Gjenitivdativ

Gjenitivdativ, literally “genitive-dative,” is a term used in Nordic linguistics to describe a historical and dialectal construction in which the genitive case is used in a position typically associated with the dative. In such usages, the noun phrase that bears the genitive marker functions as the indirect object or recipient of a verb, a role usually expressed by a dative pronoun or a prepositional phrase.

The phenomenon is attested in older stages of Germanic languages and in some modern Norwegian and Swedish dialects. It is not a feature of standard Bokmål or Nynorsk, but it is discussed in dialect grammars and in descriptions of historical syntax. Because of its regional and historical nature, gjenitivdativ is not uniformly defined across grammars.

Analyses of gjenitivdativ vary. Some describe it as a merger or reanalysis in which the genitive possessive marker takes on a dative-like function, effectively mixing case functions. Others view it as a restricted but productive construction that marks the possessor in relation to the recipient of an action. The precise interpretation often depends on the language variety and the historical period in question.

In contemporary linguistic surveys, gjenitivdativ is usually mentioned as part of discussions on Germanic case systems and historical syntax, illustrating how case marking can shift or broaden in dialects and earlier stages of languages. It remains primarily of interest to historians of Norwegian and other Nordic languages rather than to standard contemporary grammar.

See also: genitive, dative, case systems in Germanic languages, Norwegian grammar.