Continuality of language levels hierarchy

The author points out that the structure of language levels system is still a crucial linguistic problem, that research in this field is far from being completed and that there is a need for further improvement of the current models of language levels hierarchy. The author sets out his reflections that sprang up from striving to eliminate some contradictions in the existing models of the language levels system. Applying the method of comparative analysis, elements of the model theory and linguistic systemology, using the Russian language material supplemented by some sporadic examples from other languages, the researcher puts forward a number of amendments to the existing models of the language levels hierarchy – amendments intended for riddance of the above-mentioned contradictions. The author argues in favor of merging the morphological and lexical levels, as well as the level of syntax and that of utterances, and offers insertion of the word combinations level at which language units and speech units co-exist, forming two intersecting sub-levels. The expediency of combining the system of language levels and that of speech levels into a common speech-language space has been proved. Using the empirical material, the author demonstrates the level boundaries blurring and existence of inter-level gaps, which contain hybrid units that have typological features of both the upper level and the lower level. The following conclusion is drawn: the speech-language hierarchy must be schematically presented not so much a column of hard and fast lines as a linguistic continuum with smooth transitions between the levels