Alexander Khristoforovich Vostokov (born Alexander Woldemar Osteneck; ; – ) was one of the first

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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 strong ties to etymology. Philology is also defined as the study of ...

Background

He was born into a

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family in Arensburg,

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, and studied at the Imperial Academy of Arts in

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. As a natural son of Baron von Osten-Sacken, 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 languages, Slavic feminine given name, deriving from the East Slavic languages, East and South Slavic languages, South Slavic root ''svet'' (), meaning "light", "shining", "luminescent", "pure", "blessed", ...

, 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

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Works

Vostokov's works on the Church Slavonic language 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 peoples, Slavic peoples, languages, literature, history, and culture. Originally, a Slavist or ...

until the appearance of Izmail Sreznevsky's comprehensive lexicon in 1893–1903 and garnered him the doctorates

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from the

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and

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. 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 na ...

. In 1812, he published an article with the title "An example to the amateurs of etymology" (), where he argued that geographical names (

toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''wikt:toponym, 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 ...

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 Kreis Ösel Baltic-German people from the Russian Empire Philologists from the Russian Empire Linguists of Slavic languages Toponymists Linguists from Russia Members of the Russian Academy Full members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences Demidov Prize laureates