• Linguistische Treffen in Wrocław •

This contribution examines understandable language and the strategies that aid in clear communication or facilitate comprehension when receiving information. It distinguishes between comprehensibility as a potential and understanding as its concrete realization. Additionally, it is methodologically essential to differentiate between the perspective of the producer (sender’s viewpoint) and that of the recipient (receiver’s viewpoint). Understanding of the interactions between these perspectives forms the basis for a subject-specific interpretation. The modern trend is shifting from the study of text comprehension to the study of language intelligibility. The paper addresses the following subtopics: – Standardization of comprehensibility: The international standard for plain language and its significance, – Linguistic tools for comprehensibility: Strategies that enhance cognitive processes, – Neutralization of features: Commonly employed strategies to improve the potential for comprehensibility. The goal is to examine key tools for more effective communication, such as written-oral hybridization, and to illustrate how these can be applied across different contexts. The author’s innovative contribution lies in adapting the theoretical concept of feature neutralization – originating from inter- and intralingual translation studies – to comprehensibility research. Particular emphasis is placed on how linguistic and communicative strategies can be systematically interconnected to reach a broader audience. Relevant research on comprehensibility is driven by recent language policy, linguistic, and legislative initiatives promoting “accessible languages,” particularly within intersocietal discourses. Such developments highlight the growing societal importance of the topic.

Linguistics also uses its own specialised language with its own terminology. However, there have only been a few studies on this topic to date. This article aims to help close this gap. It takes as its starting point the questions of how specialised linguistic vocabulary originated, how it developed and what characteristics it has. It is important to realise that in the approximately 250-year history of modern linguistics, the most diverse theoretical directions, research personalities and other currents have led to a heterogeneous structure of linguistic terminology. The vocabulary of grammar writing will be analysed in more detail as an example from the various linguistic directions. To this end, after a brief theoretical introduction in which the relationship between concept and expression is reflected upon, two case studies are presented. The first examines the question of how terminology is handled in academic grammar textbooks. On the basis of three selected textbooks, similarities as well as idiosyncrasies will be identified. The second part of the study deals with the presentation of selected specialised terms in linguistic dictionaries. Here, too, it will be shown that a certain “basic vocabulary” exists, to which special terms and expressions are added in the various representations. Above all, however, the sources differ with regard to the explanation of the terms. The example of the main clause will show that although the definitions differ in details, certain basic features are addressed by almost all of them. The article concludes with an outlook on current attempts to standardise linguistic terminology and present it under homogeneous aspects. The essay is intended to help you make an initial assessment of the linguistic vocabulary of grammar writing and to apply conclusions in theory and practice.

The present contribution is based on the understanding that the cultural phenomenon of multilingualism plays an increasing role in everyday life as well as in scientific discourse, particularly in today’s mostly global and interconnected world. In this regard, this paper offers a systematic overview on modeling, structures, phenomena, and manifestations of multilingualism based on current scientific literature, equally investigating individual, societal, and institutional aspects. Among others, it became apparent that the current transition towards poststructuralism within the humanities and social sciences – including linguistics – has also influenced research on multilingualism: by questioning the traditional understanding of culturally (and politically) defined language borders and rejecting or at least relativizing the notion of language(s) as systems defined separately, concepts like translanguaging and superdiversity gain importance. As part of this shift in perspective, multicompetence appears as an alternative concept to multilingualism. The term “multicompetence” was then further extended to also address the structures of knowledge of more than one language in a bilingual brain as well as, later, sociolinguistic aspects. The term arose out of the criticism that “multilingualism” – with its components “multiple” and “language” – suggests the existence of clearly distinct languages. It remains questionable though if the alternative term “multicompetence” offers an optimal solution as its lexical structure equally suggests multiple different and clearly distinct competences. Finally, the paper records the overall value of multilingualism on all levels: modern research shows that multilingualism does not just offer cognitive and academic advantages but also has important social and cultural effects.

In recent years, the debate about the rights and social status of the LGBT community in Poland has intensified. Numerous political, religious, and media figures have taken a stance in this debate. The LGBT community is not only perceived as a political and social movement but is also frequently associated with ideological concepts or threat scenarios. The aim of this article is to analyse the mechanisms of exclusion and discrimination in Polish public discourse and to shed light on their social consequences. First, the current social and legal status of the LGBT community in Poland is presented. This is followed by an analysis of homophobic statements, as well as images, posters, and banners disseminated in public spaces and on social media. The analysis shows that portraying the LGBT community as an ideological movement is a key tool of discrimination. Particularly conservative and nationalist politicians deliberately employ the rhetoric of an “LGBT ideology“, which is depicted as a threat to traditional Polish values. These narratives are especially prominent in election campaigns, where political figures use opposition to the LGBT community to mobilise specific voter groups. Beyond politics, the Catholic Church plays a significant role in shaping public discourse on the LGBT community. High-ranking church officials have repeatedly associated homosexual people with diseases or moral dangers. This article aims to raise public awareness of this issue and illustrate how language, in combination with images, contributes to the spread of hatred against LGBT people.

This study provides a comprehensive analysis of the German Specialised Language of Pedagogy (GSLP), as well as it examines its structural and semantic features through thesaurus modeling. The research comprises 6.452 terms, including 4.852 single terms and 1.600 term combinations, which were selected from pedagogical dictionaries and text corpora. The findings reveal that nouns dominate the GSLP (95%), with verbs (2,3%), adjectives (1,9%), and adverbs (0,4%) representing smaller portions. The thesaurus model divides pedagogy into two main term fields: General Pedagogy (comprising systematic, historical, and comparative pedagogy) and Special Pedagogy (including school, vocational, social, inclusive pedagogy, and adult education). The research established 9.372 semantic relationships among the terms, with paradigmatic relations (genus-species, synonymy, part-whole) being most significant. The interpretation of pedagogical terms is influenced by context, spatial-temporal factors, social stereotypes, and authorship. Terms undergo cyclical functioning: inception, fixation in language, possible redefinition, extinction, and potential replacement. The example of Narkomanie (‘drug dependence’) illustrates how terms evolve over time, eventually being replaced by more ethically appropriate alternatives like Abhängigkeit (‘addiction’). The study concludes that thesaurus modeling effectively formalizes the semantics of pedagogical terminology, providing a valuable tool for systematization and unification. This approach ensures clearer comparison of terms and understanding of their specific meanings, enhancing their practical application in educational processes, and serving as a linguodidactic tool for developing teachers’ professional competence.

This study examines the challenges of translating written communication, historical letters, especially the correspondence between Professor Çabej and the researcher Babinger from 1963. The aim is to analyze the difficulties in translating such letters and to shed light on the effects of linguistic and cultural differences on translation quality. The study draws on academic literature from the disciplines of linguistics, communication and translation studies, and uses several methodological approaches. A central method is the analysis of translation strategies, which differentiates between naturalizing and alienating translation, and adaptive and transferring translation. This differentiation helps to understand the different approaches to overcoming linguistic and cultural barriers. Another methodological approach is the contextualization of the correspondence. This involves a detailed examination of the historical, cultural and social contexts to better understand the challenges of translation. The specific historical circumstances and cultural backgrounds of Çabej and Babinger are considered. In addition, a comparative analysis of the original text passages and their translations is carried out in order to identify and evaluate differences and challenges in the translation. This method makes it possible to shed light on specific translation problems and their solutions. Finally, a qualitative assessment of the translations is made in terms of their ability to preserve the nuances and intended meaning of the source text in the target language. This assessment shows that successful translations require not only linguistic accuracy but also a deep understanding of the cultural and historical contexts. The paper illustrates the complexity of translating historical letters and emphasizes that a successful translation must take into account not only linguistic but also cultural and historical contexts. The study highlights that translators need comprehensive knowledge of the source and target languages as well as the respective cultures to ensure accurate and culturally appropriate translation. These findings provide valuable insights for translation practice and the scientific analysis of historical documents.

Shift refers to a precisely definable morphological class of nominal lexeme pairs in many European languages, whose members can be distinguished by the semantic opposition of male/female. This category is absent in the German male/female domain. However, it can be defined for German as well, if the named semantic opposition is expanded to the generic domain, i.e., to male/female/diverse. Thus, gender forms of various types in German, whose (inflectional) morphological status is often unclear, can also be classified as shift nouns, because the shift in meaning from male or female to generic is accompanied by a corresponding gender change in the nouns. The analysis first establishes the profile of the prototypical shift in contrast languages within the male/female domain. The gender semantics so defined is then transferred in the second step to the (generic) male/female/diverse domain. Subsequently, the prototypical shift parameters are meaningfully weakened so that even recorded/potential/peripheral gender forms of the new generation in German (such as nouns ending in -in, -y, -x, etc.) can be integrated. On this basis, an expanded concept of shift for German is developed, which morphologically captures these forms and assigns them a unified gender semantics. My aim in this paper is by no means to take a position in the debate on gender inclusive language or to evaluate the different alternatives for gender inclusive forms. The sole focus is to provide evidence, based on gender morphological principles, for an expanded, productive gender semantics at the system level in German.

Individual differences have long been a key focus in psychological research. However, it is only in recent years that the connection between personality traits and foreign language acquisition (FLA) has gained significant attention. Although there has been a shift toward personality traits, a notable gap in research on how they may affect learning outcomes still exists (Pawlak 2022: 201–204). The purpose of this article is to answer that research call by exploring the influence of Conscientiousness, one of the Big Five personality model traits, on the FLA process. The theoretical conceptualisation of Conscientiousness is supported by empirical findings from a study conducted on a group of 78 foreign language students. The results reveal a positive correlation between Conscientiousness and students’ overall performance in English. Specifically, students with higher levels of Conscientiousness tend to achieve higher grades in English compared to their peers. These students also demonstrate a strong commitment to continuing their studies, use their skills confidently, and take an active role in foreign language learning progress. Conversely, learners with low levels of Conscientiousness tend to procrastinate, achieve lower grades in English, and show a lack of motivation to actively participate in FLA classrooms. The article concludes with limitations as well as implications that may be used as research directions for future FLA studies.

With the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) and natural language processing (NLP), new opportunities are emerging in linguistic analysis, particularly in contrastive and comparative studies. Traditional methods of linguistic analysis are time-consuming and resource-intensive, making AI a valuable tool for such research. This paper aims to present an innovative approach to contrastive analysis of the German language in comparison with other languages, utilizing the latest AI models, such as transformer-based models (e.g., BERT, GPT). The analysis includes a comparison of grammatical and semantic structures, as well as an attempt at large-scale automated identification of differences and similarities. Compared to previous research, the discussed approach stands out due to the use of advanced AI tools that enable faster and more precise identification of linguistic differences. The research objectives included comparing AI-based methods in contrastive linguistics and assessing their effectiveness. The analysis revealed that AI can successfully identify structural patterns in languages; however, it remains dependent on the quality of the provided data. Based on the study’s results, conclusions regarding the role of AI in linguistic research will be presented. A potential practical application of these findings is the acceleration of research processes and the enhancement of precision in analyzing linguistic differences and similarities.

The aim of this article is to highlight the shift of election campaigning to social media. It seeks to analyze the relationship between text and image based on selected posts by Polish political actors. The study examines the role of social media in the election campaigns of Polish political parties, focusing on the 2023 parliamentary elections and the 2024 European Parliament elections. The primary objective is to evaluate how political parties use digital platforms to build their image, mobilize voters, and communicate effectively. In this context, the characteristics of modern election campaigns are outlined. The analysis of the influence of social media on public opinion and voter mobilization has become an essential part of research on modern democracies. Platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok not only offer politicians new channels to reach the electorate but also create a space for interactive communication. This strengthens relationships with voters and allows for an immediate response to shifting public sentiment. An analysis of political parties’ activities on social media platforms reveals that major groupings such as Prawo i Sprawiedliwość (PiS) and Koalicja Obywatelska (KO) demonstrate higher levels of activity than smaller parties such as Konfederacja. Finally, a content analysis of selected posts is conducted, considering visual strategies, rhetorical devices, and the use of multimodal elements such as colors, text, and imagery.

The paper addresses the issue of national stereotypes in multi-ethnic jokes. Its main aim is to explore what stereotypical representations are contained in selected Polish and German jokes and to identify their basic categories. The paper consists of two parts – a theoretical and a practical one. The theoretical part is devoted to the attempt to define a stereotype and distinguish it from so-called “related concepts”, i.e. clichés, enemy images and prejudices. Particular attention is paid to national stereotypes, especially the process of their creation, their typical linguistic elements and their impact on society. The concept of the joke is then characterized and its characteristics and themes are explained in detail. The different types of joke functions and the classification of jokes proposed by researchers, including by content and joke structure, are also presented. A particularly important subgroup of jokes are the so-called ethnic jokes. The paper explains how they were developed and what their characteristics are. The empirical part, on the other hand, aims to contrast individual German and Polish multi-ethnic jokes and compare them in terms of the nationalities and stereotypes they contain. An analysis is conducted to determine whether the stereotypes are predominantly negative or positive and which motives are predominant. Another important aspect of the analysis is the differentiation between hetero- and auto-stereotypes, which reflect the way in which the representatives of a particular nation view foreign nations and themselves. The linguistic aspects of ethnic humor, such as specific dialects, which manifest themselves mainly in local/regional jokes, are also studied. However, the study focuses not only on the stereotypical characteristics of the nationalities or ethnic groups concerned, but also on the allusions to historical events, the political and economic situation in the jokes. The analysis is summarized throughout the conclusions, in which the main differences and similarities between German and Polish ethnic humor are explained.

This study examines phraseological expressions that convey specific relationships or characteristics through the combination of two animal components. The focus is on German, Japanese, and Czech, aiming to analyze similarities and differences in the conceptual representation of such expressions. A striking example is the German phrase wie Hund und Katze (‘like dog and cat’), which symbolizes a hostile relationship. In Japanese, a similar expression exists, but with the animals dog and monkey instead. This illustrates how different cultures express similar concepts using varying metaphorical images. By comparing phraseological units containing animal elements, patterns emerge that point to either universal or culture-specific concepts. While some idioms are found across multiple languages, others exist only within a specific linguistic community. The study is based on specific examples from the three languages, taking into account both semantic and cultural aspects. A key objective of this research is to determine the extent to which overarching cognitive concepts can be identified in phraseological expressions across different linguistic areas. The study also examines the linguistic mechanisms that contribute to the formation of these expressions and how cultural influences shape their usage. The findings of this analysis provide valuable insights into the interaction between language, culture, and cognition in the field of phraseology.

The idea of simplified communication obtains legal foundations thanks to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The international treaty writes down the rights of people with disabilities and calls on States Parties to promote and enforce them in all areas of life, including accessible communication. Easy Language is considered an effective tool for this requirement, primarily intended for people with reading difficulties. The texts created in accordance with the Easy Language concept help people with disabilities live independently and thus strengthen the development of inclusive societies. The easily understandable texts are significantly simplified: both in terms of language (morphology, lexicon, syntax, text, semantics) and graphics. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has also been published in Easy Language. In this intralingual translation, one can identify many different text simplifications, which belong to lexical transformations and improve text comprehensibility. Lexical simplification of texts should follow specific linguistic rules. Poland primarily uses a set of rules designed for European countries. The majority of the rules for the lexicon function as cross-linguistic guidelines. They have been supplemented by additional features in relation to the Polish language. The following text describes the three main strategies used in intralingual translation, lists the specific rules for translators of easy texts, and exemplifies the use of an easily understandable word based on a selected rule. However, since Easy Language is a concept developed from practice, the final comprehensibility check belongs to the persons with disabilities, who are the primary target group for easy-to-read texts.

The rapid advancement of 21st-century technology has fundamentally transformed our understanding of language and its instruction. The implementation of digital learning platforms offers a unique method for idiom acquisition and has been demonstrated to boost student engagement (Bajaj 2024). As educational technology becomes increasingly essential, this study explores the effectiveness and functionality of the digital learning platform “Treedioms online idiom dictionary” as a tool for learning English idioms. Relatively few studies have investigated the impact of digital engagement on idiom acquisition. Owing to the discrepancy between literal and figurative meanings, as well as the culturally influenced cross-language diversity, idiomatic phrases have been proven to pose a challenge to learners (cf. Burger 2015: 90-91). The research examines the platform’s impact on users’ passive phraseological competence and their engagement with various interactive features. The primary objective is to evaluate the platform’s learning activities and its effectiveness for idiom acquisition. The study involves designing and implementing exercises for university-level students within the “Treedioms” platform, conducting pre- and post-study surveys, analyzing quantitative data, and interviewing selected participants. The instructional approach is based on Kühn’s methodology: discover, recognize, utilize. The results demonstrate that sustained exposure to idiomatic content and knowledge retention features enhance students’ progress rates. Notably, participants who used interactive flashcards regularly achieved scores 5.2 percentage points higher than occasional users. In addition, flexibility and engaging content in the digital environment proved to facilitate the learning process. In conclusion, findings from this preliminary study will inform further improvements to the platform, with plans for future research involving both test and reference groups to evaluate idiom learning outcomes in an online setting. This paper presents the project’s methodology, key findings, and pedagogical implications, highlighting the platform’s potential to enhance idiomatic competence and learner engagement.

In the article, the author discusses phonetic teaching using audiovisual materials. Authentic short videos offer effective opportunities for teaching phonetics in German as a foreign language (DaF). They are appealing, encourage repetition, and promote fluency and situational awareness. They are easily accessible, bring contemporary spoken language into the classroom, and can be used in a variety of ways as context-based pronunciation exercises. Through imitation, they promote the intonational and articulatory progression of learners. Authentic materials are important for learning natural language use and developing strategies for reception and production. They contain typical features of everyday language use, such as colloquial elisions, suprasegmental expressiveness, foreign or pluricentric accents, stylistic hybridity, facial expressions, and gestures. The use of digital media in the classroom is therefore useful, but requires an adapted didactic approach. Two stand-up comedians, Alain Frei and Sebastian Lehmann, serve as motivating model speakers with dialect-free pronunciation in their live performances recorded on video. During repetition exercises, students are confronted with what is known as speech fluency, which means that they form a concrete and conscious idea of the speech continuum with all its suprasegmental aspects: speed, melody modulation, and emotionality. Subtitles support the multimodal approach in which speaking is combined with reading. Subsequently, one can also concentrate on the sound-letter correspondence. The statement In video veritas – meaning “the truth is in the video” – was placed at the beginning of this paper. It is intended to convey the message that videos, as situation-anchored and multi-perspective works of art, best correspond to what we encounter as truth, in our case, with a focus on linguistic-cultural reality and natural language use.

The paper addresses the upcoming study of the perception of Dutch vowels by Polish speakers – a problem that has never systematically been researched for this particular language pair, despite the fact that linking errors in perception with errors in articulatory reproduction is of great importance for teaching Dutch pronunciation. The starting point of the paper is the critical review of existing works in this field (Balas 2017 and 2018, Czerwonka-Wajda 2021), enhanced with a review of research conducted in comparable conditions and with languages within the same language family (Hentschel 1982 and 1986, Chládková/ Podlipský 2011). The review pays particular attention to the results of experiments, applied perception tests, and used stimuli. The second part of the paper gives an overview of assumptions of the upcoming study, discussing the optimal research design, including the starting point of the experiments (Dutch front (rounded) vowels), types of perception tests (combination of identification and discrimination) and stimuli to be used (non-words of sVs/sVze type). The paper concludes with suggestions for possible continuation of the study in the future: all Dutch vowels must be included, as well as perception and articulation should be combined. Also, the possibility of expanding the scope of research is being taken into account, e. g. taking the longitudinal aspect into account or expanding the study group with Czech, Slovak and German-speaking students of Dutch.

This study aims to identify academic trends, methodological tendencies, and research gaps in the field of auditory processing in Türkiye by systematically examining postgraduate theses. A total of 27 master’s and doctoral theses were accessed through the Turkish Higher Education Institution (YÖK) database and analysed using the document analysis method, a qualitative research approach. The inclusion criteria required that the theses be completed at Turkish universities, be at the master’s or doctoral level, focus on auditory processing skills, and have accessible full texts. The analysis revealed that academic interest in auditory processing has increased, particularly in the last five years. However, the majority of the theses were at the master’s degree level (n=21), while only six were doctoral dissertations, showing that advanced research with stronger theoretical depth remains limited. Another key finding was that all the theses employed quantitative methods, indicating a lack of methodological diversity. This reliance on numerical data restricts opportunities to capture subjective experiences and contextual variables that could be addressed through qualitative or mixed-method approaches. In terms of participants, the distribution was balanced between children and adults, yet only one thesis investigated both groups together, suggesting a gap in lifespan-oriented research. Disciplinary distribution showed that most theses were conducted in audiology (70.3%), with fewer contributions from education, psychology, or medicine. This imbalance highlights the need for interdisciplinary collaboration, as auditory processing is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon extending beyond health sciences alone. This review article offers valuable insights into the current state of postgraduate research in auditory processing in Türkiye and provides direction for future scholarly efforts in this area.

The present paper serves as a voice in the discussion on the issues of pronunciation norm(s) and standard in Polish with reference to phonetic research. The notion of norm(s) and standard seems to be multi-level, unstable, fragmented and constantly changing. As there exists no new dictionary of Polish pronunciation and a number of phonetic guidelines seem to be outdated and/or not based on actual empirical research, while conducting the study of foreign Polish pronunciation (within the framework of articulatory phonetics), the author needed to evaluate the question of the selection of the reference ground, i.e. certain standard to which the results, namely non-native articulatory patterns, should be compared. The article aims to answer the question what could possibly serve as this reference point and how it should be selected. Taking into consideration a selection of existing relevant publications concerned with phonetic norm, pronunciation standard and communicative acceptability, the article discusses their (in)applicability in this kind of research, pointing to the terms such as e.g. ‚glottodidactic norm‘, ‚pronunciation norm‘ and ‚developmental norm‘. Phonetic dictionaries, guidelines (rulebooks) and examination standards are mentioned in the course of the argument. Investigations lead to the conclusion that phonetic research may be conducted without referencing to any norm or standard but its outcomes are more functional and applicable if such comparison ground is carefully selected. Due to the absence of one source that could serve as a point of comparison, certain synthesis should be prepared, taking into consideration language change (generational variation), regional variation, sociolinguistic factors and certain pronunciation standard based also on communicative acceptability rather than prescriptive account not backed up with empirical data.

The paper addresses the relationship between silence, pause, and speechlessness – three phenomena that are closely related yet fulfill different functions in linguistic interaction. While they are often treated as equivalent in everyday language use, linguistic analysis shows that each possesses distinct characteristics and that they cannot be used interchangeably. Particular attention is given to the question of how these phenomena can be prosodically captured, classified, and interpreted. It is emphasized that a purely acoustic analysis is insufficient, as perception and interpretation by the listener play a central role. The theoretical considerations are complemented by the examples from televised football commentaries, which provide a dynamic context for examining pauses and silence. These data allow for illustrating the different communicative functions of such phenomena in authentic, media-mediated speech situations. The main findings are presented in the form of clear visualizations that demonstrate the distribution of the phenomena under investigation. In this way, the paper contributes to a differentiated analysis of the “unsaid” – including its spoken variants – in language.

Reading aloud is a complex communicative process that can by no means be reduced to the mere decoding of linguistic signs. Rather, it is a performative act embedded in situational and sociocultural contexts and realized, among other aspects, through prosody. Particularly relevant in this respect is knowledge of the characteristics of the text to be reproduced orally. The teaching of reading-aloud competence is therefore associated with a wide range of challenges situated in different domains. This contribution aims to discuss, on the basis of the approaches from speech science and language pedagogy, central steps for the development and promotion of reading-aloud competence in the teaching of German as a foreign language (GFL). The guiding research questions address the role of phonetic-phonological competence, text and genre competence, and performative skills in the process of reading aloud. To this end, relevant definitions are first brought together. Building on this, the interconnection of phonetic-phonological and text/genre-related competences is examined in greater detail. It is assumed that reading aloud in GFL classrooms can only be effectively fostered when linguistic, text-related, and performative dimensions are systematically integrated. Against this background, concrete didactic-methodological implications for GFL classroom practice are proposed using the text genre “fairy tale” as an example. These contribute to the development and enhancement of reading-aloud competence and, at the same time, enable the targeted preparation of a reading performance. Overall, the article thus offers concrete approaches for the teaching and further development of reading-aloud competence in German as a foreign language.

The article concerns a review of the methodology for researching the pronunciation of nasal vowels written as ą and ę in Polish sociolinguistics of the second half of the 20th century. The review concerns primarily research on the speech of urban residents and subsequent studies that are their continuation. It is important to look for preliminary assumptions in the selection of the group of respondents, the results obtained and the postulates for the future formulated by scientists. The large difference between the norm and the usage in modern pronunciation indicates the need to repeat the research. The following issues are highlighted in the text: official and unofficial pronunciation, text read in pronunciation research, generational groups in sociophonetic research, pronunciation in research on actors and priests, pronunciation of city residents from the perspective of group selection (generation, age, education, profession, origin, etc.). The aim of the article is to indicate the achievements and methodological gaps of past research and to draw attention to various possibilities of profiling research. The article did not refer to research on the norm of Polish pronunciation, but on usage depending on many sociolinguistic variables. The text signals that it is worth considering the achievements of contemporary text research. Taking into account one speech genre in a specific sociolinguistic situation may help to obtain homogeneous linguistic material for studying the pronunciation of various speakers.

Prosodic features play a central role in the production and reception of spoken language, as they serve both to structure information and to convey emotions. This duality becomes particularly evident in sports commentary, where commentators combine factual information with the creation of excitement and engagement. This paper examines this phenomenon using the German live commentary of Lukas Märtens’ Olympic victory in the 400-meter freestyle at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games – the first Olympic gold medal by a German pool swimmer since 1988. The study analyzes the informative and expressive functions of the prosodic features through acoustic-auditory parameters such as fundamental frequency/pitch, standard deviation of fundamental frequency, intensity/volume, speech rate, focus accents, and pauses. The study is based on an auditory analysis conducted using the software EXMARaLDA (Schmidt/Wörner 2014). To visualize and objectify the observations, the auditory data are supplemented with acoustic measurements obtained from Praat (Boersma/Weenink 2025). The analysis shows that prosodic variations closely follow the dynamics of the race. While factual-informative functions dominate at the beginning, pitch, modulation, loudness, and focus accents gradually increase expressivity as the race progresses, culminating at its peak. Extralinguistic factors, particularly historical and emotional contexts, additionally influence prosodic shaping. This confirms that prosody goes far beyond mere information transfer and plays a crucial role in the staging of sporting events, which should be further explored in future studies with regard to a possible “sports prosody”.

The aim of the present paper is to address the particularities of German word stress and to highlight its distinctive function. This phenomenon is completely foreign to the Slovak language, which makes it especially important to pay attention to correct word stress when learning German as a foreign language. The primary function of word stress, used in this paper synonymously with word accent, is considered to be its distinctive function. This function is particularly relevant because stress can change the meaning of words that are spelled identically. In languages where word accent is tied to a fixed syllable, word stress does not have a distinctive function. That is, an arbitrary shift of stress to another syllable in a word does not change its meaning, even if the word may sound unusual to native speakers. In contrast, languages with movable word stress, such as English, German, or Russian, allow the position of stress to influence not only meaning but also the morphological structure and syntax of a word. This is especially relevant for German verbs with prefixes that can be either separable or inseparable, as stress determines their grammatical and syntactic interpretation. The paper provides illustrative examples and detailed explanations to clarify the theoretical claims and make them comprehensible for learners and linguists alike. Thus, the article contributes to a better understanding of word accentuation in German, its functional role within the linguistic system, and the differences compared to languages without a distinctive word accent. This is particularly relevant for the field of German as a foreign language, as correct stress enhances not only comprehensibility but also communicative precision.

The aim of this article is to analyze the auditory perception of the so-called Polish nasal vowels. Polish is the last Slavic language in which certain forms of nasal vowels still occur systematically and exercise their distinctive phonological function with different phonetic realizations. Since other Slavic languages have lost their nasal vowels over time, similar tendencies can be expected in contemporary Polish. This primarily leads to mechanisms based on assimilation-founded shifting of nasality to other segments or segmental parts, or its complete elimination when distinctive functions of nasality are maintained thanks to contextual or constitutive factors. Several perspectives must be exploited to effectively describe and, consequently, interpret the analyzed phenomenon, including phonological, phonetic, sociophonetic, didactic, and typological perspectives. Since auditory perception plays a crucial role in every act of communication realized phonetically, it must also be included in the analysis of nasal vowels. For example, it is necessary to examine whether oral or nasal pronunciation is perceived correctly and how the respective pronunciation is evaluated. The experiments conducted have shown that the perception of vocal nasality is significantly unstable and related to many factors of varying origin. One can conclude that there is no universally valid correct perception of nasal vowels. It has also been shown that the complex evaluation of phonetically corresponding texts is primarily motivated by sociophonetics.

Rap, which is rooted in the African-American urban culture of the 1970s, has long ceased to be an exclusively Western musical phenomenon. Its presence and expansion in Slavic countries – from Poland, the Czech Republic and Ukraine to Russian-speaking Central Asia – confirms its global reach and adaptability to different linguistic, social and political contexts. As a means of artistic expression, political dissent and identity representation, in recent years rap has gained the attention of scholars, although the subject has long remained marginalised in German-speaking countries. Against this background, the anthology „Rap und die slawischen Sprachen. Interdisziplinäre Zugänge und Erkenntnisse“, edited by Aleksej Tikhonov and Cristiana Lucchetti, is a ground-breaking initiative. It is a publication within German-language Slavic studies that deals with the topic of rap in Slavic languages systematically and across geographical and disciplinary boundaries. In individual chapters, the authors analyse topics such as translanguaging, multilingualism, the use of vulgarities and the role of rap music. The review article is intended to provide an overview of the structure and content of the volume and to assess its relevance for contemporary Slavic studies, sociolinguistics and the study of language in music. It also examines the extent to which the anthology contributes to research into translational identity constructions, linguistic hybridity and the role of migrant languages in the public and cultural sphere.

The study addresses the growing importance of the so-called „third mission“ of universities, which, in addition to research and teaching, encompasses a third central task: knowledge and technology transfer, continuous education, and social engagement. The aim is to strengthen the social relevance of universities and meet the challenges of a globalized world of work. The University of Łódź serves as an example of an institution that trains skilled workers for the local labor market through close cooperation with the regional economy. The study focuses on the question of which job-specific and language skills should be taught as part of academic education in order to optimally prepare students for the requirements of the labor market. A central concern is the understanding of institutional communication, especially in educational institutions, administrations, legal institutions, and international companies. It is emphasized that globalization requires new linguistic strategies in institutional contexts. Technical language and technical communication are understood not only as tools, but as integral components of knowledge transfer and progress. Institutional and individual multilingualism is also becoming particularly relevant, especially in the outsourcing sector. The socioeconomic analysis shows Poland to be a leading location for the outsourcing industry, benefiting from competitive labor costs, technological modernization, and digitization. The study examines the extent to which philology courses meet the linguistic and technical requirements of this industry and calls for a stronger link between language and technical knowledge. As part of the „Łódź Language Barometer 2014–2024“ project, quantitative and qualitative studies were conducted on language use and competence requirements in outsourcing companies. The results provide differentiated data on language skills, professional experience, and relevant language skills and form the basis for the development of practice-oriented, career-relevant study programs. In conclusion, it is emphasized that the findings contribute significantly to the optimization of academic language and technical training and enable universities to effectively fulfill their „third mission“.

The rapid advancement of digital technologies over the past decades has profoundly transformed the nature of language-related professions, redefining both the status and the scope of translator competences. In the field of translation, these changes stem primarily from the widespread adoption of computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools, translation memory systems, and neural machine translation (NMT) technologies. This article explores the evolution of the concept of translator competence in the context of technological transformation and its implications for translation practice and pedagogy. The analysis is based on Krzysztof Łoboda’s monograph „Tłumacz w cyfrowym świecie. Kompetencje techniczne tłumacza w praktyce i dydaktyce przekładu tekstów specjalistycznych“ (2024), which offers an integrated account of the role of technology in translation and education. The study juxtaposes established competence models (PACTE, EMT) with the author’s empirical findings, demonstrating a shift from linguistic-cultural competences toward complex technological and process-oriented skills. The contemporary translator is viewed as an active participant in a multifaceted technological ecosystem, combining the roles of an analyst, editor, and information manager. Technical competences – defined as proficiency in digital tools, understanding of translation systems, and the ability to critically assess their outputs – have become a core component of professional translator identity. The article argues that translator education should encompass not only technical training but also critical reflection on the epistemological and ethical implications of artificial intelligence in translation. Consequently, a model of translation didactics is proposed that integrates linguistic, cognitive, ethical, and technological competences, aligning with current trends in translation studies and intercultural communication in the digital era.

The paper is devoted to Marta Śleziak’s monograph „Głosuj, broń, wybieraj. Polskie hasła polityczne z lat 1918–2020“, which represents one of the most comprehensive and interdisciplinary studies of the development of political language in Poland. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the significance of this publication for current research on political communication, public rhetoric, and the linguistic and ideological mechanisms involved in constructing symbolic communities. Śleziak’s monograph offers a diachronic analysis of Polish political slogans spanning more than a century: from the restoration of independence in 1918 to the age of digital media. The interdisciplinary character of Śleziak’s study is particularly noteworthy: it combines linguistic, rhetorical, semiotic, and cultural perspectives into a coherent model for interpreting political language. The author shows that the political slogan is not merely a linguistic form but also a performative act and a carrier of ideology – a space in which language, emotion, and power interact dynamically. In her work, Śleziak distinguishes three fundamental stages in the development of Polish political slogans. During the period of the Second Republic (1918–1939), slogans fulfilled a state-building and mobilizing function, serving national integration and the strengthening of civic identity. In the People’s Republic of Poland (1945–1989), they evolved into elements of a ritualized propaganda language, characterized by syntactic symmetry and depersonalization, which reinforced the official ideological discourse. After 1989, political slogans became increasingly commercialized and personalized, transforming into instruments of political marketing focused on emotion, image-building, and media visibility. Śleziak’s monograph constitutes an important point of reference for contemporary research on political language and ideological discourse in twentieth- and twenty-first-century Poland. At the same time, it inspires further reflection on the role of language in shaping social consciousness and national identity, as well as on the interrelations between communication, emotion, and power in a mediatized democracy.

The review consists of a discussion of the content and an assessment of the practical applicability of a book that contains a systematic and synthetic presentation of research content and results on various aspects and problems of the acquisition of Danish, Swedish and Norwegian as a second/foreign language. The publication consists of a foreword, an introduction, the main text, a bibliography, a list of abbreviations and an index. The main part comprises six chapters devoted to presenting the state of research in the field of the individual subsystems of the Scandinavian languages. Chapter 2 contains a discussion of publications and their findings with regard to the phonetics of the languages. The contributions on the acquisition of words and word groups are the subject of discussion in Chapter 3. The topic of Chapter 4 focuses on syntactic issues. The content of Chapter 5 consists of a presentation of the state of research on vocabulary acquisition. Chapter 6 formulates didactic implications for teachers and learners based on the findings of the publications discussed. Since the Polish publishing market still does not offer any contributions on the subject of didactics for teaching Scandinavian languages, this monograph is important and necessary because it fills this gap to a certain extent.

This review discusses a 923-page compendium on discourse linguistics published in 2024, analysing and evaluating its academic and practical value. The work has a clear structure, comprising an introduction and a main section divided into seven parts dealing with selected aspects and specific issues in discourse linguistics. The thematically homogeneous parts contain 68 articles. The articles were written by researchers from various universities in Poland and are designed as independent texts with references. The introductory articles deal with the philosophical origins of discourse, while the chapter „Diskurs und linguistische Teildisziplinen und Methoden“ discusses the interfaces between discourse analysis and twelve linguistic subdisciplines (pragmatics, sociolinguistics, text linguistics and stylistics) and two research methods (content analysis and conversation analysis). The chapter „Diskurs und linguistische Kategorien“ examines selected categories from a discourse linguistic perspective. This part deals with general categories from communication studies (discourse and communication, discourse and communication strategies) as well as linguistic units (sign, text, text types and proper name) and their qualitative characteristics (style, meaning, metaphor, lexical meaning, etc.). Other parts of the volume address the issue of cultural categories (values, identity, collective memory and stereotypes) as well as media and different areas of life (religion, law, art, sport, politics, etc.) from a discourse perspective. The compendium is the first Polish overview publication in the field of discourse linguistics and is expected to enjoy great popularity in research and teaching due to its complexity, topicality, synthetic presentation and numerous references.

Medical communication is a research topic that can be examined and analyzed from various scientific perspectives. In recent years, there has been growing interest in medical communication both in linguistics and in the field of medicine. This article presents and discusses a new linguistic publication on the topic of medical communication. The publication in question is the anthology „Diskursanalytische Perspektiven auf medizinische Fachkommunikation im europäischen Kontext“ edited by Vahram Atayan, Delphine Choffat, Waldemar Czachur, Ekkehard Felder, and Delphine Pasques, and published in 2025. The publication documents the results of a project on the comparative linguistic analysis of discourses in a European context and brings together studies that examine medical communication using discourse analysis methods and approaches. The review of the anthology reveals its thematic diversity, which spans topics characteristic of discourse research, such as argumentation structures, metaphors, nomination units, and much more. The new publication also includes studies that deal with modern health communication as well as those that take a diachronic approach by analyzing corpora of historical texts (e.g., plague treatises). This anthology’s view of medical communication is also characterized by a cross-linguistic perspective, as it takes five European languages into account. Overall, it can be said that this is an interesting and successful linguistic publication that explores specific aspects and topics of medical communication from a discourse analysis perspective.

For about 20 years, there has been a noticeable trend towards placing greater emphasis on multimodality in linguistics, both in the analysis of direct and digital communication. This research trend is represented by the publication „Pragmatik multimodal“, which was published in 2024 by Susanne Kabatnik, Lars Bülow, Marie-Luis Merten and Robert Mroczynski in the series „Studien zur Pragmatik“ and is presented in this article. The overall aim of the anthology is to close the research gap in the field of pragmatic research regarding multimodality and to present the diversity of pragmatically oriented studies focusing on multimodality. The volume consists of ten studies discussing various topics, such as negation, intensification, irony, co-construction of change, onomatopoeic interjections, communicative practices of football fans, speaker change in digital space, communicative practices of positioning and boundary setting by scientists, and much more. The material basis for the compiled studies is also very diverse. The contributions are based both on communication in the digital space (e.g. internet memes) and on direct in this volume clearly show that focusing on the multimodality of communication provides broad insight into its practices and dynamics.

Texts accompany people everywhere as basic units of communication. They are virtually omnipresent in urban/public spaces. However, many people often hardly notice them because they have become routine. Linguistic research has also long paid little attention to urban texts. For some time now, however, a young linguistic discipline – landscape linguistics – has been devoting more interest to texts of this type, examining them from various perspectives and attempting to answer questions such as: How does the city communicate with its residents/visitors and in what way does it draw their attention to texts? How do people communicate with each other in an (urban) space? How does public space, which often represents a multilingual, culturally diverse semiotic landscape, influence the formulation of texts / the course of communication? Reflections on such topics are presented in the volume „Texträume und Raumtexte intermedial“, published in 2025 by Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht in the Fields of Linguistics – Aktuelle Fragestellungen und Herausforderungen, edited by Regina Bergmann and Joanna Szczęk, which documents the results of scientific collaboration between researchers at the University of Wrocław and the Technical University of Dresden in 16 thematically organised articles.

The review praises the anthology published by the Michel Bréal Society, which aims to draw more attention to the undeservedly forgotten German-French linguist Michel Bréal (1832–1915). Bréal made groundbreaking contributions to modern linguistics, acted as a mediator between Germany and France, and is considered the inventor of the Olympic marathon. The publication contains eight articles that shed light on various facets of Bréal’s work, which went far beyond linguistics and focused, among other things, on educational reform in France. Some articles deal with Bréal’s biography, his German-French background, his studies in Paris and Berlin, and his painful experiences due to tensions in Franco-German relations. Although he held a chair at the Collège de France for decades and worked to promote Franco-German scientific exchange, Bréal fell into obscurity, partly because of his unpopular efforts to promote understanding, and died in 1915 largely unnoticed. The central theme of the text is Bréal’s most important work, the „Essai de sémantique“ from 1897. Because of this work, Bréal is considered an important early representative of synchronic linguistics. His efforts to promote peace, his educational legacy in the French education system, and the historical significance of his idea of the marathon are also discussed in detail. The individual contributions paint a vivid picture of an outstanding scientist whose commitment against a backdrop of nationalist tensions highlights the limitations of the individual and whose subject matter is still relevant today.