dc.description.abstract | The subject of a linguistic observation is the specific layer of language that includes diminutives and baby-talk
present in utterances addressed to children. Research material are dialogues between an adult and a child gathered
during participating observation as well as written down from a few Polish feature films from the years 2002-2005.
An analysis of the material revealed that in communication with a child adults the most often use nominal
diminutives. The biggest group includes diminutive names (derived with different formatives) and functioning as
address forms names of relationship (c.g. córeczka/a little daughter, syneczek/a little son, wnusiu/a little
grandson), names of animals (e.g. myszka/a little mouse, misiu/a teddy bear, kotek/a kitten), augmentative and
pejorative names used in baby-talk (e.g. głuptas/silly boy). Numerous group includes also diminutives (baby-talk)
of nouns that make the following thematic groups:
a) names of parts of the body;
b) names of meals/food products;
c) names of plants and animals;
d) names of toys, clothes, and other things surrounding a child/connected with a child.
In the material adjectival and verbal hypocoristics occur but it is a distinctly smaller amount of them. | en_EN |