Editorial principles for the works by Kristijonas Donelaitis

Straipsnyje bandoma nustatyti principus, kuriais remiantis būtų rengiamas naujasis Kristijono Donelaičio raštų leidimas ir formuojamas stabilus, patikimas, kuo mažiau nuo autentiškojo nutolęs tekstas. Šiam tikslui trumpai apžvelgiamos visos Donelaičio raštų kalbos sritys - rašyba, skyryba, fonetika, morfologija, sintaksė ir leksika - iškeliant tuos dalykus, kurie Donelaičio raštų leidėjų ar redaktorių buvo nevienodai pateikiami (skirtingai interpretuojami), sužymint svarbiausias skirtinguose leidimuose padarytas redakcines pataisas ir nukrypimus nuo originalo, pasikartojančias klaidas, netikslumus. Straipsnyje konkrečiai nurodoma, kokios būdingos Donelaičio kalbos ypatybės ir jo vartotos tarminės formos turėtų išlikti naujajame raštų leidime, o kokių netikslumų, įvairavimų ir teksto pažeidimų privalu išvengti. Daugiausia dėmesio skiriama Georgo Heinricho Ferdinando Nesselmanno, 1977 m. ir 1994 m. leidimų privalumų ir trūkumų įvertinimui, nes juose pateikiami kruopščiau paruošti tekstai.Kristijonas Donelaitis is one of the most frequently published authors. Up to the nowadays, 14 editions of creation by Donelaitis, i.e. scientific, critical and popular works, of various types were published. Not all of them are of the same importance and are properly prepared. Texts of works by the poet were edited and corrected without any uniform principles of editing; frequently, the predetermining factor was erudition of the editor, his attitude and discretion, keeping certain traditions of editing. Probably, the most important problem met by all compilers of creative works by Donelaitis is formation of a stable reliable text by Donelaitis. Stabilization of the text is aggravated by a lack of detailed exploration of the relations between the language of Metai (The Year) with the vernacular of Donelaitis and the literary Lithuanian language of the 18t h century. This is caused by a lack of data on the dialect of Lithuanians of Prussia in the period of life of the poet. However, striving to canonical text should remain, in particular, if we bear in mind that publication of works by Donelaitis will take place in future as well. In the Paper, it is tried to establish the principles usable as a base for preparing new editions of works by Donelaitis and forming stable and reliable text deviated from the authentic one to the minimum possible extent. For the said purpose, all spheres of the language of works by Donelaitis, such as spelling, punctuation, phonetics, morphology, syntax and lexis, are briefly reviewed singling out the things that were irregularly presented (differently interpreted) by publishers or editors of works by Donelaitis and indicating the key editing corrections and deviations from the original, repeating errors and inaccuracies in various editions. It is clearly specified in the Paper what peculiarities of the language of Donelaitis and dialectical forms used by him should be remained in the new edition of his works and what inaccuracies, variations and text violations should be avoided. The most attention is paid to assessing the advantages and imperfections of the editions compiled by Georg Heinrich Ferdinand Nesselmann in 1977 and 1994, because more diligently prepared texts are provided in them