Сочи

[Martin Votruba]

> I think it is English that is the odd man out

When compared to the Slavic languages.  In a historical perspective in
German, e.g., the former plurals Goettingen, Muenchen, etc., have come to be
treated as singulars.


> Czech has a number of plural toponyms and those names all get declined.

Unlike the native toponyms (which exist and are declined in Russian too, as
Paul has said), Sochi is not a native Russian place name.  It needs to be
compared not to native Czech place names, but to foreign place names like
Helsinki, Tbilisi, the first of which is declined in Czech (v Helsinkach, do
Helsinek/Helsink), and the second one is not.


> Foreign place names are often treated as indeclinable, however, even when 
> they might be amenable: Брно, в Брно, not в Брне (Brno, v Brno, not v Brne)

We have discussed it on slavlangs before:

<http://tinyurl.com/236vvgn>
<http://tinyurl.com/23vtdmc>

Russians living in the Czech R. begin to decline Brno, as did Roman Jakobson
in at least one of his works.


Martin

votruba "at" pitt "dot" edu

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