Professor Danuta Antonina Buttler was born in Radom on 18 September 1930 to Kazimierz and Aniela Buttler (mother’s maiden name – Focht). She died in Warsaw on 2 March 1991.

She completed her secondary education in Radom, graduating from State High School No. 3, where Polish was taught by a very talented teacher, professor Halina Petersowa. Her influence as well as her family tradition gave rise to the future researcher’s interest in linguistics. She undertook Polish Studies at the University of Łódź, where she met renowned linguistic personalities, prof. Zdzisław Stieber and prof. Henryk Ułaszyn. She completed Polish Studies in 1954 in Warsaw, where she moved after getting married. She obtained a master’s degree with her thesis on the language of the 2nd half of the 18th century, written under the supervision of prof. Witold Doroszewski.

Since 1953, she was working as an assistant at the Stylistics and Language Culture Section, Journalism Faculty, University of Warsaw (the section was at that time headed by doc. Halina Kurkowska). In 1958, she started working at the Polish Studies, at the time a part of the Faculty of Philology, and her academic life and didactic work revolved around this environment ever since.

She was awarded a doctoral degree in 1964 with a thesis written under the supervision of prof. W. Doroszewski (a book titled Polski dowcip językowy (Humour in the Polish Language) was published in 1968); in 1969, she did her habilitation (thesis titled Łączliwość składniowa współczesnej polszczyzny (Syntactic Links in the Contemporary Polish Language), later published as Innowacje składniowe współczesnej polszczyzny (Syntactic Changes in the Contemporary Polish Language), Warsaw 1976). In 1979, she earned the title of associate professor and in 1986 she was made full professor.

Her research and didactic work won her many awards of the Rector of the University of Warsaw, three ministerial awards and the Witold Doroszewski Award (1987). She was also granted the Medal of the Commission of National Education (1978) and the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (1980).

I. Academic achievements

The work of Danuta Buttler in various fields of linguistics includes a few dozen of books and nearly 230 papers published in Polish and international trade journals as well as in collections of conference reviews. She was published in American, Czech, Lusatian, German, Russian, Slovak, Slovenian and Hungarian magazines. Comparative studies prove her to be not only an exceptional linguist – a Polish language specialist, but also a Slavist.

The majority of her work focuses on both modern and historical lexicology. The former is the subject of a series of papers on Polish homonyms (Mały słownik homonimów polskich dla cudzoziemców (A Small Dictionary of Polish Homonyms for Foreigners), 1986; Słownik polskich homonimów całkowitych (Dictionary of Polish Homonyms), 1988), colloquialisms (Kategorie semantyczne leksyki potocznej (Semantic Classes of Colloquial Vocabulary), 1978; Miejsce języka potocznego wśród odmian współczesnej polszczyzny (The Place of Colloquial Speech among the Varieties of the Contemporary Polish Language), 1982) and semantic fields. With regard to semantics and lexicon, it is important to say that Danuta Buttler authored a pioneering article titled “Koncepcje pola znaczeniowego" (“Concepts of Semantic Fields”), published in 1967 in Przegląd Humanistyczny (Humanistic Review), as well as analytical papers presenting examples of practical application of the theory of fields to the analysis of Polish material (adjectives that mean ‘connected with joy’: Prace Filologiczne (Philological Papers) vol. 27 and 28). The studies proved the existence of system connections within a specific semantic filed. As her crowning achievement, one may indicate a normative study of lexicology-related issues in the 2nd volume of Kultura języka polskiego (The Culture of the Polish Language) (1982) titled “Zagadnienia poprawności leksykalno-semantycznej” (“Lexical and Semantic Accuracy”) (pp. 44-228).

The lexical and semantic interests of the scholar prompted her to write a series of papers devoted to German and Russian loanwords in the Polish language (Nowsze zapożyczenia rosyjskie w języku polskim (Recent Russian Loanwords in the Polish Language), 1973; Dwudziestowieczna warstwa zapożyczeń niemieckich w polszczyźnie (20th-Century German Loanwords in the Polish Language), 1987; Zapożyczenia niemieckie jako problem normatywny; germanizmy słownikowe, germanizmy składniowe (German Loanwords as a Normative Issue; Words and Syntactic Structures Adopted from German), 1987).

D. Buttler was an expert in the 19th century phraseology and vocabulary of the Polish language. She stressed the dynamic nature and functionality of lexical and semantic shifts, the variantivity and synonymous character of idioms (Rozwój słownictwa polskiego w II połowie XIX wieku (The Evolution of Polish Vocabulary in the 2nd Half of the 19th Century), 1974; Zmienność znaczeń wyrazów w polszczyźnie przełomu XIX I XX wieku (The Variability of Word Meanings in the Polish Language at the Turn of the 20th Century) 1984; Podłoże zaniku niektórych wyrazów rodzimych w polszczyźnie przełomu XIX i XX wieku (The Causes of Extinction of Some Native Words in the Polish Language at the Turn of the 20th Century), 1989; Zapomniane frazeologizmy polskie (Forgotten Polish Idioms), 1989).

She examined not only the external factors of language changes, but she also took into account the mechanisms of semantic and syntactic development, which she demonstrated using the richness of the Polish language. A typical example of the application of this methodology in all its fullness is offered in a book titled Rozwój semantyczny wyrazów polskich (Semantic Evolution of Polish Words) (1978); to this day, it remains a significant work in the area of historical semantics:

Not only does the book contain a typology of semantic changes, but also an analysis of a few thousand words in their evolution over the years.

The researcher was always striving for accuracy and systematisation which impelled her to write a number of papers on linguistic terminology concerning lexicology, semantics and sociolinguistics.

One of the most prominent issues with which she was concerned in her work was syntax. She was the first in Poland to promote the theory of valency:

She was certain that this approach to source material would allow the description of the Polish language in syntactic terms in greater detail, the linking of the issues of structural syntax with semantics.

Connotation- and valency-based description was adopted in Innowacje składniowe współczesnej polszczyzny (Syntactic Innovations in the Contemporary Polish Language) (1976). The normative angle on syntactic issues is presented in the 1st volume of Kultura języka polskiego titled “Składnia” (“Syntax”) (pp. 301-448) (1971). She wrote her first normatively oriented papers when working at the Journalism Department (cf., for instance: “Uwagi o frazeologii prasowej” (“Comments on Press Phraseology”), 1957 – an article written in cooperation with Halina Satkiewicz; “O typach błędów frazeologicznych” (“Of Idiomatic Error Types”), 1960 – also co-authored by H. Satkiewicz). As a co-writer of both volumes of the textbook Kultura języka polskiego, she settled a number of disputes regarding the correct use of language:

She advocates careful observation and description of the so-called real norm emerging from the use of intelligence shaped by higher education, at the same time stressing the importance of the criteria of correctness within the language (the accuracy of expression, the economy of language means, their efficiency).

Danuta Buttler was also interested in the language of writers; she combined linguistics and literary theory in her doctoral thesis on humour in the Polish language which was based on the texts written by Lec, Nowaczyński, Perzyński, Lechoń, Tuwim, Wańkowicz. In the years that followed, she studied the language of K. I. Gałczyński (Groteska językowa K. I. Gałczyńskiego (The Grotesque of the Language of K. I. Gałczyński), 1973; Słowo poetyckie Konstantego Idelfonsa Gałczyńskiego (The Poetic Voice of Konstanty Idelfons Gałczyński), 1977) and Żeromski (Porównania w twórczości Żeromskiego (Comparisons in the Works of Żeromski), 1987; Semantyka Stefana Żeromskiego (The Semantics of Stefan Żeromski), 1978; Komizm słowny w twórczości Stafana Żeromskiego (Language Humour in the Works of Stefan Żeromski); 1981). Clearly, the issue of grotesque and comedy continued to occupy an important place in the scholar’s later work what her student, Andrzej Markowski, ascribes to “(h)er good nature, cheerfulness and her tendency to deal with people as well as the entire reality in general with humour and kindness (…)”*.

Many of her research and methodological studies, which she was prompted to write as a result of her teaching work at the Polonicum, were focused on teaching Polish to foreigners; the studies concerned methodology (Z metodyki nauczania języka polskiego jako obcego (Methodology of Teaching Polish as a Foreign Language), 1971), phraseology (Frazeologia polska. Ćwiczenia dla cudzoziemców (Polish Phraseology. Exercises for Foreigners), 1975), lexis (Język polski dla cudzoziemców. Ćwiczenia leksykalno-stylistyczne (Polish for Foreigners. Lexical and Stylistic Exercises), 1970 – in cooperation with Barbara Bartnicka).

Danuta Buttler was also the author of Polish high school textbooks; e.g. Język i my (The Language and Us) for grade 2 (1987) and Język i my for grade 4 (together with Halina Satkiewicz) (1988). Those textbooks were known as difficult but reliable, offering rich language material which made the understanding of language processes easier. They were addressed to both students and teachers.

In discussions on her academic achievements, often underlined is the unique nature of her research work:

The author’s work is always based on research of a wide spectrum of materials; she is a full-blooded empiricist. Her conclusions and generalisations are balanced, validly explained, and expressed in a clear and convincing fashion.

II. Official functions

The organisational work for university, ministry and publishing institutions always played a big role in Danuta Buttler’s life.

In 1968, she set up the Polish Language Department at the Białystok Branch of the University of Warsaw and managed it for the next three years. She was the vicedean (1976-1978) and the dean (1979-1981) at the Department of Polish Studies of the University of Warsaw. From 1982 until her death, she headed the Department of Lexicology and Language Culture of the Polish Language Institute of the Department of Polish Studies.

She took active part in the work of three commissions of the International Congress of Slavists: the Commission for Linguistic Terminology, the Commission for Lexicology and Lexicography and the Sociolinguistic Commission. She was a member of the Committee of Linguistics of the Polish Academy of Sciences as well as numerous ministerial and academic commissions.

Since 1976, she was on the editorial staff of Przegląd Humanistyczny, where she directed the linguistic department, a quarterly magazine Prasa Techniczna (Technical Press) and Prace Filologiczne; in 1986-1990, she held the position of editor-in-chief of Poradnik Językowy (The Linguistic Guide).

III. Didactic work

According to those who knew prof. Danuta Buttler, she was a valued and well-known teacher. She taught many lexical and semantic seminars attended not only by employees of the Polish Language Institute of the University of Warsaw, but also by researchers from Białystok, Lublin, Cracow and Katowice:

The in-depth knowledge of the subject (…), the clear and logical delivery, the appreciation for discussion and feedback, the kind approach to listeners – these are the advantages of “buttlerology” remembered by the attendees until this day.

She taught a few dozen persons who succeeded in obtaining master’s degree and a few with doctoral degree. Students of Danuta Buttler include: Anna Cegieła, Grzegorz Dąbkowski, Anna Engelking, Andrzej Markowski, Irena Nowakowska-Kempna, Marta Pančikova, Elżbieta Wierzbicka-Piotrowska.

When her health deteriorated, preventing her from teaching classes, she dedicated herself to working at the Language Guide Phone Service of the University of Warsaw. She answered questions using her knowledge in the field of language culture, sources and many years of experience gained when writing a column for Poradnik Językowy titled “Objaśnienia wyrazów i zwrotów” (“Explanations of Words and Expressions”).

IV. Danuta Buttler as the editor-in-chief of Poradnik Językowy

She was appointed editor-in-chief in 1986; she held this function starting from the 3rd issue of the journal of that year. In that issue, in keeping with the tradition established by her predecessors, she published an article titled “Dzieje wyrazu „około” i dzisiejsze z nim kłopoty” (“The History of the Word “About” and the Trouble it Brings Today”) in the column “Objaśnienia wyrazów i zwrotów” (1986). What was unique about that column was that it often featured the researcher’s thematic article series, e.g., dealing with German loanwords in the Polish language (1987, issues no. 5, 6, 7); Russian elements in the contemporary Polish language (1989, issues no. 7, 8, 9/10); she also wrote about the language of press (1987, issue no. 2; 1988, issue no. 2; 1990, issue no. 9/10).

The conclusions reached by Danuta Buttler on the subject of some normative disputes are presented in a manner characteristic for her: they are supported with a thorough analysis of a given language phenomenon, while at the same time the author refrains from making absolute, stigmatising judgements. A good example of her style is a fragment of article concerning the adjective unikalny:

It is not my intention to defend the adjective unikalny although further arguments in its favour could be presented (…). But this is not the point: I wish to underline how important it is to keep an opinion on »systemic representativeness« of a given grammatical phenomenon balanced and grounded in thorough analysis of a large chunk of material; a judgement passed rashly and intuitively is a classical linguistic error which may often decide the fate of a word or form for a long time.

She was extremely meticulous in her editorial work: she edited all the texts to be published in Poradnik Językowy by herself and she ensured its high academic standards. She treated authors kindly; she consulted them about the introduced corrections which, in particular to beginners in the field of linguistics, was a great research lesson and an expression of her kindness and tact.

She defended her position tactfully and based on merit only, taking no notice of comments of personal nature sometimes appearing in the texts of some of her regular opponents.

On the first anniversary of prof. Danuta Buttler’s death, an academic session was held in her memory. It was concerned with lexicology, a discipline occupying a prominent place in the oeuvre of the researcher. Session materials were published as a book under the telling title of Opisać słowa (To Describe Words) (ed. Andrzej Markowski, Warsaw 1992). To honour the twentieth anniversary of her death (March 2011), a nationwide seminar on modern Polish lexis was organized with the participation of foreign guests. Its conclusions were collected in a publication Słowa i ich opis. Na drogach współczesnej leksykologii (Words and their Description. On the Roads of Modern Lexicology) (ed. D. Zdunkiewicz-Jedynak, Warsaw 2011).

For full bibliography of D. Buttler’s work, see “Bibliografia prac naukowych prof. dr Danuty Buttlerowej” (“The Bibliography of D. Buttlerowa's Research Work”), Prace Filologiczne 37, 1992, pp. 23-37.

V. Published by Danuta Buttler (selection – in chronological order)

Books

• Polski dowcip językowy, Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, Warszawa 1968, 2nd ed. 1974, 3rd ed. 2001.
• (with B. Bartnicka) Język polski dla cudzoziemców. Ćwiczenia leksykalno-stylistyczne, Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Warszawa 1970, 2nd ed. 1973, 3rd ed. 1978.
• Czasownik polski. Budowa – znaczenie – związki składniowe. Ćwiczenia dla cudzoziemców, Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Warszawa 1971, 2nd ed. 1973.
• (with H. Kurkowska and H. Satkiewicz) Kultura języka polskiego. Zagadnienia poprawności gramatycznej, Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, Warszawa 1971, 2nd ed. 1973, 3rd ed.1976, 4th ed. 1986.
• Język polski dla klasy IV liceum ogólnokształcącego, techników i liceów zawodowych, Państwowe Zakłady Wydawnictw Szkolnych, Warszawa 1973, 14th ed. 1986.
• Frazeologia polska. Ćwiczenia dla cudzoziemców, Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Warszawa 1975, 2nd ed. 1980.
• Innowacje składniowe współczesnej polszczyzny, Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, Warszawa 1976.
• Rozwój semantyczny wyrazów polskich, Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Warszawa 1978.
• (with H. Kurkowska and H. Satkiewicz) Kultura języka polskiego. Zagadnienia poprawności leksykalnej (słownictwo rodzime), Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, Warszawa 1982.
• Mały słownik homonimów polskich dla cudzoziemców, Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Warszawa 1986.
• Język i my. Podręcznik do języka polskiego dla kl. II szkół średnich, Wydawnictwa Szkolne i Pedagogiczne, Warszawa 1987, 12th ed. 2000.
• Słownik polskich homonimów całkowitych, Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich, Wrocław 1988.
• (with H. Satkiewicz) Język i my. Podręcznik do języka polskiego dla klasy IV szkół średnich, Wydawnictwa Szkolne i Pedagogiczne, Warszawa 1988, 9th ed. 2003.

Papers

• "Koncepcje pola znaczeniowego”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1967, no. 2, pp. 41-59.
• "Z metodyki nauczania języka polskiego jako obcego (słownictwo)”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1971, no. 2, pp. 53-70.
• "Zmiany słownikowe w polszczyźnie przełomu XIX i XX wieku”, Poradnik Językowy 1972, Issue no. 4, pp. 196-204, Issue no. 5, pp. 276-285.
• "Groteska językowa K. I. Gałczyńskiego”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1973, no. 2, pp. 35-71.
• "Nowsze zapożyczenia rosyjskie w języku polskim”, Zeszyty Naukowo-Dydaktyczne. Humanistyka, Uniwersytet Warszawski, Filia w Białymstoku, 2nd vol., 1973, pp. 5-36.
• "Rozwój słownictwa polskiego w II połowie XIX wieku”, (in:) A. Jedlička (ed.), Slovanské spisovné jazyky v dobé obrození, Universita Karlova, Prague 1974, pp. 97-102.
• "Grupa semantyczna przymiotników polskich o znaczeniu ‘pozostający w związku z radością’”, Prace Filologiczne 27, 1977, pp. 271-286.
• "Porównania w twórczości Żeromskiego”, (in:) Z. Goliński (ed.), Stefan Żeromski w pięćdziesiątą rocznicę śmierci, Czytelnik, Warszawa 1977, pp. 258-275.
• "Słowo poetyckie Konstantego Ildefonsa Gałczyńskiego”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1977, no. 3, pp. 63-73.
• "Łączliwość przymiotników o znaczeniu ‘związany z radością’”, Prace Filologiczne 28, 1978, pp. 208-221.
• "Powojenne innowacje w polskim zasobie słownym”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1978, no. 5, pp. 55-67.
• "Semantyka Stefana Żeromskiego”, (in:) J. Detko (ed.), Żeromski i Reymont, Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, Warszawa 1978, pp. 173-184.
• "Komizm słowny w twórczości Stefana Żeromskiego”, (in:) J. Bubak, A. Wilkoń (ed.), O języku literatury, Prace Naukowe Uniwersytetu Śląskiego, Katowice 1981, pp. 129-139.
• "Tendencje rozwojowe w zasobie słownym powojennej polszczyzny”, (in:) Współczesna polszczyzna. Wybór zagadnień, ed. H. Kurkowska, Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, Warszawa 1981, pp. 187-219.
• "Zmienność znaczeń wyrazów w polszczyźnie przełomu XIX i XX wieku”, Poradnik Językowy 1984, Issue no. 3, 4, 5.
• "Dwudziestowieczna warstwa zapożyczeń niemieckich w polszczyźnie”, (in:) A. Bogusławski, B. Bojar (ed.), Od kodu do kodu. Prace ofiarowane Profesorowi Olgierdowi Adrianowi Wojtasiewiczowi na 70-lecie jego urodzin, Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Warszawa 1987, pp. 83-92.
• "Germanizmy słownikowe”, Poradnik Językowy 1987, Issue no. 6, pp. 479-482.
• "Germanizmy składniowe”, Poradnik Językowy 1987, Issue no. 7, pp. 562-565.
• "Zapożyczenia niemieckie jako problem normatywny”, Poradnik Językowy 1987, Issue no. 5, pp. 399-403.
• "Zmienność formalna i znaczeniowa dziewiętnastowiecznych pożyczek niemieckich w polszczyźnie”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1988, no. 1/2, pp. 51-67.
• "Podłoże zaniku niektórych wyrazów rodzimych w polszczyźnie przełomu XIX i XX wieku”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1989, no. 4, pp. 51-59.
• "Zapomniane frazeologizmy polskie XIX wieku”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1989, no. 8/9, pp. 146-155.
• "Procesy eliminacji wieloznaczności w drugiej połowie XIX wieku”, Prace Filologiczne 36, 1991, pp. 229-235.

Literature

• A. Markowski, "Dorobek naukowy Profesor Danuty Buttler”, Prace Filologiczne 37, 1992, pp. 13-22.
• A. Markowski, "Danuta Buttler (1930-1991)”, Język Polski 72, 1992, Issue no. 1, pp. 1-4.
• A. Markowski (ed.), Opisać słowa. Materiały ogólnopolskiej sesji naukowej w rocznicę śmierci Profesor Danuty Buttler “Teoretyczne i metodologiczne zagadnienia leksykologii" Warszawa 4-5 marca 1992 r., Instytut Języka Polskiego UW, Zakład Leksykologii i Kultury Języka, Warszawa 1992.
• J. Puzynina, "Profesor Danuta Buttler”, Przegląd Humanistyczny 1991, no. 3/4, pp. 163-167.
• Editorial team, "Profesor Danuta Buttler (1930-1991)”, Poradnik Językowy 1991, Issue no. 7/8, pp. 243-247.
• H. Rybicka-Nowacka, "Nota biograficzna”, Prace Filologiczne 37, 1992, pp. 9-11.
• "W pracowniach uczonych Zależy nam nie tylko na tym, żeby język polski żył, ale i na tym także, żeby się rozwijał i żebyśmy z tym rozwojem w miarę możności współdziałali” (interview with prof. Danuta Buttler), Polonistyka 1988, Issue no. 3, pp. 246-251.
• D. Zdunkiewicz-Jedynak (ed.), Słowa i ich opis. Na drogach współczesnej leksykologii, Wydział Polonistyki Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Warszawa 2011.

Author: Elżbieta Sękowska

Translation: Anna Karpowicz