Vol. 1 No. 2 (2025): Theoretical and Applied Linguistics@ro

Abstract

The Multiple Faces of Linguistic Research

I. Formal and Functional Approaches to Syntax

II. Discourse and Society

III. Mapping the Lexicon: Methodological Perspectives

IV. Discursive Practices in Educational Settings

V. Books, Voices, Perspectives

Abstract

The present issue ‒ The Multiple Faces of Linguistic Research ‒ brings together studies that reflect the multiplicity of approaches, theoretical orientations, and empirical domains that define contemporary linguistics. The 13 articles, ranging from formal syntax to discourse analysis, lexicography, and educational linguistics, illustrate how the present-day research paradigm continues to integrate structural, functional, and socially grounded perspectives.

Abstract

The paper examines Romanian raising infinitives in the framework of Exfoliation (Pesetsky 2021). At first sight, Romanian appears to be a direct counterexample to the Exfoliation analysis since it does not show the expected correlation between infinitivization and the extraction of the subject. Two different infinitive patterns occur with raising verbs. 
a) The first is similar to the English pattern. The lower subject raises as an Accusative in the main clause and may cliticize on the main verb. The clitic is doubled by a strong accusative pronoun or a DOM-ed DP. b) This expected pattern alternates, however, with another infinitive construction, where the subject of the infinitive clause appears in postverbal position in the infinitive clause and bears Nominative case. Since the subject has not been extracted, the low Nom sentences should have been finite.
We propose that low Nominative subjects are examples of Free Inversion. In Belletti’s 2005 analysis, Free Inversion requires the formation of an < proexpl…DPNom > chain. And for low Nom sentences under Raising triggering verbs, it is the expletive pro that raises, leaving the Nom in the lower clause. The fact that the lower subject is marked as Nominative is natural since the clause starts out as a finite clause, where Case is regularly assigned.

Abstract

In Romanian linguistics, the so-called ‘anaphoric’ present tense is considered a typical feature of this language, as well as proof that there is no concordance of tenses, their use being left to the free choice of the speakers. The article shows that this type of usage also exists in English and French, in the transition from direct to reported speech. The use of a diverse terminology and of a different theoretical framework has helped to mask the general nature of the phenomenon: “non-retroceded” or “non-transposed” present tense, “biding” present tense, present tense backshifted in the past (in English), “présent du dire d'origine” (« present of original saying »), “de rechange” (« replacement present ») (in French), “anaphoric” present tense (in Romanian).
In Romanian, as in English and French, this sub-phrasal present most often has a dual interpretation: deictic, if the designated interval contains in some form the moment of discourse t0, and anaphoric, if this lapse of time is situated entirely in the past. The sub-phrasal present with only an anaphoric interpretation is rare in English, but it is found in French and Romanian, in literary and journalistic texts as well as in political speeches and in everyday spoken language. 
Romanian has extended the use of the sub-phrasal present, in both variants (deictic and anaphoric), well beyond reported speech. Its use is limited only by the type of subordinate: while it is relatively frequent in the completive type, it does not appear in the relative type. So, it seems that in Romanian there are two types of tense concordance, with different spheres of application.

Abstract

This article argues for an information structure approach to the analysis of prototypical concessive constructions with the connector deși `although`, in Romanian. The analysis of the concessive constructions proposed here is semantically based on the notion of contrast. On one hand, it is argued that this perspective allows one to make subdivisions within the category of prototypical concessive constructions, depending on the co-occurrence of different types of contrast. One other hand, it is argued that this approach offers an explanatory representation for the cases where the contrast `hybridisation` may occur, revealing different concessive `flavours`.

Abstract

This paper aims to examine expressive phenomena from a morphosyntactic perspective. After delimiting how expressivity can be understood in terms of grammatical structures and functions, a subsection is dedicated to a particular family of morphosyntactic
processes – those that involve various types of morphological or lexical repetition. While some languages have grammaticalized repetition as a means to realize fundamental functions (plural, aspect marking, etc.), others are free to use repetition for a plethora of  expressive purposes. This can be seen in many European languages, which exhibit productive and dynamic expressive repetitive patterns. 
Romanian has a rich inventory of repetitive patterns spanning all lexical categories (adjectives, adverbs, verbs, and nouns). Many are common among SAE, yet some are rather rare. This is the case of patterns such as A-A.DIM (new-new.DIM, 'brand new') that have
double function: superlativization and expressivity (mainly hypocoristic). This pattern is also found in other Romance languages (i.e. Spanish), but otherwise it is isolated.
The inventory in this paper is not exhaustive, but it captures some of the most productive and frequently used expressive repetitive patterns in Romanian. Moreover, such a catalogue could never be complete, as expressivity is highly dynamic and relies on various factors, both linguistic and extra-linguistic.

Abstract

The current study is an introduction to the analysis of a series of discourses
and addresses made on various NATO events taking place in 2025, the purpose of which
is/was recalibrating and reconfiguring the Alliance based on the evolution of the international
context. The focus and object of the analysis is NATO’s Secretary General Mark Rutte’s
argumentative style. Mark Rutte addressed NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly on May 26th,
2025, to present to them the need for increased spending on the part of all Allies. This
address is approached in the study from the pragma-dialectical perspective on argumentation
by making use of the recently developed notion of argumentative style in this theoretical
and analytical framework, to distinguish the elements which are instrumental in Rutte’s
deploying a detached argumentative style (as opposed to an engaged argumentative style).
The previous theoretical developments around this pragma-dialectical notion (van Eemeren
2019, 2021a, 2021b, 2025; van Eemeren, Garssen 2023; van Eemeren, van Haaften 2024, van
Eemeren 2025) appear to be extremely useful, and the analysis shows at first level that
the detached argumentative style chosen by Mark Rutte is consistent with the delicate
context in which the Allies must be convinced of the necessity of increased spending and
of the reconfiguration of NATO’s actions through changes and investments in the
defence industry.

Abstract

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Ukrainian refugees fleeing their homeland appear to have been more positively perceived in European countries and media than those coming from Asian or African countries, who were treated with suspicion and even hostility. The present study focuses on the identities Ukrainian refugees construct for themselves while addressing the Greek audience and attempting to become accepted by them. We specifically examine Ukrainian refugees’ oral narratives embedded in Greek news reports, where they recount their experiences from the war zone, their fear and uncertainty for the future, their concerns for those who were left
behind, as well as their experiences and expectations in the host country. The analysis in terms of the model of three dilemmas (Bamberg 2004, 2011) and the typology of racist strategies (Karachaliou et al. 2024) will demonstrate, respectively, how Ukrainian refugees frame themselves and their trajectories after deciding to leave their country of origin, and how aspects of the Greek national/racist discourse become part of how Ukrainian refugees perceive and represent themselves in front of the Greek audience.

Abstract

Humor has been used in the last decades not only in conversations between friends, families or colleagues, but also in the news to attract more viewers (Soare, 2023), in marketing strategies to get more clients (Bilecen, Canarslan, 2023) and as a method to cope with different moments in one’s life such as pandemics, conflicts and wars. This paper analyzes how aggressive humor is being used by the communication team of Ryanair, on social media, to make the airline more popular and, potentially, get more clients and respond to possible criticism. The study includes comments and memes made by the company on TikTok and Instagram and analyzes how the words trigger humor, the context and the target, as in the SSTH and GTVH theories postulated by Attardo and Raskin (1991).

Abstract

In Romanian, clippings (i.e. abbreviations of single words) and initialisms (i.e. reductions of multi-word units to their initials) constitute minor word-formation patterns that became increasingly productive in the 20th century. Abbreviation normally creates words belonging to nominal classes, i.e. nouns, adjectives, and numerals. However, the advent of online communication has brought about several new abbreviation patterns.
Pitiriciu (2010) and Tăbăcitu (2022) have shown two main innovations: the clipping of verbs (e.g. plicti < a se plictisi) and consonant-based graphical abbreviations (e.g. mn = mine). In order to explore the patterns occurring in online communication, we analysed a corpus of comments published in two Romanian Reddit communities in the time span 2021-2024.
Besides the already established types of clippings and initialisms, we observed several patterns which are specific to online communication. Among these, a new type of initialism stands out, represented by csf (< ce să faci? ‘what can you do?’) and csz (< ce să zic? ‘what can I say?’), based on verb phrases, used both in verb slots and as discourse markers. Our study explores the forms and functions of these abbreviations, which are part of a bidirectional exchange of verbal resources between the oral and the online domains of interaction. The two habitual dialogic phrases (Ce să faci? Ce să zic?) initially circulated in casual or informal talk, and were abbreviated in the digital environment, where they became clichés. Nowadays, csf occasionally occurs in spoken language as well. Our exploratory study suggests that the lexical resources of forum users are collectively modified to fully satisfy their communicative needs, considering the affordances and limitations of online interaction, leading to the emergence of new abbreviation patterns in Romanian. 

Abstract

In this study, I analyse a recently published etymological dictionary of the Romanian language. My focus is on the structure of the dictionary, the method followed by the lexicographer and the criteria – phonetic, onomasiological and derivational – used to
categorise terms within the Dacian substratum of the Romanian language. The author of the dictionary believes that many words with unknown etymologies in the DEX (Explanatory Dictionary of the Romanian Language) belong to the substratum. However, this group of
words is not the only source of the increase in the number of words presumed to originate from the substratum. The author takes a fresh look at many words that are currently considered to be of Slavic, Hungarian, Turkish or Latin origin, and consistently links common lexical terms to toponyms and anthroponyms that share Indo-European roots. The present study compares the etymological solutions proposed in this dictionary with those generally accepted by other etymological studies and the best Romanian dictionaries. The author of the dictionary considers that approximately 1,500 words have been inherited from the substratum, which is ten times higher than the figure arrived at in previous studies by other authors. The same author also considers that various elements of morphology, such as the definite and indefinite articles and the auxiliary verbs used to form the present perfect, future and conditional, come from the substratum. It can therefore be concluded that this etymological dictionary is a work of fiction rather than a serious piece of lexicography.

Abstract

The analysis of the paradigm /blue/ in the two languages under comparison capitalizes on information from Romanian and Spanish lexicography and on the structural description of chromatic terms in the Romanian language and aims at a multilevel description:
semantics, onomasiology, phraseology, metalexicography. In order to represent and describe the paradigm /azul/ in Spanish the method applied implies semantic disambiguation, semantic analysis, distribution by class, as well as further validation through combinatorial
analysis. Subsequently, the way in which some chromatic terms are compared in Romanian-Spanish bilingual dictionaries is examined. At the same time, the polysemy of the term "blue" in the two compared languages is addressed, together with its denotative and connotative mobility in the last three decades, so that this analysis may bring new data for contrastive semantics and practical benefits for “dictionary reading”, lexical learning, language teaching, and translation.

Abstract

In the field of Romanian as a Foreign Language (RFL), the basic levels of language proficiency (A1 and A2) have always been a subject of intense discussion, in an attempt to find solutions to train, develop and practice oral expression when non-native speakers (NNS) do not have sufficient linguistic resources to convey the desired communicative intention. 
Often, in their desire to maintain the conversational act, despite not knowing the words, non-native speakers (NNS) resort to various ‘survival’ methods, called communication strategies, which play a vital role in speaking. In a simple interaction (native speaker with non-native speaker or two non-native speakers), we can encounter various such strategies aimed at signaling or repairing a problem in oral production. In the present study, we will try to present, with examples, the diversity of communicative strategies through a basic theoretical framework, then we will focus on compensatory strategies which we will analyze closely, pointing out not only their presence in interlanguage (IL) since the A1 level, but also the importance of using them in the teaching of RFL.

Abstract

This paper presents a computational approach to the teaching of Light Verb Constructions (LVCs) from a contrastive perspective, within the framework of a multilingual digital project directed by Sabine E. Koesters Gensini. The project targets university-level learners and involves eight third languages (L3) – Albanian, Dutch, French, German, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, and Swedish – with Italian (L1) and English (L2) serving as starting points for the exploration of LVCs in the L3. Focusing on Italian, English, French, and Romanian, the article outlines the project’s theoretical and practical framework, with an emphasis on the semantic and morphosyntactic properties of LVCs, investigated within a contrastive analytical perspective. After outlining the criteria used to design a digital software tool for language teaching, illustrating how LVCs can be effectively taught through a computational, data-driven approach, the study offers a detailed analysis focused on the properties of verbo-nominal constructions with the Italian light verb fare (to do/make). Finally, drawing on authentic learner data in Romanian, this article highlights recurring error patterns in LVCs acquisition and argues for the systematic integration of these structures into foreign language curricula in the university context.

Abstract

This study investigates the role of heritage language (HL) literacy in shaping phonological awareness and reading skills among Romanian-Italian bilingual children in Italy. Drawing on data from 81 children aged 8-10 and their families, the research compares
the performance of bi-literate bilinguals (exposed to formal literacy instruction in Romanian) with that of mono-literate bilinguals (literate only in Italian) and Italian monolinguals. Children completed tasks measuring phonological awareness and word and pseudoword reading in both Romanian and Italian. Parental attitudes toward HL transmission were also assessed through Likert-scale questionnaires and thematic analysis of open-ended responses. Results showed that bi-literate bilinguals outperformed mono-literate peers on phonological tasks in both languages and on Italian pseudoword reading, highlighting the cognitive benefits of dual literacy. Parental attitudes revealed strong support for oral HL maintenance, but divergent views on the value of written Romanian, often shaped by concerns about cognitive load and perceived utility. The findings underscore the importance of institutional and familial support for biliteracy as a driver of linguistic development in multilingual contexts.

Abstract

Istvan Kecskes’ book, Intercultural Pragmatics, published in 2014 by Oxford University Press, constitutes a comprehensive framework for understanding how meaning is created and interpreted in communication between people from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds. The book presents a critique of traditional, monolingual-centric models of pragmatics and proposes an alternative approach that integrates both a sociocultural and a cognitive perspective. Amongst its main objectives, we can mention the reframing of pragmatics so as to better explain and account for multilingual and intercultural communication and the development of the  sociocognitive approach as a theoretical foundation for intercultural pragmatics. Its main strength resides in the fact that it is shaped both as a theoretical and practical guide for comprehending and analyzing the complexities of communication in a multicultural and multilingual world.

Abstract

Francisco Yus, professor at the University of Alicante, Spain, is one of the founders of cyberpragmatics (Yus 2010, 2011) and a leading scholar in media pragmatics (Yus 2017a). His constant research interests revolve around the Theory of Relevance (Sperber, Wilson 1995, and subsequent studies), which he applied to various conversational phenomena such as irony and humour (Yus 2023, 2024), multimodality (Yus 2018), misunderstandings (Yus 1999), and to various online discourse (sub)genres generated in chat rooms (Yus 2005), on Facebook (Yus 2014a), WhatsApp (Yus 2017b), and smartphones (Yus 2021), among others. In his recent book, the author puts at work his extensive readings, intuitions, expertise, and creative interpretations, his keen sense of observation and analytic skills to provide the reader with a deep understanding of the functioning of emojis in cyberspace.

Abstract

Apărută în 2023, cartea doamnei profesoare Rodica Zafiu este ediția revizuită a unui titlu publicat acum  mai bine de un deceniu, o lucrare de referință în bibliografia de specialitate.