Baltic Online

The foundations for the flourishing of Lithuanian culture of the 18th century were laid in the previous two centuries. In the 16th and 17th centuries, a collective tradition for the production of religious and linguistic works had been created, and in Daniel Klein's grammar, norms for the written language had been codified. The distinguished literary historian Jùrgis Lebedỹs has emphasized that, without Jõnas Bretkū^́nas, the greatest producer of religious literature at the end of the 16th century and the translator of the Bible, Kristijõnas Doneláitis (1714-1780) would never have become famous.

Kristijõnas Doneláitis as a poet was nurtured by the cultural milieu of 18th century East Prussia. At the age of 29 he was appointed pastor of the small East Prussian parish Tolminkiemis, where he lived until his death. He loved the simple and unhurried life. He had not only poetic talent, but also golden hands: he made optical and meteorological instruments and even built for himself a piano that he played, and he maintained a garden. A great part of his life was spent talking with the peasants of his parish and experiencing their woes and cares. Half the members of his parish were Germans who, supported by the government, tried to push Lithuanian peasants out of the more fertile lands. Thus, as a pastor, it frequently fell to his lot to quell national and social conflicts, encouraging the peasants to argue their cases in court.

It is thought that six fables belong to the initial phase of his literary activity. Some are borrowed from Aesop and others are original. However the most important work, which made him famous, is the poem Mẽtai 'The Seasons'. Most likely Doneláitis wrote this in the course of ten years without any preconceived plan for the work. The poem was constantly being supplemented and corrected, but remained unfinished to the end. The famous East Prussian Lithuanian cultural activist Liùdvikas Rėzà published it 38 years after its author's death. He was the first to call this work Mẽtai 'The Seasons'. This is made up of four parts: The amusements of spring, Summer work, The pleasures of fall and Winter cares. In these the author describes the East Prussian Lithuanian village, the way of life of its peasant inhabitants, and their work, all of which was well known to him. The impressive views of nature during the seasons described by the poet help to hold together the various parts of the work. The lives of the Lithuanian peasants in the poem are closely bound up with the cycles of nature. The most important things for the peasant are work, sleep and food. Doneláitis relied little on any kind of literary canons, but in the division of the poem's characters into positive (polite) and negative (good-for-nothing) persons we can see some elements of classical writing. The use of extravagant expressions and the tendency to hyperbolize are connected with the baroque tradition. In the work there are quite a few didactic precepts and pieces of advice, because its author is not only a poet but a preacher as well. In The Seasons, the author through the mouths of his characters comes out against the foreign German culture and emphasizes the value of his own language and culture. His national feeling is distinguished by conservatism.

The poetry of antiquity (Hesiod, Vergil) had a profound influence on him. His entire poem is in rhymed hexameter. Although the antique hexameter is based on the difference between short and long syllables, he applied it to the Lithuanian language, which has free stress, and he replaced the old hexameter with tonic hexameter. In his verses he alternates tonic dactyls and trochees, but the penultimate foot of a line is always dactylic. Characteristic of each line is a caesura in the third foot or two caesuras in the second and fourth feet. The caesura is for the most part masculine.

The episode given here is from the second part of The Seasons. Summer work tells about one of the most colorful good-for-nothing peasants of this poem, Plaučiū^́nas. After a bit of unpaid collective work, he has his fill of food and drink at the place of his neighbor Kãsparas and wanders home, arriving only at dawn and without his new scythe and whetstone. He misses his tools only after the quail calls him to make hay. Unable to find his tools anywhere, Pliaučiū^́nas beats his wife and children, saddles up his one-eared nag and rides off to Karaliáučius to buy a scythe. But there he forgets all about the scythe and at Mìkas' place pays for his drinks with his old nag and wanders home on foot after two weeks. Crawling and snorting, he cuts his neglected meadow with a sickle. This excerpt was translated by William Schmalstieg.

Reading and Textual Analysis

The text of the selection is given according to the rules of contemporary Lithuanian orthography and punctuation: as much as possible, an attempt has been made to maintain the authentic Donelaitis stress (he did not supply all the words with stress and some are stressed in several ways). In this selection as in the entire poem, abundant use is made of the half-participles, which are distinguished by their picturesque quality, e.g., klydinė^́dams 'wandering around', miegódams 'sleeping', vaitódams 'groaning', pamatýdams 'seeing', žioplinė^́dams 'gaping', šokinė^́dams 'dancing', šnỹpšdams 'snorting', rėplinė^́dams 'crawling'. Also characteristic of the author's language is the ending - s as a shortening of - as, i.e., the loss of mobile - a-, e.g., Plaučiū^́ns, pavitóts 'having been given food and drink', miegódams 'sleeping', vaitódams 'groaning', etc. Infinitives are also shortened: šienáut(i) 'to make hay', pjáut(i) 'to cut, to reap', conjunctions ìk(i) 'until.' The locative ending -yje is shortened not to -y, but to yj, e.g.., naktỹj 'in the night'.

In the text given here Slavisms are encountered, e.g., pavitóts 'having been given food and drink', glū^̃pas 'stupid, silly', nesvíetiškai 'not of this world, inhuman, beyond ordinary measure', dỹvas 'wonder', nedė^́lė 'week', potám 'then'. Most common are the conjunctions kàd 'that, when', bèt 'but', ir̃ 'and', bei 'and'. Frequent in this excerpt are adverbs (paskiaũs 'afterwards, then', prastaĩ 'poorly', taĩp 'also', namõn 'home', daũg 'many, much', konè 'almost', etc.) and prepositions (pàs 'at', añt 'on', sù 'with', per̃ 'through', ìš 'from, out of', į̃ 'into', põ 'under, after', etc). In addition the adverb ir̃gi 'and even', characteristic of the literature of Lithuania Minor, is also used.

The excerpt is taken from the book Kristijonas Donelaitis. Metai ir pasakėčios. Vilnius: Baltų lankų leidyba, 2000, translated by William Schmalstieg.

Tàs nenáudėlis Plaučiū^́ns, pàs Kãsparą pérnai
Talkojè pavitóts, taĩp baĩsiai bùvo prir̀ijęs,
Kàd jìs nãktyj, añt tamsių̃ laukų̃ klydinė^́dams,
Bùdę naũją sù dalgiù šukė^́tu prapùldė
Ir̃gi namõn išaũšus jaũ vos võs parsibãstė.

• tàs -- pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <tàs, tà> this, that -- that
• nenáudėlis -- noun; nominative singular masculine of <nenáudėlis, nenáudėlė> good-for-nothing -- good-for-nothing
• Plaučiū^́ns -- noun; nominative singular masculine of <Plaučiū^́ns> Plauciunas -- Plauciunas
• pàs -- preposition; <pàs> at, to -- at
• Kãsparą -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <Kãsparas> Kasparas -- Kasparas' (place)
• pérnai -- adverb; <pérnai> last year -- last year
• talkojè -- noun; locative singular feminine of <talkà> collective labor -- in the collective labor
• pavitóts -- verb; nominative singular masculine of preterit participle passive of <pavitóti, pavitója, pavitójo> entertain, give food and drink -- having been given food and drink
• taĩp -- adverb; <taĩp> so, therefore -- so
• baĩsiai -- adverb; <baĩsiai> awfully -- much
• bùvo -- verb; 3rd person preterit of <bū^́ti, yrà, bùvo> be -- had
• prir̀ijęs -- verb; nominative singular masculine of preterit participle active of <prirýti, prirỹja, prirìjo> drink -- drunk
• kàd -- conjunction; <kàd> that -- that
• jìs -- pronoun; nominative singular masculine <jìs, jì> he, she, it -- he
• nãktyj -- noun; locative singular feminine <naktìs> night -- at night
• añt -- preposition; <añt> in, on -- around
• tamsių̃ -- adjective; genitive plural masculine of <tamsùs, tamsì> dark -- dark
• laukų̃ -- noun; genitive singular masculine of <laũkas> field -- the fields
• klydinė^́dams -- verb; singular masculine of half participle of <klydinė^́ti, klydinė^́ja, klydinė^́jo> wander -- wandering
• bùdę -- noun; accusative singular feminine of <bùdė> whetstone -- the whetstone
• naũją -- adjective; accusative singular feminine of <naũjas, naujà> new -- new
• sù -- preposition; <sù> with -- with
• dalgiù -- noun; instrumental singular masculine of <dal^̃gis> scythe -- the scythe
• šukė^́tu -- adjective; instrumental singular masculine of <šukė^́tas, šukė^́ta> chipped -- chipped
• prapùldė -- verb; 3rd person preterit of <prapùldyti, prapùldo, prapùldė> lose -- lost
• ir̃gi -- adverb; <ir̃gi> and even -- and even
• namõn -- adverb; <namõn> home -- home
• išaũšus -- verb; preterit gerund(ive) of <išaũšti, išaũšta, išaũšo> break of dawn -- at the break of dawn
• jaũ -- adverb; <jaũ> already, just -- just
• vos võs -- adverb; <vos võs> barely -- barely
• parsibãstė -- verb; 3rd person preterit reflexive of <parsibastýti, parsibãsto, parsibãstė> wander -- (he) wandered

Taĩp jisaĩ paskuĩ, per̃ diẽną vìsą miegódams,
Pàmestų rỹkų laukè ieškót neminė^́jo,
Ìk põ mẽto vė^̃l šienáut jaũ pùtpela šaũkė.

• taĩp -- adverb; <taĩp> so, therefore -- so that
• jisaĩ -- definite pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <jìs, jì> he, she, it -- he
• paskuĩ -- adverb; <paskuĩ> afterwards -- afterwards
• per̃ -- preposition; <per̃> through -- through
• diẽną -- noun; accusative singular feminine of <dienà> day -- the day
• vìsą -- pronoun; accusative singular feminine of <vìsas, visà> all -- whole
• miegódams -- verb; singular masculine of half participle of <miegóti, miẽga, miegójo> sleep -- sleeping
• pàmestų -- verb; genitive plural masculine of preterit participle passive of <pamèsti, pàmeta, pàmetė> loose -- lost
• rỹkų -- noun; genitive plural masculine of <rỹkas> tool -- the tools
• laukè -- noun; locative singular masculine of <laũkas> field -- in the field
• ieškót -- verb; infinitive of <ieškóti, íeško, ieškójo> look for -- to look for
• neminė^́jo -- negative particle; <ne> not + verb; 3rd person preterit of <minė^́ti, mìni, minė^́jo> remember -- (he) didn't remember
• ìk -- conjunction; <ìk> until -- until
• põ -- preposition; <põ> after, over, on -- after
• mẽto -- noun; genitive singular masculine of <mẽtai> year -- a year
• vė^̃l -- adverb; <vė^̃l> again -- again
• šienáut -- verb; infinitive of <šienáuti, šienáuja, šienãvo> make hay -- to make hay
• jaũ -- adverb; <jaũ> already, just -- already
• pùtpela -- noun; nominative singular feminine of <pùtpela> quail -- the quail
• šaũkė -- verb; 3rd person preterit of <šaũkti, šaũkia, šaũkė> call -- called (him)

Štaĩ Plaučiū^́ns sàvo dal^̃gio beĩ bùdės pasigẽdo
Ir̃ vaitódams vìs ir̃ šeñ, ir̃ teñ bėginė^́jo;
Ìk paskiaũs, ìš pãpykio beržìnį pagãvęs,
Pãčią sù glūpaĩs vaikaĩs konè nùmušė smir̃das.

• štaĩ -- particle; <štaĩ> here -- so now
• Plaučiū^́ns -- noun; nominative singular masculine of <Plaučiū^́ns> Plauciunas -- Plauciunas
• sàvo -- pronoun; genitive of <sàvo> he, she -- his
• dal^̃gio -- noun; genitive singular masculine of <dal^̃gis> scythe -- scythe
• beĩ -- conjunction; <beĩ> and -- and
• bùdės -- noun; genitive singular feminine of <bùdė> whetstone -- whetstone
• pasigẽdo -- verb; 3rd person preterit reflexive of <pasigèsti, pasigeñda, pasigẽdo> miss -- missed
• ir̃ -- conjunction; <ir̃> and -- and
• vaitódams -- verb; singular masculine of half participle of <vaitóti, vaitója,vaitójo> moan, groan -- groaning
• vìs -- adverb; <vìs> still -- ...
• ir̃ -- conjunction; <ir̃> and -- ...
• šeñ -- adverb; <šeñ> hither -- hither
• ir̃ -- conjunction; <ir̃> and -- and
• teñ -- adverb; <teñ> there, thither -- thither
• bėginė^́jo -- verb; 3rd person preterit of <bėginė^́ti, bėginė^́ja, bėginė^́jo> run about -- ran
• ìk -- conjunction; <ìk> until -- until
• paskiaũs -- adverb; <paskiaũs> then, after that -- finally
• ìš -- preposition; <ìš> from -- from
• pãpykio -- noun; genitive singular masculine of <pãpykis> anger -- anger
• beržìnį -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <beržìnis> birch stick -- a birch stick
• pagãvęs -- verb; nominative singular masculine of preterit participle active of <pagáuti, pagáuna, pagãvo> grab up -- grabbing up
• pãčią -- noun; accusative singular feminine of <patì> wife -- (his) wife
• sù -- preposition; <sù> with -- and
• glūpaĩs -- adjective; instrumental plural masculine of <glū^̃pas> stupid -- stupid
• vaikaĩs -- noun; instrumental plural masculine of <vaĩkas> child -- (their) children
• konè -- adverb; <konè> almost -- almost
• nùmušė -- verb; 3rd person preterit of <numùšti, nùmuša, nùmušė> kill -- killed
• smir̃das -- noun; nominative singular masculine of <smir̃das> stinking fellow -- the stinking fellow

Taĩp potám jisaĩ, nesvíetiškai prisidū^̃kęs
Ir̃ vienaũsį kuĩnpalaikį prastaĩ pažebójęs,
Į̃ Karaliáučių dal^̃gį pir̃kt tiesióg nukeliãvo.

• taĩp -- adverb; <taĩp> so, therefore -- so
• potám -- adverb; <potám> then, after that -- then
• jisaĩ -- definite pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <jìs, jì> he, she, it -- he
• nesvíetiškai -- adverb; <nesviẽtiškai> inhuman, not of this world -- unholy
• prisidū^̃kęs -- verb; nominative singular masculine of preterit participle active reflexive of <prisidū^̃kti, prisidū^́ksta, prisidū^́ko> rage, raise a row -- in a fit of rage
• ir̃ -- conjunction; <ir̃> and -- ...
• vienaũsį -- adjective; accusative singular masculine of <vienaũsis, vienaũsė> one-eared -- one-eared
• kuĩnpalaikį -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <kuĩnpalaikis> old nag -- the old nag
• prastaĩ -- adverb; <prastaĩ> badly -- somehow
• pažebójęs -- verb; nominative singular masculine of preterit participle active of <pažebóti, pažebója, pažebójo> bridle -- having bridled
• į̃ -- preposition; <į̃> at, for, in, to -- for
• Karaliáučių -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <Karaliáučius> Karaliauc^ius -- Karaliauc^ius
• dal^̃gį -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <dal^̃gis> scythe -- a scythe
• pir̃kt -- verb; infinitive of <pir̃kti, per̃ka, pir̃ko> buy -- to buy
• tiesióg -- adverb; <tiesióg> directly -- directly
• nukeliãvo -- verb; 3rd person preterit of <nukeliáuti, nukeliáuja, nukeliãvo> travel -- set off

Õ veĩ teñ, dỹvų visókių daũg pamatýdams
Ir̃ žioplinė^́dams vìs beĩ bū^̃riškai šokinė^́dams,
Bùdę sù naujù dalgiù nusipir̃kt užsimir̃šo;
Bèt ir̃ kuĩnpalaikį taip jaũ pàs Mìką pragė^́ręs,
Pė^́sčias põ dviejų̃ nedė^́lių võs parsibãstė,
Ir̃ sàvo píevą prìdergtą (tìkt gė^́da sakýti)
Šnỹpšdams ir̃ rėplinė^́dams vìs sù piáutuvu kir̃to.

• õ -- conjunction; <õ> and, but -- but
• veĩ -- particle; <veĩ> look -- ...
• teñ -- adverb; <teñ> there, thither -- there
• dỹvų -- noun; genitive plural masculine of <dỹvas> miracle, wonder -- wonders
• visókių -- pronoun; genitive plural masculine of <visóks, visókia> all -- marvelous
• daũg -- adverb; <daũg> many, much -- many
• pamatýdams -- verb; singular masculine of half participle of <pamatýti, pamãto, pamãtė> see -- seeing
• ir̃ -- conjunction; <ir̃> and -- ...
• žioplinė^́dams -- verb; singular masculine of half participle of <žioplinė^́ti, žioplinė^́ja, žioplinė^́jo> gape -- gaping
• vìs -- adverb; <vìs> still -- still
• beĩ -- conjunction; <beĩ> and -- and
• bū^̃riškai -- adverb; <bū^̃riškai> like a peasant -- like a peasant
• šokinė^́dams -- verb; singular masculine of half participle of <šokinė^́ti, šokinė^́ja, šokinė^́jo> dance, skip -- dancing
• bùdę -- noun; accusative singular feminine of <bùdė> whetstone -- a whetstone
• sù -- preposition; <sù> with -- and
• naujù -- adjective; instrumental singular masculine of <naũjas, naujà> new -- new
• dalgiù -- noun; instrumental singular masculine of <dal^̃gis> scythe -- a scythe
• nusipir̃kt -- verb; infinitive reflexive of <nusipir̃kti, nusìperka, nusipir̃ko> buy -- to buy
• užsimir̃šo -- verb; 3rd person preterit reflexive of <užsimir̃šti, užsimir̃šta, užsimir̃šo> forget -- (he) forgot
• bèt -- conjunction; <bèt> but -- but
• ir̃ -- particle; <ir̃> and -- ...
• kuĩnpalaikį -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <kuĩnpalaikis> old nag -- the old nag
• taip jaũ -- adverb; <taip jaũ> also -- ...
• pàs -- preposition; <pàs> at, to -- at
• Mìką -- noun; accusative singular masculine of <Mìkas> Mikas -- Mikas' (place)
• pragė^́ręs -- verb; nominative singular masculine of preterit participle active of <pragérti, pràgeria, pragė^́rė> drink up -- having drunk up
• pė^́sčias -- adjective; nominative singular masculine of <pė^́sčias, pėsčià> on foot -- on foot
• põ -- preposition; <põ> after, over, on -- after
• dviejų̃ -- number; genitive feminine of <dù, dvì> two -- two
• nedė^́lių -- noun; genitive plural feminine of <nedė^́lia> week -- weeks
• võs -- particle; <võs> barely, hardly -- ...
• parsibãstė -- verb; 3rd person preterit reflexive of <parsibastýti, parsibãsto, parsibãstė> wander -- (he) wandered (home)
• ir̃ -- conjunction; <ir̃> and -- and
• sàvo -- pronoun; genitive of <sàvo> he, she -- his
• píevą -- noun; accusative singular feminine of <píeva> meadow -- field
• prìdergtą -- verb; accusative singular feminine of preterit participle passive of <pridérgti, pridérgia, pridérgė> befoul -- befouled
• tìkt -- particle; <tìkt> only -- only
• gė^́da -- noun; nominative singular masculine of <gė^́da> shameful -- (it is) shameful
• sakýti -- verb; infinitive of <sakýti, sãko, sãkė> say -- to say (it)
• šnỹpšdams -- verb; singular masculine of half participle of <šnỹpšti, šnỹpščia, šnỹpštė> snort -- snorting
• ir̃ -- conjunction; <ir̃> and -- and
• rėplinė^́dams -- verb; singular masculine of half participle of <rėplinė^́ti, rėplinė^́ja, rėplinė^́jo> crawl -- crawling
• vìs -- adverb; <vìs> still -- over and over
• sù -- preposition; <sù> with -- with
• piáutuvu -- noun; instrumental singular masculine of <piáutuvas> sickle -- a sickle
• kir̃to -- verb; 3rd person preterit of <kir̃sti, ker̃ta, kir̃to> cut -- harvested

Lesson Text

Tàs nenáudėlis Plaučiū^́ns, pàs Kãsparą pérnai
Talkojè pavitóts, taĩp baĩsiai bùvo prir̀ijęs,
Kàd jìs nãktyj, añt tamsių̃ laukų̃ klydinė^́dams,
Bùdę naũją sù dalgiù šukė^́tu prapùldė
Ir̃gi namõn išaũšus jaũ vos võs parsibãstė.
Taĩp jisaĩ paskuĩ, per̃ diẽną vìsą miegódams,
Pàmestų rỹkų laukè ieškót neminė^́jo,
Ìk põ mẽto vė^̃l šienáut jaũ pùtpela šaũkė.
Štaĩ Plaučiū^́ns sàvo dal^̃gio beĩ bùdės pasigẽdo
Ir̃ vaitódams vìs ir̃ šeñ, ir̃ teñ bėginė^́jo;
Ìk paskiaũs, ìš pãpykio beržìnį pagãvęs,
Pãčią sù glūpaĩs vaikaĩs konè nùmušė smir̃das.
Taĩp potám jisaĩ, nesvíetiškai prisidū^̃kęs
Ir̃ vienaũsį kuĩnpalaikį prastaĩ pažebójęs,
Į̃ Karaliáučių dal^̃gį pir̃kt tiesióg nukeliãvo.
Õ veĩ teñ, dỹvų visókių daũg pamatýdams
Ir̃ žioplinė^́dams vìs beĩ bū^̃riškai šokinė^́dams,
Bùdę sù naujù dalgiù nusipir̃kt užsimir̃šo;
Bèt ir̃ kuĩnpalaikį taip jaũ pàs Mìką pragė^́ręs,
Pė^́sčias põ dviejų̃ nedė^́lių võs parsibãstė,
Ir̃ sàvo píevą prìdergtą (tìkt gė^́da sakýti)
Šnỹpšdams ir̃ rėplinė^́dams vìs sù piáutuvu kir̃to.

Translation

That good-for-nothing Plauciunas, (having participated) last year in the collective labor and having been given food and drink at Kasparas' place, had drunk so much that, wandering around the dark fields at night, he lost his new whetstone and chipped scythe. He wandered home just barely at the break of dawn so that afterwards, sleeping through the whole day, he didn't remember to look in the field for his lost tools, until after a year the quail called him to make hay again. So now Plauciunas missed his scythe and whetstone and, groaning, ran hither and thither until finally, from anger, grabbing up a birch stick, the stinking fellow almost killed his wife and their stupid children. So then in a fit of unholy rage, having somehow bridled the old one-eared nag, he set off directly for Karaliaucius to buy a scythe. But seeing many marvelous wonders there, still gaping and dancing like a peasant, he forgot to buy a whetstone and a new scythe. But having drunk up the old nag [i.e., having spent all the money he got from selling the nag] at Mikas' place, he wandered home on foot after two weeks and harvested his befouled field (it's only shameful to say it) with a sickle, crawling and snorting over and over.

Grammar

26. Adverbs

Adverbs express qualitative, quantitive, spatial or temporal characteristics of actions, states, properties, sometimes of things. They can also denote the circumstances under which actions and states occur. Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, adverbs and clauses, e.g.:

• Kolegà rūgščiaĩ pàžvelgė į̃ manè 'My colleague glanced at me acidly'.
• Keliõnė bùvo neįprastaĩ sunkì 'The trip was unusually difficult'.
• Dažniáusiai visì darbaĩ užgriū^̃va tuõ pačiù metù 'Most often all the jobs occur at the same time'.

Some qualitative adverbs can be used as predicatives, e.g.:

• Mán labaĩ blogaĩ
• 'I feel extremely bad'.

It should be noted that some words function either as adverbs or as prepositions, e.g.:

• Atsistók šalià 'Stand close'.
• Atsistók šalià manę̃s 'Stand next to me'.

Most adverbs are formed from other parts of speech (nouns, adjectives, numerals, pronouns, participles) by means of suffixes or prefixes.

The suffix -(i)ai is particulary common and productive in Lithuanian. Adverbs with the suffix -(i)ai are formed from adjectives and participles with an adjectival meaning:

Before the suffix -iai, the consonants t and d are replaced by č and dž:

Adverbs formed by adding the suffix -yn denote a change into the condition denoted by the root adjective, e.g.:

A number of adverbs are adverbialized case forms of nouns, e.g.:

The instrumental endings -(i)ui, -mis and -ais have developed into adverbial suffixes, e.g.:

• véltui 'in vain'; pakeliuĩ 'on the way, the same way';
• paskubomìs 'in a hurry'; apgraibomìs 'gropingly';
• rẽtsykiais 'now and then'; dáiktais 'in places'.

The postpositional locative forms (the illative and the allative) are also used as adverbs, e.g.: šaliñ 'away, off', viršuñ 'up', vakaróp 'towards evening', velnióp 'to hell'. The adverbs namiẽ 'at home', artì 'near (by)', tolì 'far (away)' retain the archaic locative case form.

Numerous prepositional phrases have acquired adverbial meaning: iš kar̃to 'at once', bè gãlo 'extremely, on end' (lit. without end'), põ senóvei 'as of old, still', į̃ valiàs 'sufficiently'. Some of them lost case endings and developed into prefixed adverbs, e.g.: iškar̃t (cf: ìš kar̃to) 'at once', pernãkt (cf: per̃ nãktį) 'overnight', etc.

The following adverbs are adverbialized case forms of numerals, e.g., dvíese 'two by two', 'in twos'; trisè 'in a group of three'; vienaĩp 'in one way, in one manner'; antraĩp 'in another way, in a contrary manner'; trečiaĩp 'in a third way, in a third manner'.

The adverbs kur̃ 'where', kaĩp 'how', kíek 'how much, how many', kadà 'when', čià 'here', teñ 'there', visadà 'always', kitaĩp 'otherwise', etc. are related to pronouns. Their suffixes -(i)ur̃, -d(à) and -(i)ai~p can be used to form other adverbs, e.g., niekadà 'never', svetur̃ 'in a strange land (place)', vienur̃ 'in one place', savaip^̃ 'in one's way', etc.

Some adverbs have developed from word groups, e.g., aną̃kart 'that time', kasdiẽn 'every day', šiẽmet 'this year'.

Words formed from verbs with the suffix -te, -tinai are traditionally considered to be non-finite verbal forms. They are called būdinỹs 'second infinitive'. However, in the newest Lithuanian grammars these forms are classed as adverbs, e.g.,

They are used with the verbs of the same root for emphasis. The suffix -tinaĩ is rare; tè is used instead, e.g.:

• Čià žmõgų nukankìndavo, čiulptè iščiul^̃pdavo jõ sveikãtą, jõ jėgàs. 'Here (they) used to torture a person, sucking (lit. sucking used to suck) dry his health, his energy'.
• Astà skristè įskrìdo prõ durìs 'Asta came running fast (lit. flying flew) into the room'.

Adverbs deriving from adjectives which denote a variable property can form degrees of comparison. The comparative degree is formed by adding the suffix -iau while the superlative degree is derived by means of the suffix -iausiai or -iausia, e.g.:

The comparative and superlative forms of adverbs coincide with those of the respective neuter adjectives, cf: gražù '(it is) nice', gražiaũ 'nicer', gražiáusia 'the nicest'.

Adverbs can be divided into a few semantic types (adverbs of manner, place, time, cause, etc.), e.g.:

• Išklausýk manè ramiaĩ 'Listen to me calmly'.
• Apliñkui bùvo tùščia 'It was empty all around'.
• Rudenióp oraĩ atšą̃la 'The weather gets colder towards autumn'.

27. Verbal Aspects and Transitivity

27.1. Verbal Aspects

Verbal aspect is that characteristic of the verb which shows whether the action has been completed or is still in progress. Two aspectual meanings are distinguished: perfective and imperfective. In Lithuanian the use of verbal aspect depends on three things, viz. the structure of the verb, its lexical meaning and tense.

The perfective meaning is mainly characteristic of prefixed verbs. Most prefixed verbs denote a completed action, especially in the preterit and future tenses, e.g.,

taĩsė '(he) was repairing': pataĩsė '(he) repaired, (he) has repaired'; výkdė '(he) was accomplishing': įvýkdė '(he) accomplished', (he) has accomplished'; pùvo '(it) was rotting': supùvo '(it) rotted, (it) has rotted'; nẽšė 'he was carrying': àtnešė 'he carried, he has carried'.

The following example illustrates the difference between the imperfective and the resultative perfective:

• Tė^̃vas ilgaĩ taĩsė kavõs aparãtą, bèt nesutaĩsė
• 'Father was (in the process of) repairing the coffee machine for a long time, but he did not manage to repair (it)'.

The prefix pa- is the most common prefix to give verbs perfective meaning. However, the addition of the iterative suffix -inėti makes such verbs imperfective again or perhaps neutral in regard to aspect:

• àtnešė: atnešinė^́jo 'he carried' (repeatedly);
• nurãšė: nurašinė^́jo 'he kept copying'.

As far as the lexical meaning of the verb is concerned, the punctual verbs and the verbs which denote a very short (momentary) action can only be perfective, e.g., ràsti 'to find', šáuti 'to shoot', šū^́ktelėti 'to utter a cry', žvìlgterėti 'to casts a glance'.

The duration of the action is also important because we can only imagine a finished action in the past or the future. A finished action in the present would be in the past at the moment of utterance. Perfective verbs can then only be used with present tense endings in secondary functions. They may denote:

A general action which is not connected with any special time, e.g., Šiáurėje Lietuvà susisiẽkia sù Lãtvija 'In the North Lithuania borders on Latvia'. The possibility of performing an action, e.g., Màno tė^́vas jaũ vė^̃l paeĩna 'My father is able to walk again'. The historical present, e.g., Põ trẽčiojo Žečpospolìtos padalìjimo (1795) Rùsija prisijùngia didèsniąją Lietuvõs dãlį 'After the third partition of the Commonwealth (1795) Russia annexes (i.e. annexed) the greater part of Lithuania'. The future, e.g., Tuõj pàt važiúoju ir̃ parsìvežu jį̃ namõ 'I am going right now and bringing him home'.

The aspectual meaning of a verb may depend on the tense form and context. The present tense form of a verb is imperfective and the preterit and future tense forms are either perfective or imperfective according to context, e.g.:

• Žmogùs mìršta (imperfective) 'A man is dying'.
• Pérnai mìrė sesuõ (perfective) 'Sister died last year'.
• Vaikaĩ mir̃s jū^́sų akysè (imperfective) 'Children will be dying right before your eyes' (lit. 'in your eyes').

The imperfective aspect is most characteristic of unprefixed verbs. Among prefixed verbs, imperfective are those verbs which (a) are not used without prefixes or (b) the prefix of which changes or modifies their basic meaning, e.g.:

The suffixed verbs are usually imperfective (except -el(ė)ti, -er(ė)ti), cf: tráukti 'to pull': tráukyti 'to pull' (repeatedly); sùkti 'to twist': sukióti 'to twist' (repeatedly)'; rė^̃kti 'to shout': rė^́kauti 'to shout' (repeatedly); mèsti 'to throw': mė^́tyti 'to throw, to fling' (repeatedly).

Some prefixed forms are neutral with respect to aspect. Their aspect depends on the context, e.g.:

• Jìs tìk žvìlgterėjo mán į̃ véidą ir̃ iškar̃t manè prisìminė 'He only glanced up at my face and remembered me at once'.
• Tù prisìminei manè visùs tuõs ìlgus issiskyrìmo metùs 'You remembered me after all those long years of separation'.

One should always remember that the various tenses of the verb can have different aspect.

It is important to distinguish carefully between the perfect tenses and the perfective aspect. A perfect tense denotes the state or condition which is the result of a past action, whereas the perfective aspect denotes a completed action. Thus the various perfect tenses may have verbs in either the perfective or imperfective aspect, e.g.:

• Mẽs nè kar̃tą ẽsam skrìdę šiõs óro lìnijos lėktùvais (imperfective) 'We have flown with the planes of this airline many times'.
• Kaĩ draudìmas skrìsti į̃ Bòstoną bùvo àtšauktas, mẽs jaũ bùvome isskrìdę į̃ Filadel^̃fiją (perfective) 'By the time the ban on flights to Boston was cancelled we had already flown to Philadelphia'.

Although any combination of tense and aspect is theoretically possible, it is to be expected that the perfect tenses are more likely to be used with verbs of perfective aspect. This is because a condition which has been attained is more likely to be coupled with a completed action than with a noncompleted action.

27.2. Transitivity

Transitive verbs are used with the direct object in the accusative case. Intransitive verbs cannot take a direct object, cf.:

• Visàs nereikalìngas kampúotas síenas ansaĩ prótėvis nugrióvė 'This ancestor destroyed all the unnecessary awkward walls'.
• Vãkar jìs ìšsiuntė sàvo atsistatýdinimo prãšymą 'Yesterday he sent the application for his resignation'.
• Vaikaĩ dažnaĩ bìjo tamsõs 'Children often are afraid of darkness'.
• Kaĩ kuriẽ žmónes visuomèt džiaũgiasi kitų̃ žmonių̃ nesėkmėmìs 'Some people always rejoice at the misfortune of other people'.

There are some verbs that can be used as transitives or intransitives, e.g.:

• Àš dár geraĩ girdžiù 'I still hear well'.
• Àš pìrmą kar̃tą girdžiù šią̃ daĩną 'I am hearing this song for the first time'.
• Pyrãgas jaũ kẽpa 'The cake is already baking.'
• Renatà visuomèt kẽpa pyrãgą sàvo gimtãdieniui 'Renata always bakes a cake for her birthday'.

Many transitive verbs have intransitive counterparts. They can differ from each other in apophonic vowel alternation (a), the transitive verbs may take the causative suffixes -(d)inti, -(d)yti (b) or prefixes (c), the transitive counterpart is not reflexive (d):

28. Compound Tenses of the Passive Voice and Passivization.

28.1. The Compound Tenses of the Passive Voice

As was mentioned in lesson 5, the passive voice is formed with the auxiliary verb bū^́ti 'to be'. There are as many tenses in the passive voice as there are tenses in the conjugation of the verb bū^́ti. Since both the present passive and the past passive participle can be used to form the passive voice, there are actually always two tenses possible: one with the present passive participle (imperfect passive), the other with the past passive participle (perfect passive). The former is sometimes called the actional passive, and the latter the statal passive. One can render the tenses where the present passive participle is used into English as a regular passive, but with the word 'being' because the action is still being done (present tense), was being done (past tense), used to be being done (frequentative past), or will be being done (future). A sample paradigm of the imperfect passive tense is given below:

Examples:

• Mẽs ẽsam kviečiamì į̃ sàvo kolègos naujõs knỹgos pristãtymą 'We are being invited to the presentation of the new book of my colleague'.
• Ketùri žmónės bùvo sužeistì per̃ avãriją Kū^̃čių nãktį 'Four people were injured in an accident on Christmas Eve'.

The passive tenses with the past passive participles express the action as already complete, or completed, in any tense. Their paradigm is as follows:

Examples:

• Mū^́sų idė^́jos nebùvo sùprastos 'Our ideas were not understood'.
• Rytõj àš bū^́siu prezideñto pasvéikintas sù pérgale 'Tomorrow I will be congratulated by the president on the victory'.

To form the subjunctive of the passive voice, the subjunctive forms of the verb bū^́ti 'to be' are combined with the appropriate passive participle:

Examples:

• Tù taĩp pàt bū^́tum kviẽčiamas į̃ tàs vestuvès, jéi bū^́tum jų̃ gimináitis 'You also would be (being) invited to that wedding if you had been their relative'.
• Vaĩkas bū^́tų apžiūrė^́tas tuõj pàt, jéigu gýdytojas neturė^́tų sunkių̃ ligónių 'The child would be examined immediately if the physician didn't have (more) serious patients'.

The passive imperative is formed with the imperative forms of the verb bū^́ti 'to be' and the appropriate passive participle:

One can form the passive forms with the compound tenses of bū^́ti, e.g., àš esù bùvęs apkalbė^́tas 'I have been slandered'; tù bū^́tum bùvęs ìškviestas 'you would have been (being) called out'; mẽs ẽsam bùvę skriaudžiamì 'we have been harmed', etc.

Examples:

• Irenà nè kar̃tą yrà bùvusi apkalbė^́ta sàvo artimiáusių draugų̃ 'Irena more than once has been slandered by her closest friends'.
• Mẽs bū^́tume bùvę apgautì, jei tu nebū^́tum mū^́sų laikù įspė^́jęs 'We would have been deceived if you had not warned us in time'.

The passive infinitive is formed with the infinitive of the verb bū^́ti 'to be' and the appropriate passive participle in the dative case, e.g.:

• Mán nepatìko bū^́ti išnaudójamam 'I did not like to be exploited'.
• Bū^́ti apgautám sùkčių -- mãžas malonùmas 'To be deceived by swindlers is a small pleasure'.

28.2. Passivization

The active voice is represented in Lithuanian by all the simple finite verb forms, infinitive, active participles and the compound tenses with the active participles. The passive voice is represented by passive participles and the compound tenses with the present and past passive participles.

In the passive construction, the semantic subject is expressed by the genitive or it is omitted. Passive participles agree with the subject in number and case, cf:

• Kaimýnai par̃davė šį̃ nãmą 'The neighbors sold this house'
• Kaimýnai yrà pardãvę šį̃ nãmą 'The neighbors have sold this house'.
• Šìs nãmas yrà kaimýnų pardúotas 'This house is sold by the neighbors'.

The accusative object of an active transitive verb is changed to the nominative subject in the passive construction, while the active subject is changed to the genitive agent. The same transformation is used for some verbs taking the genitive or dative object, e.g.:

• Tavę̃s láukia draugaĩ 'Friends are waiting for you'.
• Tù esì laukiamà draugų̃ 'You are awaited by friends'.
• Polìcininkas įsãkė jíems sustóti 'The policeman ordered them to stop'.
• Jiẽ bùvo įsakýti polìcininko sustóti 'They were ordered to stop by the policeman'.

In the latter instance the dative can be retained in the passive transformation, e.g.:

• Jíems bùvo įsakýta polìcininko sustóti
• 'They were ordered to stop by the policeman'
• (lit. 'To them it was ordered by the policeman to stop').

Constructions with the neuter forms of participles are possible, although they are not used frequently in Modern Lithuanian, e.g.:

• Šìs nãmas yrà kaimýnų pardúota
• 'This house is sold by the neighbors'.

The neuter participles are mostly used with the pronouns unmarked for gender (e.g., kažkàs 'somebody' 'something'; vìskas 'everything') and adverbs or other words (e.g., daũg 'many, much'; mažaĩ 'few, little'; tū^́kstantis 'thousand') with the genitive of quantity, e.g.:

• Kažkàs čià taĩsoma 'Something is being repaired here'.
• Išgélbėta bùvo tū^́kstančiai žmonių̃ 'Thousands of people were saved'.

Intransitive verbs have passive forms only with the neuter participles, e.g.:

• Jìs bė^́go šiuõ siaurù takeliù 'He was running on this narrow path'.
• Jõ bė^́gta šiuõ siaurù takeliù 'He must have run on this narrow path'.
• Čià stovė^́jo màno nãmas 'My house stood here'.
• Čià màno nãmo stovė^́ta 'My house must have stood here'.

29. Use of the Accusative, Instrumental and Locative

29.1. Accusative

The accusative is primarily the case of the direct object. All regular transitive verbs require the accusative case, e.g.:

• Kiekvíeną rùdenį mẽs sodìname medžiùs sàvo sodè 'Every fall we plant trees in our garden'.
• Pamėgìnk jám užčiáupti bùrną 'Try to shut his mouth'.

The accusative can express certain periods of time, such as the day of the week, the month, the season:

• Vãsarą Lietuvojè dažnì líetūs 'In summer rain storms are frequent in Lithuania'.
• Líepą bū^̃na šilčiáusios diẽnos 'The warmest days are in June'.
• Penktãdienį pavėlavaũ į̃ tráukinį 'On Friday I was late for the train.'

The accusative case may denote definite time, limited time, or duration of time:

• Pótvynis prasidė^́jo nãktį 'The flood started at night'.
• Dvì saváites negalė^́jau kójos iš namų̃ iškélti 'Two weeks I could not leave my home even for a short period' (lit. '...could not put my foot out of the house').
• Nesutarìmai tę̃sėsi visùs metùs 'Disagreements lasted the entire year'.

It is also used with kàs to denote 'each, every':

• Kàs vãlandą skam̃binau bróliui tikė^́damasis gáuti gerų̃ žiniũ
• 'Every hour I called my brother hoping to get the good news'.

Many prepositions govern the accusative case. The most frequent are:

• Apiẽ 'around, about, near, approximately, concerning': Papãsakok mán daugiaũ apiẽ savè 'Tell me more about yourself'.
• Apliñk 'around, by': Apliñk manè susibū^́rė màno rėmė^́jai 'My supporters gathered round me'.
• Į̃ 'in, into, to': Mẽs visì ẽsam įsipáinioję į̃ šį̃ nemalõnų reĩkalą 'We have all become involved in this unpleasant affair'.
• Per̃ 'through, across', during, throughout': Linksmýbės tę̃sėsi per̃ vìsą nãktį 'Merriment lasted the whole night'.
• Põ 'here and there, round about', in, on, over': Kiekvíenas užsisãkėm põ bùtelį alaũs 'We each ordered a bottle of beer apiece'. Rytaĩs braidžiodavau po rasótą žõlę 'In the morning I used to walk about on the dewy grass'.
• Priẽš 'before, in the presence of, ago, against': Niẽkad neĩsiu priẽš sàvo są^́žinę 'I will never go against my conscience'.
• Prõ 'by, past, through': Simonà praė^̃jo prõ šãlį nė^̃ nepasisvéikinusi 'Simona passed by without even saying hello'.
• Ùž 'than, for, in return for': Nepyk añt jõ už tą̃ nekal^̃tą mẽlą 'Do not be angry with him for the fib' (lit. '...for the harmless lie)'.

The preposition põ can be used with the genitive case (when it means 'after'), with the accusative case (when it means 'here and there, round about') or with the instrumental case (when it means 'under').

The preposition ùž can be used with the genitive case (when it means 'in, after') or with the accusative case (when it means '(in return) for').

29.2. Instrumental

The instrumental case may denote the means with which something is done, e.g.:

• Žaisdamì fùtbolą vaikaĩ kãmuoliu patáikė į̃ lángą 'The children hit the window with the ball while playing football'.
• Neketinù važiúoti automopbiliù, skrendù lėktuvù 'I am not going to go by bus, I am flying by plane'.

In place of the instrumental case by itself, the preposition sù may also be used with the instrumental:

• Žaisdamì fùtbolą vaikaĩ sù kãmuoliu patáikė į̃ lángą 'The children hit the window with the ball while playing football'.
• Neketinù važiúoti sù automopbiliù, skrendù sù lėktuvù 'I am not going to go by bus, I am flying by plane'.

The instrumental may be used to indicate the place along which or through which something or somebody is moving, e.g.:

• Dangumì skríejo baltì debesė^̃liai
• 'The white small clouds were flying through the sky'.

It may also be used in certain expressions of time. The instrumental plural may imply that something happens repeatedly or regularly at a certain time:

• Saváitgaliais mẽs visuomèt žaĩdžiam brìdžą
• 'On weekends we always play bridge'.

Many fossilized expressions of time are actually old instrumental case forms (see section 26).

Certain verbs require a direct object or an indirect complement in the instrumental case, e.g.:

• Visà kománda džiaũgiasi praė^̃jusių mẽtų pérgalėmis 'The whole team rejoices at the victories of the last year'.
• Supỹkęs pavadinaũ jį̃ ãsilu 'Having got angry, I called him an ass'.

The instrumental case may denote the condition or profession. Such constructions may be found with the verbs vir̃sti 'to turn into, to become', dė^́tis 'to pretend to be', laikýti 'to consider...as', skìrti 'to name, to appoint', gìmti 'to be born', áugti 'to grow (into)', tàpti 'to become', etc.:

• Jìs dẽdasi màno draugù 'He pretends to be my friend'.
• Vãkar Sìlvija bùvo paskirtà komìsijos pìrmininke 'Yesterday Silvia was appointed the chairwoman of the commission'.

As a predicate the instrumental may be used with the verb bū^́ti 'to be', especially when it is close in meaning to tàpti 'to become'. The Lithuanian standard grammars indicate that the nominative denotes a constant characteristic of the subject, whereas the instrumental denotes an accidental or temporary condition, e.g.:

Màno tė^́vas yrà architèktas, õ àš bū^́siu (tàpsiu) žurnalistù (žurnalìstas) 'My father is an architect and I will be (become) a journalist'.

However, this rule is not always reflected in spoken Lithuanian.

The nominative is most common as predicate of the verb bū^́ti 'to be', whereas with the other verbs mentioned above the predicate is in the instrumental. But the instrumental may be used as a predicate of bū^́ti 'to be' when it means approximately the same as tàpti 'to become'.

The instrumental case may be used as the object of certain prepositions, e.g.:

• Sù 'with': Gál galì supažìndinti mùs sù sàvo tėvaĩs? 'Can you introduce us to your parents?'
• Põ 'under': Põ páltu jì vilkė^́jo tìk plóną suknẽlę 'She wore only a thin dress under the coat'.
• Sulìg 'up to, as far as': Sniẽgo pripùstė sulìg var̃tais 'There were drifts of snow up to the gate'.
• Tiẽs 'opposite': Bìtė sùko ratùs tiẽs màno nósimi 'The bee was circling round opposite my nose'.

29.3. Locative

The locative case is used primarily to indicate location, e.g.:

• Apsigyvẽnome miẽsto centrè 'We stayed downtown'.
• Gulė^́jau rugių̃ laukè ir̃ žiūrė^́jau į̃ dañgų 'I was lying in the field of rye and looking at the sky'.

It is also used in certain expressions of time, e.g.:

• Vidùrdieny pasidãrėbaĩsiai káršta 'It got terribly hot at noon'.
• Visì tìkimės, kàd ateityjè bùs geriaũ 'We all expect that it will be better in the future'.

The postpositional locative forms, viz. the illative, the allative and the adessive, are not common in modern Lithuanian.

30. Conjunctions and Particles

30.1. The Conjunctions

Conjunctions are of two types, coordinating conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions. With regard to form, conjunctions are divided into simple (e.g., ir̃ 'and', kàd 'that', ar̃ 'or') and complex (e.g., õ vìs dėltõ 'but still', võs tìk 'as soon as', kàd ir̃ 'though').

The words ir̃ 'and', õ 'and, but', bèt 'but', tačiaũ 'but, nevertheless, however', ar̃ 'or', ar̃ ... ar̃ 'either ... or', arbà 'or', arbà ... arbà 'either ... or', neĩ ... neĩ 'neither ... nor', beĩ 'and', etc. are coordinating conjunctions and can connect either clauses, phrases or single words:

• Taĩgi knygà prabỹla lietùviškai, ir̃ nè bèt_kaĩp, õ eiliúotai 'Thus the book speaks Lithuanian, and not any kind, but rhymed'.
• Žõdžiai arbà nè vìską tepasãko, arbà per_daũg pasãko ir̃ atvėsìna vìdų 'Words either don't say everything or they say too much and make the insides cold'.

In general õ and bèt are similar in usage, but bèt is more emphatic, e.g.:

• Bèt tenaĩ -- visì lýgūs. Õ čià -- niẽkur niẽko! Jokiõs prasmė^̃s! 'But there - - everyone is equal. And here - - nothing anywhere! No meaning!'
• Gimináičiai ketìno paviešė^́ti dvì saváites, bèt (õ, tačiaũ) išvỹko tìk põ trijų̃ 'The relatives were going to stay with us two weeks, but (however) they left only after three weeks'.

Bèt may be replaced by tačiaũ especially after negative