturalist Jurgis Elisonas (1889–1946)¹, a kind of commemoration of a man who was active and accomplished much in the first half of the 20th century. Among the many broader or narrower fields of activity he pursued, even now, more than half a century after his death, a fairly extensive and well-advanced field of terminology is clearly visible. Nor was he indifferent to matters of language or, more generally, to the spiritual life of the nation. These concerns must have interested J. Elisonas throughout his mature years. Thus there is certainly no shortage of reasons not to overlook the book “Jurgis Elisonas.” Moreover, time flies, and the 110th anniversary of the book’s subject’s birth is not far off.

Like more than a few young men who studied at the beginning of the 20th century, J. Elisonas realized early on that he was Lithuanian, was not ashamed of his origins, and resolved to work for Lithuania. D. Urbas, a former pupil of J. Elisonas’s at Panevėžys Gymnasium and Teachers’ Seminary, recalled M. Miškinis’s account of how, perhaps in 1913, as the holidays were ending, university student J. Elisonas from St. Petersburg had been walking among a group of pupils waiting for the Daugavpils train at Rokiškis railway station, asking in Lithuanian, “Lads, are there any Lithuanians among you?”, and urging those who responded to educate themselves, read Lithuanian newspapers, and write for them; he promised to visit and help get things moving, and he did so². A man of action, who greatly valued and educated the public and taught his pupils and students to cherish the remains of past generations, he worked constantly himself and brought others together to work for the progress of the country—such was J. Elisonas. He was a highly creative person. Rather than narrowing his field of activity and scholarship, he continually broadened it. As a learned zoologist, he was concerned not only with this,

¹ Jurgis Elisonas. 1889–1946 / Sud. A. Jakimavičius. Red. kolegija: J. Virbickas (pirm.) ir kt. V.: Baltic ECO leidybos centras, 1997. 126 p., 8 pav. p.

² Urbas D. Mokytojas ir kraštotyrininkas // Jurgis Elisonas. 1889–1946. P. 24.

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what animals live where and how in his native land, but also what people think about them and which animals have found their way into folk creativity. Careful investigation might reveal that J. Elisonas can be considered a pioneer of zoofolkloristics or folkloric zoology. It is therefore not at all surprising that he was one of those rare non-philologists whose works were published in scholarly collections on folklore and linguistics (“Tautoje ir žodyje”³, “Mūsų tautosakoje”⁴, “Tautosakos darbuose”⁵, and “Archivum Philologicum”⁶). For such works, he had ample material supplied by pupils whom he asked and taught, thereby also drawing them into cultural work. In fact, it was not only for his own use: many things gathered by various pupils were given to scholarly institutions. The Scientific Library now holds J. Elisonas’s extensive archive as well.

After returning to Lithuania following the First World War, J. Elisonas almost immediately embarked on a career as a natural sciences teacher, devoting himself particularly to zoology. What is distinctive is that he not only taught his pupils himself, but also translated and wrote zoology textbooks (1920, 1925, 1938, and 1940), collected and organized terminology in this field, published a large body of articles about various animals of the country, and finally, in 1932, published his three-part book “Mūsų krašto žinduoliai” [Mammals of Our Country], sometimes called an encyclopedia of Lithuanian animals. In 1919–1920, J. Elisonas’s “A Brief Dictionary of Zoological Terms” began appearing in the press (“Lietuvos mokykloje,” “Draugijoje”).

³ Elisonas J. Keletas folkloro dalykų apie mūsų krašto varles (Amphibia) // Tauta ir žodis. K., 1926. T. 4. P. 476–485.

⁴ Elisonas J. Ožio ceremonijos // Mūsų tautosaka. K., 1930. T. 2. P. 117–126; jo paties. Vilkas tautosakoje // Ten pat. P. 127; jo paties. Mūsų krašto ropliai (Reptilia) lietuvių folkloro šviesoje // Ten pat. K., 1931. T. 3. P. 81–177; jo paties. Mūsų krašto fauna lietuvių tautosakoje // Ten pat. K., 1932. T. 5. P. 3–231; jo paties. Dievas Senelis // Ten pat. K., 1935. T. 9. P. 3–352.

⁵ Elisonas J. Kaimečių pasisveikinimo ir etiketo formos // Tautosakos darbai. K., 1935. T. 1. P. 27–48; jo paties. Gamtos garsų pamėgdžiojimai lietuvių tautosakoje // Ten pat. K., 1939. T. 6. P. 238–351.

⁶ Elisonas J. Drapanų ir šiaip įvairių audeklinių arba odinių dalykų sąrašas // Archivum Philologicum. K., 1931. Kn. 2. P. 117–131; jo paties. Lietuvių sodiečių technikos žodyno mėginimas // Ten pat. K., 1932. Kn. 3. P. 125–167, su paveikslais.

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ject,” and in 1920 his “Dictionary of Zoological Systematics Terms” was published in Kaunas, “adapted,” as the author himself put it, “to the curriculum of higher schools.” This was the first printed Lithuanian terminology dictionary in this field; moreover, it was favorably reviewed by K. Būga and gave him an opportunity, in an unfinished review, to discuss at greater length one or two essential issues of terminology (sources of terms, accentuation)⁷. Soon, the following articles appeared: “Names in Lithuania for Representatives of the Class of Reptiles, or Creeping Animals (Reptilia)” (“Kosmos,” 1920/21. Issue 1. P. 95–96), “Representatives of the Class of Frogs (Amphibia) in Lithuania and Their Names” (Ibid. P. 88–94), “What Do Gonė, Gonys Mean?” (“Švietimo darbas.” 1921. No. 1/2. P. 88–90), “From Pabrėža’s Unpublished Botanical Writings” (“Kosmos.” 1922/23. Issue 1. P. 46–51; Issue 2. P. 183–186; Issue 3. P. 283–292). “Examples for Teaching and Education: A Little Material for a Dictionary of Geology and Physical Geography” (“Švietimo darbas.” 1923. No. 2. P. 126–134), “A Collection of Terminological Material on Biology and the Comparative Anatomy of Vertebrate Animals (Including Humans)” (“Švietimo darbas.” 1924. No. 1. P. 19–34; No. 2. P. 129–144; No. 3. P. 238–250; No. 4. P. 321–336; No. 5. P. 430–445; No. 6. P. 539–555; No. 7. P. 623–638; No. 8. P. 812–841), “Some Names for Clouds Used in Panevėžys County and Nearby Places” (“Švietimo darbas.” 1924. No. 8. P. 714–719), “The Name of a Supposedly Extinct Animal of Our Forests, Gulo borealis Nilss.” (“Kosmos.” 1924. Issue 2. P. 174–176), “What Should We Call in Lithuanian a Person Who Hunts?” (“Medžiotojas.” 1927. No. 1. P. 9–10), “Some Poetic Animal Names Taken from Living Lithuanian Speech and Folklore” (“Švietimo darbas.” 1927. No. 1. P. 25–29; No. 2. P. 121–133. Also published separately: Kaunas, 1927). As works of importance to terminology, the first two works mentioned above should again be recalled here; they appeared in the linguistic journal “Archivum Philologicum” of the Faculty of Humanities at Vytautas Magnus University (see footnote six). Finally, one of the last articles published during his lifetime, “An Attempt at a Lithuanian-Language Fishing Dictionary” (“Gimtasai kraštas.” 1943. P. 372–384), is also devoted to terminology. According to the bibliography of J. Elisonas’s works compiled by R. Tolvaišaitė

⁷ Žr. Būga K. Rinktiniai raštai. V., 1961. T. 3. P. 783–786.

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bibliography⁸, he published a number of works on terminology or related subjects. However, J. Elisonas also considered or at least touched upon various matters of naming in a number of other works. For example, in the article “Are Representatives of the Order of Whales (Cetacea) Found in Lithuanian Waters?” (“Gamta.” 1936. No. 3. P. 189–190), objecting to some zoologists’ inclination to call animals by Lithuanianized Latin (supposedly international) names, he wondered: “Why on earth are the beautiful Lithuanian names for whales and seals, established in everyday usage, being urged to be replaced by genuine ‘woodland’ names: cetaceans and pinnipeds?”⁹ Moreover, all his works in the natural sciences (books, articles, and published snippets of material) are an important source for the period in which modern Lithuanian zoological terminology took shape.

The memorial volume also surveys the archive of J. Elisonas, now held at the Library of the Academy of Sciences (in R. Tolvaišaitė’s article “The Life and Work of Jurgis Elisonas” and elsewhere). The archive contains substantial terminological works as well. Foremost among them is presumably the reference work “The Fauna of Lithuania—Information, Bibliography and Dictionary” (several dozen typescript volumes, comprising over 6,000 pages, as well as about 100,000 slips¹⁰). Impressive figures! A major work prepared for publication is also mentioned—“Our Country’s Parasites” (or “Parasites”?)¹¹—which should be an important source for terminology, as are a manuscript fishing dictionary¹² and a work on the fish of Lithuania’s waters¹³.

Such terminological matters are presented, and some are explored to a degree, in the book “Jurgis Elisonas. 1889–1946.” Many of the contributors to this book attest to J. Elisonas’s merits in Lithuanian terminology. At times he is described as a creator of zoological terms (p. 3) and as a founder of the principles of Lithuanian zoological terminology (p. 5), although, as may be understood from K. Gaivenis’s article included in the book, “J. Eli

⁸ Žr. Jurgis Elisonas. 1889–1946. P. 97–109.

⁹ Cit. iš ten pat. P. 61.

¹⁰ Ten pat. P. 14.

¹¹ Ten pat. P. 14, 68.

¹² Ten pat. P. 32, 75.

¹³ Ten pat. P. 32, 63.

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Although he may have coined relatively few terms himself in “the terminology of zoological systematics,” it seems that the main source of the terms J. Elisonas used was the living language of ordinary people, as well as Lithuanian writings and dictionaries. The wealth of material and the way its sources were indicated had already made the “Glossary of Zoological Systematics Terms” leave “a rather pleasant impression” on K. Būga¹⁴. Thus, J. Elisonas’s contribution to Lithuanian terminology is probably demonstrated above all not by the creation of a few dozen or a few hundred terms, but by the construction of an entire system of zoological terms on the foundation of the people’s language. For now, these thoughts are merely hypotheses arising from what is known so far. There is no doubt that J. Elisonas’s terminological work is truly worthy of thorough research. Such research might then make his merits as a creator of a system of terms, rather than a maker of individual words, clearer. Finally, it might then be possible to state more confidently that, in creating a system of terms, he, together with other learned zoologists, laid the foundations of present-day Lithuanian zoological terminology (not merely its vocabulary).

The book under discussion is not a work on terminology. Nor was it conceived for that purpose. Nevertheless, for the reasons mentioned, it is undoubtedly important to the history of Lithuanian terminology—not only zoology and Lithuanian scholarship in general. In the book, distinguished experts in their fields discuss J. Elisonas’s zoological work (St. Biziulevičius and P. Zajančkauskas’s article “Jurgis Elisonas – Zoology Teacher,” J. Prūsaitė’s “J. Elisonas’s Publications on the Mammalian Fauna of Lithuania,” J. Virbickas’s “J. Elisonas’s Publications on Fish and Fisheries,” V. Stanevičius’s “J. Elisonas and Ornithology,” and St. Biziulevičius’s “Disseminator of Knowledge in Parasitology”); J. Elisonas’s own view of zoological heritage is examined (A. Jakimavičius’s “J. Elisonas and the History of Zoological Science in Lithuania”); his folklore studies are not forgotten (G. Radvilas’s “Jurgis Elisonas – Folklorist”); and his concerns with regional studies and museum work are also recalled (L. Kaziukonis’s “J. Elisonas’s Contributions to Regional Studies and Museum Work in Panevėžys”). A small collection of reminiscences is included from former pupils of J. Elisonas at Panevėžys secondary schools and the teachers’ seminary (the philologist D. Urbas, the geographer V. Gudelis, the biologist A. Pečiukėnas, N. Zvierevaitė, and the physician S. Pavilonis), the Agricultural Academy (the agronomist A. Stancevičius), and also a fellow villager from his native place—

¹⁴ Būga K. Min. veik. P. 784.

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A. Šilinis (incidentally, V. Gudelis and S. Pavilonis themselves also worked productively in the field of terminology. Thus, their teacher’s example and the seeds he sowed yielded excellent fruit in this respect as well). Add to this the previously mentioned articles by R. Tolvaišaitė and K. Gaivenis, a list of key dates in J. Elisonas’s life and work (it still contains quite a few gaps; it is unfortunate that often only the time when a given work was begun is indicated, and so on), R. Tolvaišaitė’s “Bibliography of J. Elisonas’s Works” (which contains some inaccurate bibliographic details and omits works seemingly mentioned right here in this very book—for example, several articles about fishing mentioned by J. Virbickas on p. 64, and the work “Charms, Collected by J. Elisonas in Panevėžys County,” mentioned by G. Radvilas on p. 88, from volume III of the 1925 “Tautos ir žodis”; what is most regrettable, however, is that J. Elisonas’s manuscripts were not included in this bibliography), and A. Jakimavičius’s bibliographic index “Literature about J. Elisonas” (for some reason, it makes no mention at all of the not infrequent references to J. Elisonas and discussions of his work in linguists’ publications, especially works on the history of language and terminology in the 20th century; on the whole, this index seems to reflect in any detail only publications by natural scientists), and this is almost the entire contents of the book under review. Almost, because only the preface, an English summary not of the book but of J. Elisonas’s life and work, and the index of names remain unmentioned here.

It was a pleasure to read this book for its content. It is also pleasing that, in this way, as a book in its own right, another eminent figure of our land has been honored—a famous teacher and school head (whose existence today’s pupils may not even have heard of. Alas, alas...). But it is unpleasant that the book is not free of various language errors and that, in general, it contains quite a few editorial lapses (the titles of J. Elisonas’s manuscripts were not checked, the spelling of some place names and personal names was not standardized, inaccurate data on the history of the language were left in, and so on). To put it plainly, for J. Elisonas to have been honored properly, this book sorely needed a more experienced editor.

This essay does not attempt either to show the full range of language errors found in the book or to assess their degree or frequency. Here, the aim is merely to draw zoologists’ attention to the frequent awkward use of certain adjectives formed with the suffix -inis, -ė. First, here are a few pages’ worth of typical examples of the book’s authors’ language: zoologinės

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knygos (pp. 5, 81), zoologinė literatūra (pp. 12, 56, 61, 85), zoologinio turinio straipsniai (p. 12), zoologinė sistematika (p. 17), zoologinė terminija (p. 17), zoologinės žinios (p. 31; on the same page, zoologijos žinios is also used), anatominiai terminai (p. 42), zoologiniai terminai (p. 51), zoologinės publikacijos (p. 53), ekologinės žinios (p. 59), faunistiniai darbai (p. 63), faunistinės naujienos (p. 63), faunistinės žinios (p. 63), ichtiologinė terminologija (p. 64), ornitologinis palikimas, ornitologinės publikacijos, ornitologinė literatūra (p. 65), gamtosauginės akcijos (p. 66), zoologinis klausimas (p. 80), zoologiniai vadovėliai (p. 82), zoologiniai rašiniai (p. 83), faunistinė literatūra (p. 85), and so on. In all these cases, a Lithuanian speaker whose language has remained intact or uncorrupted would unhesitatingly use not the adjective printed in spaced type, but the genitive of the corresponding noun, that is, would say and write zoologijos knygos, zoologijos sistematika (indeed, zoologists themselves usually use these forms!), zoologijos terminai, terminija, žinios, zoologijos klausimai, rašiniai, vadovėliai, anatomijos, ichtiologijos terminai (terminologija), ekologijos žinios, faunistikos darbai, naujienos, žinios, ornitologijos palikimas, publikacijos (skelb i niai), literatūra, gamtosaugos akcijos (renginiai), and so on. Zoologists, who are in any case truly deserving of respect, should take this to heart even without editors.

A dozen or so photographs of J. Elisonas and his relatives, as well as several photographs of the covers or title pages of his books, enliven the book. Through them, this man, who did so much good for Lithuania, his homeland, is brought closer to the reader, made almost familiar. Like the author of the book’s first article, “Jurgis Elisonas’s Life and Work,” R. Tolvaišaitė, I would like to conclude this essay with the inscription (epitaph) on Jurgis Elisonas’s gravestone in the cemetery at Wiesbaden, Germany:

Here rests a great Lithuanian, a friend of nature, Who devoted his life to science and his homeland. May the meadow and field bring comfort to his soul, And the birds—his constant companions.

Stasys KEINYS

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