DESSERT NAMES IN THE FIUMAN DIALECT

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to list the words used to describe desserts in the Fiuman speech and to specify their proximal (etymologia proxima) and distal (etymologia remota) etymology. In that way the current state of the Fiuman lexis with respect to culinary art (in the semantic subgroup of desserts) in Rijeka will be recorded, and at the same time we will show that the cultural and linguistic circles have coexisted in this area. This research started in 2015 and was continued in 2017 and 2018. The methodology used was based on the excerption of lexical items from extant Fiuman dictionaries (Gottardi 2004; Samani 2007; Pafundi 2011) which then served as the basis for the creation of a questionnaire which was used in field research. Following an interview with native speakers, the collected lexemes underwent an etymological analysis. The underlying rationale for this approach was that the analysis would demonstrate the representation of all historical linguistic layers in the city of Rijeka. Also, by referring to the available Chakavian dictionaries, we wanted to show that the culture of a certain locale in the domain of culinary arts transcends linguistic differences. A total of 25 lexemes were identified and analysed. The resulting material shows presence of Romance, Slavic and Germanic linguistic layers. However, there are no Hungarian elements. The reason for this probably lies in the fact that in the Austro-Hungarian period Vienna had primacy when it came to dessert making, which might explain why there is no mention of Hungarian desserts. Insight into Chakavian dictionaries has established the presence of dessert names in the surrounding speeches of Rijeka, thus confirming the assumption that the domain of culinary arts transcends linguistic differences. On the basis of the analysis of culinary lexical items in the Fiuman speech this article reflects linguistic and cultural contacts in Rijeka and its surroundings and thus contributes to the field of Romance linguistics in general.