Substantive phrases with the genitive case in old Russian hymnography

The study is based on the original poetic and liturgical texts created between the XI and the XV centuries. The research novelty lies in the fact that it investigates for the first time the word combinations with the genitive case functioning in the Old Russian hymnographic texts. The article analyzes the constructions formed using the model “noun + noun in the genitive case”. Observations show that this type of word combinations is the most frequent one among the combinations with subordinate adnominal cases. The purpose of the study is to determine the meanings of the genitive case through lexical and semantic analysis of the components of the word combinations, as well as to establish correlated grammatical constructions with other case forms and adjectives. The analysis revealed eight specific meanings of the genitive case. In quantitative terms, the groups of word combinations are represented unevenly, with combinations in which the meaning of the genitive case is defined as metaphorical being the prevailing group. Within each semantic domain, there is a different ratio of parallel grammatical constructions. Along with the substantive-adjacent genitive case, there are combinations with the adnominal dative case or with a dependent adjective. Other semantic zones include three correlated constructs. In some cases, combinations with the dative and local cases are used in parallel with the genitive case (for example, when expressing the object meaning), while in other cases a number of correlated constructions form combinations with the dative case or a dependent adjective. It is concluded that there are such semantic areas, where the substantive-adjacent genitive case serves as the only means of expressing the meaning.