Grammar in the service of pragmatics

Abstract This article examines the system of address forms in Contemporary Hasidic Yiddish, as well as the underlying principles of social hierarchy and cultural values as encoded in their grammatical structures. Field research in Hasidic communities of the UK, USA, Israel, and Canada reveals a tripartite address system, not-known in the pre-WWII varieties of Yiddish. I argue that two options for polite address encode fundamentally distinct social meanings, rather than represent two levels of formality: third person nominal address manifests deference, while 2 pl pronominal address signifies consideration. Finally, I discuss the origin of the tripartite system of T/V distinction in Yiddish, suggesting a hypothesis that the third person address as a full-scaled address mode is a recent development in Hasidic Yiddish that took shape in the second half of the twentieth century.