Baudouin de Courtenay: Precursor to Contemporary Linguistic Thought

Abstract

The paper examines the scientific contribution and creative work of the lesser-known Polish linguist, Baudouin de Courtenay (1845-1929), a distinguished Slavist and Indo-Europeanist. The paper discusses numerous aspects of his modernist theories and provides an overview of the most significant reflections on language that can be considered as precursors to contemporary linguistic thought. In his long academic career from the Kazan period to his engagement at the universities of Dorpat, Kraków, Saint Petersburg, and Warsaw, the paper highlights the various influences he exerted on the linguistic research of his time as well as on the later generations of linguists with a special reference to de Courtenay's influence on Ferdinand de Saussure and the development of general and structural linguistics. The paper examines the evolution and development of de Courtenay's thought in various domains such as the theory of phonemes and phonetic alternations, which positioned him as the forerunner of the Prague Linguistic Circle, psycholinguistic research and the definition of language as a psychosocial phenomenon, South Slavic dialectology and lexicology, as well as the study of the use of language in other sciences and disciplines.