Cultural connotations of the Russian zoonym «wolf»
and its equivalents in the English, Spanish and Chechen languages

In the section Linguistics
Cultural connotations of the Russian zoonym «wolf»
and its equivalents in the English, Spanish and Chechen languages
Авторы (текстом)
L. N. Gishkaeva, Ju. N. Ebzeeva, N. V. Dubinina, V. V. Barabash, A. N. Shirobokov
Peoples Friendship University of Russia, Moscow, Russian Federation
Ключевые слова
phraseological unit, zoonym, semantics, connotation, metaphor, qualitativeevaluative characteristics, national and cultural specificity
Abstract

The paper analyses the contextual semantics of the Russian zoonym «wolf» and its equivalents
in English, Spanish, and Chechen languages and also studies the various set expressions and
paremiological phrases with this component. In all languages, zoonyms contain some connotations
in their lexical meaning that are the basis for creating a metaphorical nomination and determine
a phrase-forming potential for animal nomination. The aim of the study is to reveal the particularities
of language representation of the concept «wolf» in four not closely related languages
by different connotative parameters by comparatively analysing the functioning of lexical items
that verbalize this concept. The authors used the methods of contextual analysis, linguoculturological
interpretation, comparison, and collation. The numerous examples for the study
have been taken from belles-lettres, contemporary publicist writing, folk fairytales, and songs as
well as proverbs and sayings. The analysis permitted us to indicate nonequivalent and comparable
nominations: there are metaphorical meanings with positive and negative connotations. The concept
«wolf» evokes folk, historical, cultural, literary and political associations. The comparison
and collocation of the zoonym «wolf» in the languages under investigation have given valuable
information that allows creating the national and psychological portrait of a linguistic identity.

Bibliography

Black M. Models and Metaphors: Studies in Language and Philosophy. Ithaca, NY, 1962.

Ectes Pinkola K. Begushchaya s volkami. Zhenskiy arkhetip v mifakh i skazaniyakh: Per. s angl. [Running with wolves. Female archetype in myths and legends: Transl. from English]. Moscow, Sofiya, 2007, 496 p.

Gishkaeva L. N. Frazeologizmy s komponentom-zoonimom i fitonimom v sovremennom pireneyskom i meksikanskom natsional’nykh variantakh ispanskogo yazyka [Phraseological units with a zoonim component and a phytonym in the cotemporal Pyrenean and Mexican national variants of the Spanish language]. Abstract of Cand. philol. sci. diss. Moscow, RUDN, 2012, 18 p.

Ibragimov K. Kh. Detskiy mir [Children’s world]. Moscow, Mots-ART, 2005, 383 p.

Kut’eva M. V. Perenosnaya semantika obshcheupotrebitel’noy leksiki ispanskogo yazyka v aspekte lingvokul’turologii: Monogr. [Portable semantics of the common vocabulary of the Spanish language in the aspect of linguoculturology: Monogr.] Moscow, izd. RUDN, 2011, 216 p.

Nikolaev S. L. Severokavkazskie zaimstvovaniya v khettskom i drevnegrecheskom [North Caucasian borrowing in the Hittite and Ancient Greek]. In: Drevnyaya Anatoliya: Sb. st. [Ancient Anatolia: Coll. of art.] Moscow, 1985, pp. 60–63.

Shkapenko T. M., Khyubner F. Russkiy “tusovochnyy” kak inostrannyy: Ucheb. Posobie [Russian “tusovychny” as a foreign language: Textbook]. Kaliningrad, Yantarnyy skaz, 2005, 200 p.

Zavalishina Yu. G. Zoonimy i fitonimy v russkoy i angliyskoy paremiologii v aspekte etnicheskogo mentaliteta [Zoonyms and phytonyms in Russian and English paremiology in the aspect of ethnic mentality]. Cand. philol. sci. diss. Kursk, 1998, 220 p.

Bibliographic reference
L. N. Gishkaeva, Ju. N. Ebzeeva, N. V. Dubinina, V. V. Barabash, A. N. Shirobokov Cultural connotations of the Russian zoonym «wolf»
and its equivalents in the English, Spanish and Chechen languages
// Сибирский филологический журнал. 2017. № 3. Pp. 151–160. DOI: 10.17223/18137083/60/13.