Dlaczego mężczyzna się żeni, a kobieta wychodzi za mąż? (zarys ewolucji pola semantycznego leksemu małżeństwo w języku polskim)

The evolution of semantic field of marriage Based on historical and linguistic material, the article presents the evolution of marriage as institution in Poland from the pagan age until the present day, focusing above all on the function of gender roles ascribed to man and woman in this context. A recent rapid increase in changes can be observed in the Polish language. Some elements of vocabulary semantically associated with marriage have fallen into oblivion; some have been preserved as so-called “historical archaisms”, i.e. words commonly known yet not used; others have changed their meaning or emotional tone (sometimes both). Words of unaltered meaning (alterations in the form were left unexamined as they are not significant for the problems discussed in the article) are relatively few. A study of their environmental and generational frequency both in the past and at present should be conducted, impossible to be included in the article. The article is limited to the presentation of facts, leaving the assessment thereof to the readers.