Alexander Khristoforovich Vostokov (born Alexander Woldemar Osteneck; russian: link=no, Алекса́ндр Христофо́рович Восто́ков; – ) was one of the first
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
n
philologist
Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined ...
s.
Background
He was born into a
Baltic German family in
Arensburg,
Governorate of Livonia, and studied at the
Imperial Academy of Arts
The Russian Academy of Arts, informally known as the Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts, was an art academy in Saint Petersburg, founded in 1757 by the founder of the Imperial Moscow University Ivan Shuvalov under the name ''Academy of the Thr ...
in
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
. As a natural son of Baron von
Osten-Sacken
The House von der Osten-Sacken is an old and distinguished noble family of Baltic Germans. The family members held the titles of ''Baron'', ''Graf'', ''Knyaz'' and ''Fürst''.
History
The origins of the family are traced to 14th century. In 16 ...
, he received the name Osteneck, which he later chose to render into Russian as Vostokov (''Ost'', the German word for "east," translates to ''vostok'' in Russian).
He liked to experiment with language and, in one of his poems, introduced the female name
Svetlana
Svetlana () is a common Orthodox Slavic feminine given name, deriving from the East and South Slavic root ''svet'' (), meaning "light", "shining", "luminescent", "pure", "blessed", or "holy", depending upon context similar if not the same as t ...
, which would gain popularity through
Vasily Zhukovsky's eponymous ballad.
During his lifetime, Vostokov was known as a poet and translator, but it is his innovative studies of
versification and comparative Slavonic grammars which proved most influential. In 1815, he joined the staff of the
Imperial Public Library, where he discovered the most ancient dated book written in Slavonic vernacular, the so-called
Ostromir Gospel. In 1841, Vostokov was elected to the
Russian Academy of Sciences
The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; russian: Росси́йская акаде́мия нау́к (РАН) ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across t ...
.
Works
Vostokov's works on the
Church Slavonic language
Church Slavonic (, , literally "Church-Slavonic language"), also known as Church Slavic, New Church Slavonic or New Church Slavic, is the conservative Slavic liturgical language used by the Eastern Orthodox Church in Belarus, Bosnia and Her ...
were considered a high-water mark of
Slavic studies
Slavic (American English) or Slavonic (British English) studies, also known as Slavistics is the academic field of area studies concerned with Slavic areas, languages, literature, history, and culture. Originally, a Slavist or Slavicist was prim ...
until the appearance of
Izmail Sreznevsky's comprehensive lexicon in 1893–1903 and garnered him the doctorates
honoris causa
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
from the
Charles University
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, image_size = 200px
, established =
, type = Public, Ancient
, budget = 8.9 billion CZK
, rector = Milena Králíčková
, faculty = 4,057
, administrative_staff = 4,026
, students = 51,438
, under ...
and
University of Tübingen
The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-W� ...
.
Vostokov also laid foundations of modern Russian
toponymy
Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' ( proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...
. In 1812, he published an article with the title "An example to the amateurs of etymology" (russian: link=no, Задача любителям этимологии), where he argued that geographical names (
toponym
Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' ( proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...
s) have repeating elements which he called ''formants'' and which help to restore the etymology of the name. For instance, the endings -va, -ga, and -ma in the end of such names as the Sylva, the Onega, and the Kama, may mean "water" in the languages these names originate from. Whereas this article did not get sufficient attention during Vostokov's life, it did subsequently receive recognition, and Vostokov is cited as one of the founders of toponymy in Russia.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vostokov, Alexander
1781 births
1864 deaths
People from Kuressaare
People from the Governorate of Livonia
Russian philologists
Members of the Russian Academy
Full members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences
Baltic-German people
Slavists
Demidov Prize laureates
Toponymists
Grammarians from Russia