v Ukraine : na Ukraine

[Dmitri Glinski]

If that were true, then why Siberia is without article, and we
Russians say "v Sibiri"? (Unless this is in anticipation of its
future independence?)

Although I am not a linguist by profession, I wonder whether the use
of the article might be related to the original meaning of the
toponym indicating a geographic position, the borderland, both in
Ukrainian and in Russian. Isn't that also possibly the reason for
"the Netherlands", though they seem no less independent than France
or Belgium?


Dmitri Glinski
Adjunct Assistant Professor
Political Science Department
Columbia University

Quoting Steven Young <young at UMBC.EDU>:

> Martin's remarks seem right on the mark.
>
> Now for the somewhat related question of "v Ukraine" vs. "na
> Ukraine."  A
> quick Google (na russkom) search shows 2.950,000 hits in favor of
> "v," and
> 2,890,000 for "na."  Do intuitions for Russian speakers (sorry, I
> don't
> have a background in Ukrainian) also fall out along the lines of
> "region"
> (na) and "sovereign state" (v)?  Does the same issue arise in
> Ukrainian?
>
> Steve.
>
> --
> Steven Young
> Associate Professor of Russian & Linguistics
> Deparment of Modern Languages & Linguistics
> University of Maryland, Baltimore County
> 1000 Hilltop Circle
> Baltimore, MD 21250
> Tel.  410-455-2117
>
>
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