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The paper compares Loki of the Scandinavian and Syrdon of the Caucasian material (the Nart-epic tradition) with the evolution of the character of Prometheus as described in the early texts (Theogony and Works and Days by Hesiod) and with his later transformation as described in Prometheus Bound by Aeschilus. This comparison makes it possible to demonstrate the general pattern of evolution which can be described as (chthonian) deity → trickster → culture hero. In this we do not agree with Eleazar Meletinskij’s statemwent, according to which the culture hero – Demiurge – is the most ancient character in the world folklore, while the trickster is a subsequent transformation of the image of the culture hero. Employing the Greek model (Hesiod’s Theogony) as our starting point, we will argue that an intriguer / a trickster is the most ancient mythological character, while the culture hero emerges as a result of later developments.

Švedų-lietuvių leksikografija – gana nauja sritis Lietuvoje. Tai lemia švedų-lietuvių leksikografinio darbo pionieriškumą. Straipsnio tikslas – apžvelgti ekvivalentų paieškos procesus, dirbant prie naujojo švedų-lietuvių žodyno. Tyrinėjimo objektu pasirinkta viena semantinė tema – maisto pavadinimai. Diskutuojami žodžiai: švedų k. knäckebröd, palt, pepparkaka, pyttipanna, pålägg, påtår, pölsa, wienerbröd ir kt. Aptariami kalbos ir maisto temos ypatumai, ekvivalentų paieškos, leksikografinio ir grožinės literatūros vertimų skirtumų niuansai. A Swede making a sandwich will use the word "pålägg" in reference to what she/he puts on a slice of bread – cheese, ham, sausage etc. In cafeterias in Sweden one can often come across a notice - "påtår ingår" ‘refill included’. How should the Swedish "pålägg" and "påtår" be rendered in Lithuanian? The paper deals with some issues of lexicographic practice arising in the process of compiling a forthcoming Swedish-Lithuanian dictionary. It will include about 30 000 word entries and a large number of expressions. Swedish-Lithuanian lexicography is a rather new field in Lithuania, which has determined the pioneering character of the present investigation. The paper aims at identifying certain tendencies in the search of equivalents to names for food. The words discussed include Swedish examples like knäckebröd, palt, pepparkaka, pyttipanna, pålägg, påtår, pölsa, wienerbröd and some others. The paper also discusses some more general issues pertaining to the field of language and food and some strategies adopted by a fiction translator and lexicographer. The examples demonstrate the complexity of the lexicographer’s task when searching for equivalents to both rather exotic and very simple Swedish dishes, which is be due to the absence of tradition of consuming the dishes by Lithuanians. Despite identical raw food products (potatoes, meat, bread), in the course of history the Swedish and the Lithuanian cuisine have taken differing paths of development and experienced different influences. In some specific cases one can find a rather precise equivalent to an ‘exotic’ dish (cf. SE pölsa, similar to EN haggis, LT košeliena). Meanwhile, a search of an equivalent to some ordinary, casual dish or food product can become a real challenge to a lexicographer resulting in a ‘near’ equivalent with a descriptive or an expository comment, cf. SE knäckebröd, EN crisp bread, LT ‘traški (švediška) duona’; SE wienerbröd, EN Danish pastry, LT ‘sluoksniuotos tešlos bandelė su įdaru’; also cf. SE pyttipanna, similar to EN hash or bubble and squeak, LT ‘patiekalas iš mėsos gabalėlių, bulvių ir daržovių (ypač apie keptus (pietų) likučius)’. The lexicographer’s demanding task requires an interdisciplinary approach, an in-depth knowledge in different fields of research, familiarity with changing culture-specific realia and attention to detail. The field of language and food is rather new in Lithuania. It opens up new interesting research perspectives to lexicography, discourse analysis, culture studies, etc.

Straipsnyje nagrinėjama dvilypių nuostatų kalbos įvairovės atžvilgiu problema Lietuvos kalbinėje bendruomenėje, kai, viena vertus, tarmės aukštinamos kaip nacionalinė ir etnografinė vertybė, o kita vertus, atsiskleidžia tam tikri vartosenos ribojimai dėl su jomis siejamomis žemesnės socialinės vertės ir neigiamų stereotipų. Empirinis pagrindas – trys nuostatų tyrimai, atlikti skirtingais tiesioginiais metodais: kiekybinė struktūruota apklausa, kokybiniai interviu ir eksperimentas su moksleiviais apie stereotipines kalbančiojo tarme asmens savybes. Kalbant apie lietuvių kalbos tarmių raidos perspektyvą tiesioginių tyrimų rezultatai lyginami su pasąmoningų nuostatų eksperimentu. Tyrimas parodė, kad palyginti su sovietmečiu ideologinis klimatas tarmių atžvilgiu Lietuvoje darosi politiškai korektiškesnis. Itin teigiamos atvirosios nuostatos dažniausiai randasi deklaratyviame lygmenyje ir kai reikia pabrėžti regioninę tapatybę bei prieskyrą konkrečiai bendruomenei. Tačiau per asmenines kasdienes patirtis vertinant tarmės funkcionalumą ir kalbėtojui suteikiamą socialinį ir geografinį mobilumą, tarmė kotiruojama gerokai žemiau už bendrinę (netarmišką) kalbą. Tą neabejotinai lemia dažni neigiami socialiniai tarmės kalbėtojo stereotipai. Pasąmoningų nuostatų tyrimai taip pat rodo, kad tarminės kilmės kalbos variantiškumas turi akivaizdžiai žemesnę socialinę vertę palyginti su netarminiu variantiškumu. Galima teigti, kad eilinių žmonių nuostatos vis dėlto atspindi dvilypę lietuvių kalbos standartizavimo ideologiją, kuri iškelia tarmes kaip ekologinę vertybę ir kartu riboja jų funkcionalumą uždarydama nemobilių kalbėtojų rezervate. Paper investigates a twofold attitude towards linguistic diversity in the Lithuanian-speaking community, where, on the one hand, the dialects are valorised as a national and ethnographic asset and, on the other hand, certain restrictions on their use are imposed because of association with a lower social value and negative stereotypes. Three direct attitudinal studies serve as an empirical basis for the research: a quantitative survey, qualitative interviews and an experiment with high-school students on stereotypical traits of the dialect speaker. When discussing future prospects of dialect change, the overt values of the speakers are compared with the findings of the speaker evaluation experiment that have revealed subconscious values of dialectal speech. The research has shown that compared to the Soviet times, the ideological climate regarding dialects has become more politically correct. Positive attitudes are most prominent at a declarative level and when regional identity and the speaker’s affiliation with a particular community have to be emphasised. Daily personal experiences, however, with the functionality of a dialect and evaluations of social and geographic mobility of dialect speakers, show a less favourable assessment of dialectal speech in comparison to the standard (non-dialectal) varieties. It is very much due to a frequent negative stereotyping of dialect speakers. The subconscious attitudes also reveal that the dialectal variability of speech has an arguably lower social meaning compared to the non-dialectal variability. The attitudes and practices of non-professional (lay) people may be claimed to reflect a double-faced standardization ideology of the Lithuanian language, which valorises dialects as an ecologic asset and at the same time limits their functioning by putting them in the reserve of “immobile” speakers.