(Linguistic and cultural image of relics in Polish)

Abstract: The word relic (Latin: reliquiae ‘remains’) has been present in Polish culture since the early days of its formation under the influence and participation of Christianity. As a religious term, it is attributed to the sphere of spiritual life, faith and the sacredness associated with them; it is characterized by a sparse synonymy, which includes holiness, remains and saint, as well as Lipsan Greek. Equally sparse are its derivatives and related ones, such as: reliquary, its diminutive form, and the lexical unit relivial (not used today). The semantic field of relic also includes: liturgical equipment, casket, pax, lipsanotheca and lipsanography. Such lexical phenomenon is characteristic of vocabulary with limited linguistic and cultural functionality.
Among the most frequently mentioned in circular communication, the most valuable relics are those of the Sacred, that is, those associated with the Passion of Christ, i.e. a fragment of the Cross, a fragment of the crown of thorns, the holy nail, the Veil of Veronica, the spear of Longinus and the Turin Shroud. In Polish culture, rank partitions of saints associated with the history of the nation are mentioned, such as St. Adalbert, Stanislaw (bishop of Krakow), Kinga, Florian, Cyril Constantine, Andrew Bobola and John Paul (pilgrim pope). Nonetheless, each relic, as attributed to relative worship, is treated with the utmost respect that enables the worship of the associated saint.

Author: Skorupska-Raczyńska, Elżbieta

DOI: 10.17846/CL.2025.18.2.208-217

Publication order reference: Prof. dr hab. Elżbieta Skorupska-Raczyńska; The Jacob of Paradies Academy, Department of Humanities, Chopina 52, Gorzów Wielkopolski, Poland; email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; ORCID ID: 000-0002-6236-6302

Source: Konštantínove listy, 2025, vol.: 18, issue: 2, pages: 208-217 (PDF file)

Keywords: VOCABULARY, SEMANTICS, CULTURE, RELIGION, LINGUISTIC IMAGE OF THE WORLD

Language: POLISH

Recommended Citation:
Skorupska-Raczyńska, Elżbieta. 2025. Językowo-kulturowy obraz relikwii w polszczyźnie (Linguistic and cultural image of relics in Polish). In Konštantínove listy [Constantine’s Letters] 18/2, 208-217.