Terms of address and fictive kinship politeness in Lori

Abstract

Abstract This paper attempts to show different terms of address in Lori and how the non-existence of deferential ʃomɑ (V) compared to Persian leads to some misunderstandings. Deferential V substitutes with other terms of address such as fictive kinship terms, formal titles, religious terms, address inversion and indirect address. For this purpose, the data were collected via two methods: (i) interviews (18 informants); (ii) direct observations (27 different contexts). The results obtained from direct observations were collected to check the reliability of interviews. The results demonstrate that politeness is not always a matter of ‘non-solidarity’ and ‘power’, but sometimes solidarity plays an essential role in making terms of address politer. Furthermore, social factors such as gender, age and social roles are crucial in determining appropriate terms of address. Lastly, men and women used fictive kinship terms differently. While women addressed their older cousins and affinal relatives by means of fictive kinship terms, men used them for addressing total strangers. This behaviour means that women tend to make a distance from the addressee whereas men try to create solidarity.