Semantics of Lithuanian Baltas and Polish Biały: An Attempt at a Contrastive Analysis

The paper presents the results of a contrastive semantic analysis of the Polish lexeme biały ‘white’ and its Lithuanian equivalent baltas. The research aimed at comparing the collocability of Pol. biały / Lith. baltas with names of various objects and phenomena (both in the literal and figurative senses) including the identification of the prototype references and connotative meanings. The analysis has illustrated that Pol. biały / Lith. baltas have similar ranges of use and develop almost identical con­ notations. In both languages, whiteness is interpreted as the lightest color whose qualitative prototype pattern is SNOW (cf.: Pol. biały jak śnieg — Lith. baltas kaip sniegas), and the quantitative prototype pattern is DAYLIGHT (cf. Pol. biały dzień — Lith. balta diena). The prototype references create cha­ racteristic connotation chains: ‘as white as snow’ — ‘pure (also morally)’ — ‘innocent’ — ‘honest’ — ‘good’; ‘as white (light) as daylight’ — ‘transparent’ — ‘obvious’ — ‘legal’ — ‘good’. The differences between the discussed units are mainly noted on the level of the lexical components with individual connotations. Apart from the few phenomena that are culturally specific (e.g. Pol. białe małżeństwo ‘a marriage without intimacy’), in the use of the lexemes biały / baltas there are no major discrepan­ cies. Instead, it is possible to note only the asymmetry as it is in the case with the related meanings ‘clarity’ and ‘legality’ where the former has more examples in Polish, while the latter is found only in Lithuanian.


Introduction
The human perception of colors is conditioned not only biologically, but also culturally: in a number of cultures, the process of linguistic categorization of colors can acquire a distinctive character, which makes a contrastive research in the field of color naming a topical issue [Tokarski 1995;Wierzbicka 1999]. Within the scope of the present article, the results of the contrastive semantic analysis of the Polish lexeme biały 'white' and its Lithuanian equivalent baltas are presented. The research that is based on Tokarski's [1995] and Wasza kowa's [Waszakowa 2000a[Waszakowa , 2000b 1 methodologies aimed at comparing the collocability of Pol. biały and Lith. baltas with names of various objects and phenomena (both in the literal and figurative senses) including the identifica tion of the prototype references and connotative meanings. The article deals with various types of word expressions including the fixed ones, i.e. phraseo logical units. In addition to the material collected from the dictionaries, the analysis has utilized the data from the Corpora of the Polish and Lithuanian languages.

Biały / baltas as a basic color term
The Polish adjective biały and Lithuanian baltas correspond to the linguistic criteria typical of the basic color terms that were formulated in Berlin and Kay's work [1969,[5][6][7]. According to these authors, the basic color terms are the monolexemic color names applicable to a wide class of objects, are not semantically subordinated to the names of other colors, and are synchronously unmotivated. They belong to the scope of the basic vocabulary, and are psy chologically salient, which means that the language users can easily identify the color names with their corresponding prototype patterns. The names of the basic color terms are distinguished according to the abovementioned criteria that form an evolutionary ordering in which each term has an exact position, as illustrated in the following diagram [cf. Berlin, Kay 1969, 7]: The terms used to denote white and black colors belong to the earliest coded color names, and are characterized as the most significant in Berlin and Kay's model. Berlin and Kay [1969, 2] discovered that all of the nearly one hundred languages they had studied had names for white and black, which re sulted in the spread of the belief that they had the status of a lexical universal [Wierzbicka 1999, 434].

Quantitative and qualitative meanings
As it is seen from the reviews of the lexicographic entries, the lexemes biały and baltas are defined in a similar way. In both languages, the names of white ness are referred to as 'very light, very fair, the lightest': Pol. najjaśniejszy, mający barwę właściwą śniegowi, mleku [MSJP, NSJP, Sz] -Lith. labai šviesus, kone sniego, pieno spalvos [LKŽe], kuris sniego spalvos [DLKŽe]. The quoted definitions reflect two basic aspects of the meaning of the terms biały and baltas that is quantitative and qualitative understanding of the color names. This distinction with the reference to the color names was introduced by Tokarski [1995, 41]; previously it was used only in natural sciences and in the history of art. Quantitative characteristics include the degree of the color lightness (intensity), while qualitative ones refer to its chromatic property.
It should be noted, however, that the compatibility of the Lithuanian le xeme baltas with the terms of the time of the day finds fewer textual examples than its Polish equivalent, and, for instance, the praseological unit vidury baltos dienos 'in broad daylight' is considered a loan translation of the Russian construction среди бела дня [http://www.vlkk.lt/konsultacijos/9088-vidurybaltosdienos].
The degree of lightness also determines the meaning of the expressions common to both languages in which the part biały and baltas does not mean that the object is of a white color, but rather that it is lighter than other darker objects: Pol. białe mięso, biały chleb, białe wino, biała kawa, biały pieprz -Lith. balta miesa, balta duona, baltasis vynas, balta kava, baltieji pipirai 'white meat, white bread, white wine, "whiteˮ coffee (with milk), white pep per' etc.
The quoted examples of the lexemes biały -baltas and their use in the meaning 'light, fair, the lightest' make is possible to conclude that in both languages from the quantitative aspect the prototype of the white color can be considered as DAYLIGHT [cf. Tokarski 1995, 41;Teodorowicz-Hellman 1997, 35;Waszakowa 2000a, 23] The relation of the names of whiteness to light/ glow/ brightness is con firmed by the etymological data. Both Pol. biały and Lith. baltas are continu ants of the preIndoEuropean root *bhel/*bhol-'shiny, luminous, bright' [cf. Old Norse bāl 'fire', Sanskrit bhāla 'glow' etc. -Boryś 2005, 26].
From the qualitative aspect, other patterns of the white color are found in Polish and Lithuanian phraseology where the color is a component of a com parison: Pol. biały jak mleko / kreda / papier / płótno / alabaster / marmur [MSJP, Sz, WSF] -baltas kaip (lyg) pienas / kreida / popierius / drobė / alebastras / marmuras / [LKŽe; DLKTe] 'as white as milk / chalk / paper / canvas / alabaster / marble', etc. There are, however, some differences, e.g. a widely used and characteristic of the Polish language comparison with white lilies can hardly be found in Lithuanian texts. Nevertheless, none of these pat terns have as many textual examples as SNOW, and none of them create fixed connotations.

Biały and baltas relation to the names of artifacts and natural objects
The color names biały and baltas refer to a number of object classes, and are characterized by a wide range of connectivity with the names of artifacts which include the categories such as: furniture: Pol. biały stół -Lith. baltas stalas 'white is also common to both languages. This phrase has one more common meta phorical meaning 'sugar', sometimes it is also 'salt' [WSF].
The differences in the metaphorical use of the terms biały -baltas are few. Some of them refer to the white color of textiles and clothes, e.g. there is no Lithuanian equivalent for the Polish expression biały tydzień [WSF] that means 'the week after receiving the first communion' (recently also 'the sale of bed linen'); in its turn in Lithuanian there is a phraseological unit balta diena that means 'a holiday when everyone is dressed in white'. In Polish, there are also some word expressions motivated by the white color and its relation to the health care professionals, such as biała niedziela 'it is Sunday when doctors examine people who have difficulty to access the health care facilities' [WSF], and biały marsz 'health care professionals' protest march' [SF].
Both in Polish and Lithuanian, there is an expression Pol. czarno na białym -Lith. juodu ant balto [WFS, LKŽe] whose meaning is 'in black and white' (it is 'in printed or written form') that is also used in the abstract sense 'in an obvious, uncontestable way'.
As connected with human appearance, anatomical and medical expres sions motivated by the white color of the body parts should be mentioned: Pol. Another group of words connected with the adjectives biały and baltas(is) is the expressions describing the skin color that determines the racial belong ing of a human being. The dictionaries note the following terms: Pol. biały -Lith. baltasis 'a person belonging to white race'; Pol. rasa biała -Lith. baltoji rasė 'white race', Pol. biała odmiana człowieka, ludność biała -Lith. baltieji (žmonės) 'white people' [Sz, NKJPe, LKŽe]. There are a number of other expressions found in the Corpora that exemplify the stated mea ning: Pol. białi Amerykanie -Lith. baltieji amerikiečiai 'white Americans', Pol. "biała" Afryka -Lith. baltoji Afrika 'white Africans' and some other [NKJPe, DLKTe]. This meaning is also associated with an occasional phrase Pol. biała niewolnica -Lith. baltoji vergė 'white slave' (about women sent abroad and forced into prostitution) [NKJPe, DLKTe] and the expressive Polish phraseme biały murzyn 'a person exploited and treated like a slave' [Sz].

Descriptions of psychophysiological states
In both languages there are expressions describing changes in skin color which are symptoms of certain psychophysical conditions. In this case, skin white ness is not a positive feature, it rather signals some weakness or a disease (as contrasted to red, that is the color of health): Pol. biały (blady) jak ściana / jak papier / jak płótno -Lith. baltas (išbalęs) kaip popierėlis/ kaip drobė 'as white (pale) as the wall / paper / canvas ', etc. [Sz, NKJPe, DLKTe].
It was noted that the change of the skin color to white is also connected with certain emotional states, such as fear, nervousness, excitation and rage, cf.: [...]  In the Lithuanian language, this meaning is expressed by the verbs išbalti, pabalti 'to become white, pale' (particularly by the participle forms of these verbs: išbalęs, pabalęs 'paly, bloodless, ashy') derived from the adjective baltas: Išbalęs veidas, matyt, nesveikuoja 'His pale face seems to be un healthy' / Jam akys pabalna, kai supyksta 'His eyes turn white when he's an gry' [LKŽe] / Iš baimės jis net pabalo 'He turned white with fear' [DLKŽe].
The analyzed lexemes are also used in the metaphorical descriptions of the fit of anger, rage and fury -in Polish these are the expressions doprowadzać kogoś do białej gorączki / dostawać białej gorączki / rozpalać kogoś do białości 'to make someone very angry, enraged, furious' (literally: 'to lead to a state of "white feverˮ, meaning delirium tremens') [WSF]. In Lithuanian, the expression that has a similar meaning is iki balto kaulo (literally: 'to the white bones'): […] jis man daėdė šiandien iki balto kaulo 'Today he has made me furious' [FŽ 286]. Tokarski [1995Tokarski [ , 1997 states that color names can develop the connotations appropriate to its prototype reference. Тhe examples of this development in re lation to qualitative whiteness are found both in Polish and Lithuanian. In the two languages, whiteness of the snow is associated with its purity and clean ness. The conceptual relation between whiteness and purity is reflected in both stereotypical and occasional word expressions, e.g. Pol.: Coś lśni białością (czystością) 'Something shines whiteness (purity)'/ Nieskazitelnie biały obrus 'A spotless white tablecloth' / Masz wszystko wyczyścić do białości! 'You have to clean everything up to whiteness!' [Sz, NKJPe] -Lith. Numazgok stalą, kad būtų baltas! 'Clean the table up to whiteness!' / Baltas kaip iš pirties 'White (clean) as after a bath' / Baltutėliai marškiniai 'A spotless white shirt' [LKŽe, DLKŽe].

The connotation 'purity'
In both languages, the aspect of physical purity is metaphorically trans ferred to the sphere of moral purity, thus, developing the meaning of 'chastity' that is seen in the following expressions with Pol. biały and Lith. baltas: Pol. Moral purity is also associated with the Polish expressions with the com ponent w białych rękawiczkach 'in white gloves' (to have a sense of decency), e.g. Oszustwa odbywają się tu w białych rękawiczkach 'Cheating takes place here "in white glovesˮ ' [WSF] which have no literal equivalents in Lithu anian. The Polish expression białe małżeństwo 'white marriage', which de scribes a situation in which the couple does not have any sexual relationship, is not found in Lithuanian either. In Polish, the figurative meaning of the verb wybielać 'to whitewash, defend against charge, justify' and its derivatives be long to the same semantic sphere: Adwokat usiłował wybielić oskarżonego 'The lawyer tried to whitewash the accused' [MSJP].

The connotations 'clarity', 'legality'
By pointing to light and day as a prototype reference for whiteness, Wierz bicka underlines the significant conceptual relationship between day, clarity and vision [Wierzbicka 1999, 420]. A day in the meaning of 'the light time of the day' evokes positive associations in the opposition jasny 'light' -ciemny 'dark'. Light is in its turn associated with good visibility, and is metaphorically transferred into the realm of positive values -'clarity' and 'legality', while darkness connotes 'crime', 'illegality', e.g. ciemna sprawa, ciemne interesy 'suspicious (fishy, shady) business, interests' [Sz]. The white color takes over the connotations characteristic of clarity and then of transparency and legality.
It is interesting to share that in both Polish and Lithuanian, there is a no ticeable semantic asymmetry in the pair Pol. biały/ Lith. baltas 'white' -Pol. czarny / Lith. juodas 'black' when it comes to the 'legal' -'illegal' connota tion. In both languages, the adjective Pol. czarny -Lith. juodas can be used in the sense of 'illegal, illegitimate' especially in relation to work, employment (cf. Pol. czarny rynek -Lith. juodoji rinka 'black market'). However, there are no examples of the 'legal' connotation for biały in Polish. In its turn in Lithuanian, the only example of this connotation for baltas is the expression baltoji buhalterija 'white (legal) accounting' which has appeared in recent years as an opposition to juodoji buhalterija 'black (illegal) accounting'.
Tokarski relates the 'good' connotation for Pol. biały 'white' to the pro totype reference SNOW by stating at the same time that the 'bad' connota tion is more emphasized for Pol. czarny 'black' due to the prototype NIGHT (darkness), which in its turn is a reference point for black in both quantitative and qualitative aspects. It seems, however, that the 'good' connotation can be associated not only with the purity of the snow, but also with the daytime, light and brightness, which imply positive by their nature phenomena, among others there is 'transparency' / 'legality' [cf. Wierzbicka 1999, 420].
The analysis of the connotative meanings including such semantic compo nents as the 'good' and the 'clarity / legality' (not taken into account by Tokar ski) indicates that DAYLIGHT as a quantitative prototype of WHITENESS could as well as SNOW (its qualitative prototype) contribute to the develop ment of the positive connotations of the white color in Polish and Lithuanian. Both prototype patterns could create their own connotation chains with partly overlapping meanings though: • 'snow' -'purity' -'moral purity / innocence' -'good'; • 'daylight' -'transparency' -'clarity' / 'legality' -'good'.
The differences between the discussed units are mainly noted on the level of the lexical components with individual connotations. For instance, the Polish phraseologism załatwić coś w białych rękawiczkach 'to do the job, tasks legally, discreetly' has no literal equivalent in Lithuanian (Lith. atlikti, sutvarkyti ką nors taktiškai, doriai), however, there is a component in both languages carrying the common meaning 'honesty, moral purity'.
Apart from the few phenomena that are culturally specific (e.g. Pol. białe małżeństwo 'a marriage without intimacy'), in the use of the lexemes biały / baltas in the sphere of their connotations, there are no major discrepancies. Instead, it is possible to note only the asymmetry as it is in the case with the related meanings 'clarity' and 'legality' where the former has more examples in Polish, while the latter is found only in Lithuanian.
A significant number of the analyzed word expressions are free and oc casional. However, the contextual use of the words in other word expressions is not occasional, instead it is fixed by the specific connotations of their com ponents. It proves the productivity and the semantic potential of the analyzed color names.