Ciągłość i zmienność jako problem badań diachronicznych

Abstract

The paper concerns two interlocking phenomena of linguistic history – the stability of elements of language, which ensures a long-term communicative continuity, and the variability of the system and of the vocabulary, which is an inherent quality of every natural language. It has always been the variability that was seen as the primary indicator of a diachronic outlook on language, and the main research problem has been to describe and to date linguistic changes and their mutual relation in the historical linguistic process. It seems to be an interesting research task to invert the perspective and to concentrate on what is stable in the language and its usage, i.e. on the level of the grammatical system, vocabulary, and communication habits. It ought to be recognized that it is not just variability, but also the constant struggle of these two opposing tendencies, that causes language to be viewed as a dynamical system.