któr

Któr is a historical variant of the Polish relative pronoun that appears in some older texts and dialects. In modern standard Polish, the relative pronoun used to introduce clauses is który (with feminine która and neuter które), and któr is not part of the contemporary repertoire. The form is primarily attested in medieval and early modern Polish manuscripts as well as in certain regional dialects that preserve older orthographic and phonological patterns.

Functionally, któr would serve to introduce a relative clause referring to a previously mentioned noun or pronoun, in a role comparable to that of który in present-day Polish. Its appearance is treated in historical and linguistic studies of Polish pronouns and is often regarded as a relic of the language’s evolution rather than a living form.

Historical significance and end of use have been noted by philologists and dialectologists. The form gradually fell out of use as standardization of Polish grammar and spelling progressed during the late medieval and early modern periods, with większość dialects and standard grammar adopting the modern tenzij form której/które depending on gender and number. Today, któr is not listed as an independent item in standard Polish dictionaries, though it is referenced in discussions of Old Polish orthography and diachronic syntax as an example of pronoun variation and language change.

See also: Polish language, Old Polish, Relative pronouns, Polish dialects.