What is folk (false) etymology? Examples folk etymology?
ETYMOLOGY: THESE This, MOL Start, ABOUT the basis, G main thing = this is the initial main base.
How is my top transcript different from the bottom one? Because the MAIN BASIS is called TRUTH?
Or the fact that LOGOS is proudly called science, although modern etymology does not smell like science.
Let me give you an example of this so-called science.
In Russian, this word is deciphered very simply. If CAN-CON is the end, outline, boundary, then CANON IS THE END: it is the end, the limitation of something within some strict framework.
You can check if this is true: KANT, KANva, KANava, KANal, SEWER, SHACKLES, CANister, KANOERKA, KANOE, CANYON, OFFICE; CONDUIT, CONVERT, CONDENSER, CONVOIR, CONURA.
What do we see? In all these words we see that something is within a rigid framework.
On in this example You can see how sometimes linguists try to use foreign words in an attempt to interpret Russian words. But often they won’t succeed, so it’s faster to explain in Russian foreign word than the other way around. And in general it’s funny to try to find the meanings of words in an old language from a new one: Greek language older than West Semitic.
So I ask how I, a simple lover of the Russian language, not a professional, was able to find the true root of the word, while professionals guess on the coffee grounds? What the hell kind of science is this?
Etymology(from the Greek etymos - the true meaning of a word) as a branch of linguistics/linguistics studies the history of the emergence/origin of words with scientific point of view. This is a science, so it uses various techniques and principles based on a comparative historical approach. Philology students study a course in comparative historical grammar. Like any science, etymology is characterized by the presence of different opinions, hypotheses/assumptions, sometimes controversial and diametrically opposed, but, in any case, confirmed by linguistic and speech phenomena.
But for people who are far from linguistics, it is typical to try to explain the origin of words themselves and in their own way. At the same time, speech not talking about any scientific method- simple intuition and language/speech associations, simple similarity of words. In this case they talk about folk etymology. It is sometimes called false, although many linguists do not agree with this name, since conclusions in the course of scientific etymological research can also be false. I'm not talking about now special cases children's or visual NE, but I'm talking about phenomena in the speech of ordinary people.
One example of folk etymology from her own practice: one lady explained the origin of the name Svetlana from the adjective light and the noun lana (allegedly an ancient Russian word meaning earth), but the origin is somewhat different, with lana in specified value never existed, there is the word lan as a measure of land, used in western regions Russia.
A few other examples of NE:
-nerve oz (instead of neurosis) - nerve s,
-nerve opathologist (v. neuropathologist) - nerve s,
-mutually figuratively (vm. borrowed) - on loan s,
-lotto rhea (vm. lottery) - lot O,
-hose baum (vm. barrier) - hose.
There are especially many popular interpretations of the origin of words in toponymy ( geographical names). For example, Chermushki is the name of one of the districts of Moscow. NE connects the emergence of the toponym (name) with the abundance of cherry bushes in this place, and etymologists, based on comparative historical analysis, talk about the commonality of the root in the word Chermushki with the ancient root cherm. One of scientific hypotheses leads to the origin of the word from the name Chermnev Stan, a settlement that existed in the 15th-18th centuries on the territory of today's Chermushki.
So, folk/false etymology is an interpretation of the origin of words by amateurs, without scientific justification.
Reports and messages on the Russian language
On topic: ETYMOLOGY
Words, like people, have their own history, their own destiny. They may have relatives, a rich pedigree, and, on the contrary, be orphans. A word can tell us about its nationality, its parents, its origin.
Etymology- a branch of the science of language that studies the origin of words. Etymology also studies all the changes that occur in the life of words. And changes in language occur constantly: new words appear, new meanings for long-familiar words, and sometimes it even happens that a word suddenly changes its sound. For example, the words “bee”, “bull” and “bug”, it turns out, come from the same word “buchat”. Now this word has left the language, forgotten by everyone, but once it was familiar to everyone and was used in the meaning of “buzz”, “buzz”. And today it would not occur to anyone to call a bull, a bee and a bug as relative words, although etymologically this is so.
Some words changed not their sound, but their meaning. For example, today we use the word guest to call a person who came to visit us, but in ancient times this was the name given to a visiting merchant (it was Tsar Saltan who called such guests to him in A. Pushkin’s fairy tale).
Once upon a time the word dashing meant “bad”, “bad”, but today it is used in almost opposite meaning- “daring”, “brave”.
One more example. Today, the word infection has 2 meanings: it means a curse word, and is also used to mean “the source of an infectious disease.” But in late XVIII centuries, the word infection was used to mean “charm”, “attractiveness”.
In a word, this science is very interesting - etymology! And it often happens that the story of the origin of a word turns out to be more fascinating than another detective story.
You will learn about the origin of some words, as well as stable phrases (they are called phraseological units) in our language by reading the following pages.
Palm
Our ancestors once sounded the word palm completely differently: dolon. And the meaning of the word was this: the side of the hand facing the valley (that is, down, towards the ground). Over time, a rearrangement of sounds occurred in the word dolon, and it began to sound differently: lodon. And then (under the influence of the dominant literary language akanya) the unstressed vowel o in the word turned into a: palm. This is how the modern spelling and pronunciation of this familiar word came about.
However, related words still live in the language in their original form: dolina (lowland), podol (bottom of clothing), Podolsk (city in the lowland of the river).
Umbrella
Everyone knows and understands this word - it would seem that it is the most ordinary. But it also has an interesting story.
It came to us from Holland, having traveled across 2 seas, along with the umbrella itself, which in Dutch is called “zonnedek”, which means “tire” or “cover from the sun”. But the word “zonnedek” turned out to be extremely inconvenient and unusual for our pronunciation. Therefore, they began to remake it in the Russian way: they began to pronounce it according to the model of the words bow and kantik that already existed in the language.
So from the zonnedecks we got an umbrella. The resulting word even began to lead its own independent life. When they want to talk about an umbrella big size, then it is changed again according to the pattern: bow - bow, edging - edging, umbrella - umbrella. The result was the word umbrella, as you can see, even less similar to the word zonnedek, borrowed from the Dutch.
Carousel
Of course, you have ridden on wooden horses or in carousel boats more than once, but you probably haven’t wondered why, in addition to ordinary seats, there are wooden horses and boats on the carousel? And it was not by chance that the boats and horses got on the carousel.
Several centuries ago, during the Middle Ages, there were magnificent knightly festivals - tournaments. Armed knights, clad in iron, riding on powerful horses, entered into single combat with each other. Often such knightly fights ended in death, but they did not see anything special in this, and did not even consider such an outcome a crime. French king Henry II once also decided to take part in a knightly tournament and compete with famous knight Montgomery in strength and agility. This tournament took place in 1559, and King Henry II was mortally wounded. Since then, knightly tournaments have been banned. Instead, they began to organize ceremonial races in a circle. Such races were called "carousel" (from the Italian words carola - round dance and sella - saddle), which literally means "round dance in the saddle."
The most brilliant carousels were staged in Paris during the reign of King Louis XIV. In front of the royal palace of the Tuileries, magnificently dressed horsemen rode with their luxurious ladies. They divided into parties, came together and left, forming beautiful figures.
During times french revolution In 1789, carousels, more accessible to the common people, were invented - revolving structures with horses and boats. The carousel has survived in this form to this day.
Pull the gimp
When we do something very slowly, they say about us: “It’s a drag.” This expression comes from the recent past, when in Rus' metal thread was used for embroidery in needlework. It took a lot of work for the craftsmen to pull such a thread from a hot wire. This thread was called "gimp". Embroidering with it was also very difficult, slow and painstaking work. It was then that the expression “pull the gimp” was born. Now no one knows what the gimp looked like, and needlewomen have not embroidered this way for a long time, but the expression in the language has been preserved.
Easier than steamed turnips
Turnip- the most ancient vegetable in Rus'. Our ancestors loved raw, boiled and steamed turnips. The turnip dish was quick and very easy to prepare. Since then, the expression simpler than steamed turnips has come into being. This is what they say about something that is easy to do.
Register Izhitsa
Izhitsa- old name last letter ancient Slavic alphabet.
How is this letter connected with the threat of punishment? After all, registering an Izhitsa means “to teach a lesson, to punish,” and also “to make a reprimand to someone.”
This expression arose in the old school environment, in Bursak everyday life. But the thing is that in the ancient Slavic alphabet there were 3 very insidious letters: fita, yat and izhitsa - they became symbols of the difficulty of writing. These letters were written in several words (or several dozen words), which had to be remembered, memorized, memorized. “Fita makes our stomachs ache,” said students in the old days who were mastering the intricacies of literacy. At that time, Fita was the name given to a school literate person, a nerd who through incredible efforts had mastered complex skills. And about lazy people they said this: “Fita and Izhitsa - the whip is approaching the lazy one.” To register Izhitsa literally meant “to flog with rods for not learning.”
It is curious that in its external image the Izhitsa resembled an inverted whip or a bunch of rods. This is, in all likelihood, where the humorous and ironic spelling of Izhitsa arose.
Over time, this expression went beyond school jargon and acquired more general meaning: “to severely punish someone, to teach someone a lesson.” Now it is usually used as an expression of threat and is synonymous with phraseological units: show where crayfish spend the winter; show Kuzka's mother.
There is no truth in my feet
“Sit down, there is no truth at your feet,” this is what the Russian people have long said.
Exist different versions origin of this expression. Connoisseur on native language and interpreter of Russians catchphrases, S. Maksimov connects the phrase truth in legs with the medieval Russian judicial custom, which was called pravezh. Pravezh is not even a trial, but rather a reprisal against the debtor, in which he was beaten on his bare feet and heels or forced to stand in the snow without boots or bast shoes. It was at that time that sayings such as looking for the truth in your feet appeared; the soul has sinned, but the feet are to blame; give time, don't knock me down and some others.
Over time, the rule became a thing of the past, but the memory of it remained in folk speech, in its live use, and the expression in the legs of the truth is not even true. Indeed, in the old days, a man who came into the house and stood, shifting from foot to foot, did not know where to start, resembled a debtor on the right. That’s when a humorous saying came to the rescue, inviting the guest to sit down and start a leisurely conversation: sit down, there is no truth in your legs, that is, “there is no need to stand on ceremony, let’s sit side by side and talk smoothly.” Many expressions familiar to us are actually associated with ancient and long-forgotten customs, beliefs and rituals.
Cow and loaf
In ancient times, a word for people was not just a designation of objects and concepts - it was a symbol. People were sure that the word had magical powers, that they could prevent evil and bring good luck. Do you want to know why, for example, we don’t call cow meat by the word Korovina? Where did the word beef even come from? And what does the word beef have in common with the word loaf?
In the language of the ancient Indo-Europeans, there was one word for any livestock - beef. And the word cow had the meaning of “horned beef.” And in those ancient times, people raised cows not for meat and milk, but for sacrifices to their gods. And only when people began to consume cow's milk, they replaced the real animal in the rituals of sacrifice with a horned figure baked from dough - a cow. It was believed that such a sacrifice should bring happiness and prosperity, so they sentenced it like this:
Like on our name days
We baked a loaf!
That's how tall it is!
That's how tall it is!
Loaf, loaf,
Choose whoever you want!
Now it’s hard to believe that the words cow and loaf are somehow connected with each other. But in fact, the word loaf was formed from the word cow.
Mittens, gloves, mittens
It is believed that of all the words listed, the most ancient is mittens. The antiquity of this word is indicated by its distribution in all or almost all Slavic languages - in Polish, Slovak, Czech, Bulgarian and Serbo-Croatian.
The word mitten is made up of 2 roots: the first root is easy to define - this is hand, the second is known in our verb vit. It turns out that a mitten means “wrapping the hand.” It is interesting that in many Slavic languages there is a word nogavitsa - the name for special clothing on the leg, that is, “wrapping the leg.” In the Slovak language, nogavics are “trousers, trousers”; Poles and Czechs call nogavics “pants legs”, in Slovenian language leggings are “stockings or socks.” And in monuments Old Russian writing Both words - leggings and mittens - are often found.
But with the word gloves the story is different. At first, the language used the phrase ring or finger mittens (this name can be found in the Smolensk charter of 1229). Over time, the phrase was replaced by the single word gloves, but the old root finger, that is, “finger,” is clearly visible everywhere. Gloves are mittens with fingers (with fingers).
But there is even more than one version regarding the origin of the word mittens. For example, M. Vasmer believed that the word mittens and the word varega, known in Russian dialects, were formed from the combination Varangian mittens. Another version (enshrined in the Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language edited by N. Shansky) says that the words varega and mittens are derived from the Old Russian verbs variti and varovati, used in the meaning of “guard, protect.” But there is also an even simpler explanation for the origin of these words. If you turn to to a wide circle names of mittens known in regional Russian dialects, then among these names, it turns out, there are many words associated with the processes of processing wool and making mittens. These are the names: faggots, braids, felted mittens, katanki (rolled mittens). This also includes varegs, mittens, formed by the name of the process - to cook (that is, to boil). The fact is that finished knitted wool products were brewed in boiling water to make them stronger and warmer. It turns out that mittens are “boiled mittens.” In Dahl's dictionary the following saying is given: “Need has made the mitten akin to the warga.” What does it mean? It turns out that special names for upper mittens and lower mittens were once widespread in the Russian language. Of course, most often such names are found in the North, the Urals and Siberia - where 2 pairs of mittens are often worn at once. There are such local names: tops, tops, bottoms. And in some areas, mittens are called upper leather or cloth mittens, and vargas or mittens are lower, knitted ones. Hence, apparently, the expression recorded by Dahl.
Red
In the famous saying, the hut is not red in its corners, but red in its pies; the adjective red means “good, pleasant.” And such outdated expressions, like red bird, red beast mean “best bird” or “best beast,” that is, “the best and most expensive bird or beast preferred by hunters.” Dahl wrote in his dictionary: “Red game, tall, all types of snipe, also roe deer, swan, capercaillie and others; red game is a bear, wolf, fox, lynx and others.”
In modern Russian, much evidence has been preserved about the ancient meaning of the word red. First of all, this is, of course, a constant epithet in folk poetic speech: the maiden is beautiful, the songs are red. Red here means "beautiful, lovely, pleasant." In N. Nekrasov's poem "Peasant Children" there are lines in which the word red is used in this meaning:
Play, children, grow up in freedom,
That's why you were given a wonderful childhood.
IN ancient names red gate, red corner, the adjective red means “decorated” and “honorable, ceremonial.” The same meaning is contained in proper names Red Village and Red Square.
The meanings “best, pleasant”, “beautiful, decorated” were the very first meanings of the adjective red.
A completely different word was used to denote color - red. This was the case in Old Russian language, both in Ukrainian and Belarusian. And only from the 18th century a new, color meaning of the adjective red appeared in Russian dictionaries. It became its main meaning. The ancient, primary meaning is preserved only in stable expressions and rpm.
In the 19th century, the adjective red acquired another meaning - “revolutionary”. In the name Red Banner it spread to European languages during the revolution of 1848. Soon the word became firmly established in this meaning in the Russian language.
Now, in modern Russian, the adjective red is not only a very expressive, but also a polysemantic word.
Pigalitsa
What does the word pigalitsa mean? This word has 2 meanings. Pigalitsa is the name given to a small bird, lapwing. But a person of small stature, inconspicuous, is also often called a pigalite. Scientists believe that this onomatopoeic word- that is, it arose in the language as an onomatopoeia to the cry of a lapwing. And the lapwing screams like this: pi-gi, ki-gi!
"Reports and messages on the Russian language" V.A. Krutetskaya. Additional materials, helpful information, Interesting Facts. Elementary School.
Under folk etymology a linguistic phenomenon is understood, the essence of which is that, by association with another word that is similar in sound, a new understanding of the motivation of the word is given, which does not correspond to its actual history; This incorrect understanding of motivation can lead to corresponding changes in the sound composition, and spelling, and sometimes in the morphological structure of the word. This word is included in the vocabulary of the language in a modified form, and only etymological analysis restores its original motivation.
Basically, the phenomenon of folk etymology is observed in words of foreign languages, which, in their sound composition, are associated with already well-known, similar-sounding words of the native language and are rearranged accordingly. So, the modern English word cutlet"cutlet" goes back to French word cotelette, the first part of which cote, when borrowed, was associated with English to cut "cut" and was modified accordingly. Modern English word buttery"pantry" comes from a Latin loan word botaria « place to store drinks"(from lat. bota barrel, bottle); it was incorrectly associated with an English word butter "oil". Word standard usually incorrectly associated with a verb to stand, but it comes from the old French word estandard "flag, banner"(modern French word etendard ), which goes back to the Latin word extendere "stretch, flutter".
Original English words can also be subject to incorrect understanding of motivation with corresponding changes in sound composition and spelling. So, the modern English word slow- worm(OE sla-wyrm) "mediocre" was incorrectly associated with the word slow "slowly", while etymologically the first part of the word goes back to the Old English verb slahan"kill"(modern English word slay). Word walnut"Walnut" was incorrectly associated with the word wall and as a consequence was subject to change; in fact it comes from the phrase Welsh nut "Welsh nut"(the word Welsh or Walsh in England at one time was used to describe everything foreign and imported).
Other examples: ‘asparagus’ (Latin) – ‘sparrow grass’ (English); ‘mandragora’ (Latin) – a plant – ‘mandrake’ (English) – man – “man”, drake – “drake”; ‘tarantula’ (Latin) – a spider – ‘triantelope’ (English); ‘coutelas’ (French – Latin ‘culteluss’ – ‘knife’) – ‘cutlass’ – “cutlass” (English) (imaginary connection with the verb ‘cut’); ‘giroflee’ (French) ‘levkoy’ – ‘gillyflower’ (English); ‘crevice’ (French) ‘crayfish’ – ‘crayfish’ (English); ‘primerole’ (French) ‘primrose’ – ‘primrose’ (English).
Causes, nature and results of semantic changes in a word
The development and change in the semantic structure of a word is always a source of qualitative and quantitative development of vocabulary.
Reasons for the semantic development of words traditionally divided into historical (or extralinguistic) and linguistic.
TO historical reasons include all kinds of changes in the social life of a nation, its culture, knowledge, technology, art, etc. New objects and concepts appear that must be named in some way. Sometimes new words are created for this purpose or words borrowed from other languages are used. However, often to name a newly emerged object or concept, one or another word that already exists in a given language is used. For example, when the first textile factories appeared in England, the word was used to name them mill, previously meaning mill. Similarly, with the advent of railways in England, the word carriage(originally meaning “crew”, “carriage”) acquired a new meaning “railway carriage”.
It should also be noted those cases when the object itself is in the process of historical development changes, or a person’s knowledge about a given object changes, deepens, and the word naming it remains in its original form, although the meaning previously assigned to it, accordingly, changes. Examples of such semantic change are the words ship, atom etc. Word ship originally meant “ship, ship with sails”, then “steamboat”, “motor ship”; word atom comes from Greek atomos, which meant “indivisible,” but subsequent scientific discoveries completely changed our understanding of this object, and now the word assigned to it atom denotes a completely different scientific concept.
Words play a very important role in changing the semantics social factors , first of all, the use of words by certain social groups. Each social environment characterized by the originality of its designations, as a result of which the word acquires a different content in the speech of different social, cultural, and professional groups. An example would be the word ring “ring”, “descent ring” (mountaineering), “basket ring” (basketball), “circus arena”, “ring”, “platform” (for wrestling), “annual ring of wood”, “archivolt (arches)” (architecture), etc.; pipe“trumpet”, “smoking pipe”, “pipe”, “pipe”, “bagpipe”, geol."elongated ore body" mor.“boatswain’s pipe”, etc.
Worthy of attention and psychological reasons semantic changes. This is, first of all, the existence of various kinds of prohibitions, or taboos, dictated by a sense of fear and religious beliefs (out of superstition, people avoid calling the devil, evil spirits, God, etc. by their proper names), a sense of delicacy when it comes to unpleasant topics, for example, illness, death, etc., the desire to maintain decency when talking about phenomena related to the sexual sphere of life, certain parts and functions human body, as well as various kinds of changes in the emotional assessment of objects and phenomena. For these reasons, speakers begin to use to express the necessary meanings euphemisms , i.e. substitute words that, over time, acquire these meanings as their permanent semantic characteristics. These are the origins of the new meanings of a polysemantic English noun hostess, used not only to designate the mistress of the house, hostess of the hotel, etc., but also to name a paid partner in a dance hall, night club; set of word meanings head was replenished with another meaning - “drug addict”, and the words model And mystery have acquired the meaning of “woman of easy virtue” in recent years.
Linguistic reasons for semantic changes in a word usually include ellipsis, differentiation of synonyms, constant context and linguistic analogy.
Ellipsis occurs when in a frequently used phrase one of the components is omitted, and the second component takes on the meaning of the entire phrase. For example, noun sale in modern English it is used instead of the phrase cut- price sale meaning “sale at reduced prices”, verb to propose- instead of to propose marriage in the meaning of “to propose (get married)”, daily- instead of daily newspaper meaning “daily newspaper”, etc.
Differentiation of synonyms - this is a gradual change in the semantics of a word that occurs in the process of its historical development under the influence of other words that initially have the same meaning. Such competition in a language is most often observed between some borrowed and native English word. For example, noun land in Old English included in its semantic structure the meanings of “solid part of the surface of the earth, land” and “territory on which the Totili of another people live.” After the word was borrowed from French in the Middle English period country, synonymous with the word land, the semantic structure of the latter has changed, the meaning “territory on which this or that people lives”, which was assigned to the borrowed word, has dropped out of it.
The history of the development of the word is similar deer, which in Old English meant "any animal", but as a result of borrowing from French in the Middle English period words beast, which took on this general meaning, began to mean specific type animal - “deer”. Somewhat later, the word was borrowed from Latin animal, displaced the word beast in general meaning “animal”, but the latter has been preserved in English in the narrower meaning of “mammal animal”, “beast”.
As a result of differentiation of synonyms, differences can affect not only the denotative, but also the connotative component of meaning. For example, child – infant, room – chamber, begin – commence.
Sometimes, as a result of differentiation of synonyms, one of them retains its previous meaning only in strictly fixed contexts, in other words, in stable phrases. For example , happened with words cast And token in English. Word cast was borrowed from Scandinavian and originally meant “throw”, “throw”, like the original English word throw. The struggle for existence between these two synonyms ended with cast currently preserved in its former meaning only in such phrases as to cast a glance"to cast a glance" to cast anchor"to drop anchor" to cast a net“throw the net” and some others. Noun token also initially had a broad meaning “sign”, in which it was used in any context, but as a result of competition with the borrowed word sign speaking native English token V given value reduced to only a few stable phrases, such as in token of respect, love token, a token of affection. Thus, constant context can also be considered as one of the linguistic factors of semantic changes in a word.
Among the linguistic reasons, another one that stands out is law of analogy , the essence of which boils down to the fact that if one of the members of a synonymous series acquires any new meaning, other members of this series also begin to be used with this meaning. For example, when the verb catch the meaning “to understand” appeared, and its synonyms began to be used in the same meaning grasp, get and some others.
The nature of semantic changes . Semantic changes by their nature may differ, since they may be based on different patterns. In other words, the use of the name of an object to designate another object is not carried out chaotically; the secondary use of names and the development of secondary meanings in them are based on the laws of associative connections. They determine the types of semantic changes of a word in the course of its historical development, the types of relationships between meanings in diachrony and how final result types of meanings themselves in the semantic structure of a word.
Analysis of the meanings of polysemantic words shows that, as a rule, there is necessarily some kind of connection between two referents denoted by the same word. Traditionally, two main types of such connections are distinguished: 1) similative (similarity of referents on some basis), 2) implication (when both referents are connected in one way or another in reality). For example, the basis for transferring a name carriage From one object of reality to another was the fact that both the cart, which was usually pulled by a horse, and the carriage, which was already driven by a steam locomotive, were a means of transportation and were associated with travel. Use of the word hand to indicate a clock hand is explained by a certain functional similarity of this object with a human hand (this is an index function). Thus, the transfer of the name in both cases has a completely sufficient logical basis.
Name transfer based on similarity of referents is defined as linguistic metaphor . Similar features that serve as the basis for metaphorical transfer can be very diverse: the shape of the object ( a head of a person – a head of cabbage; a tongue of a person – a tongue of a bell or a shoe), function ( key to a door – the key to a mystery; a head of a person – a head of a household), position ( a child" s foot – foot of page; a head of a person – a head of a hammer), behavior ( a monkey, an ass, a fox –about a human), nature of movement or speed ( a snail– a sluggish person; slowcoach– a slow, habitually lazy person); size ( dumpling– a short, chubby creature; peanut– a small, insignificant person), etc. Sometimes the similarity of referents can be based on two or more characteristics at once, as, for example, the leg of the table, where the metaphor is motivated, firstly, by the similarity of position (the lower part of the table and the lower limb of the human body), secondly, by the similarity of function (both the human legs and the legs of the table serve as supports), and sometimes also some similarity of form.
It should be noted that during metaphorical transfer, an associative connection can arise not only between two physical objects, but also between a specific object and an abstract concept, for example: a branch of a tree – a branch of science, a metal bar – racial bar.
Often enough metaphorical transfer is based on the analogy between extension in time and space: long distance – long speech, short path – short time. One can also observe the transfer of spatial relations to psychological and mental concepts: to grasp an idea, to throw light upon, etc.
In the sphere of adjective vocabulary, the most regular transfers of the names of various physical characteristics (temperature, size, taste, color, etc.) to name intellectual characteristics, assess the emotional state and other rational characteristics are noted. For example: dark– 1) dark, unlit; 2) dark, uneducated; 3) secret, secret, incomprehensible; 4) gloomy, gloomy; light– 1) light, lightweight; 2) easy, not difficult; 3) frivolous, frivolous, etc.
Among verbs, metaphorical transfers of names of physical actions to denote intellectual activity are frequent, for example: to smash a cup – to smash a theory; to dig the ground – to dig information out of books; to hold a child" s hand – to hold a man to be a fool etc.
A special subgroup of metaphors consists of proper names, which have turned into common nouns, which no longer name a specific person, but a representative of a certain class, endowed with some character traits inherent in the person to whom this name originally belonged. For example, Don Juan- this is the name of the hero of a literary work, but this is the name of any man with an attractive appearance who leads a dissolute lifestyle; when is the name of a biblical character Solomon is used in relation to some other person, then it means “sage”; Name Cicero acquired a figurative meaning “eloquent person”, etc.
The above models do not exhaust, however, the entire wealth of metaphorical transfers underlying the derived meanings of polysemantic words. In principle, the content of a metaphorical transfer can be made up of any, even the most seemingly insignificant feature. For example, a dog is associated with loyalty, devotion, good instincts, bad living conditions, aggressiveness, grumpiness, malice, etc.; from here dogged– stubborn, tenacious, persistent; doggish– 1) cruel, rude; 2) irritable, snapping; in the dog- house- disgraced, out of favor; dog- sleep– light sleep; dog- tired- very tired; dog- days– the hottest summer days; etc.
The second type of associative connection, which is defined as implicational, serves as the basis for linguistic metonymy , while the transfer is based on a real connection between referents.
Examples of metonymic transfer: the foot of a bed– this is the place where a person’s legs are when he lies on the bed; the arms of an arm- chair– this is the place where a person puts his hands while sitting in a chair (alignment in space); factory hands- these are factory workers; word head can be used to mean "person", for example, to count heads– count the number of those present (the ratio of the part and the whole).
The history of the semantic development of the adjective is interesting sad in English. Initially it had the meaning of “full”, then it acquired a negative connotation of satiety with food - “overeaten”, which, in turn, was associated with a certain physical discomfort, and the next semantic shift was based on the logical association between physical discomfort and mental dissatisfaction, since these two conditions often accompany each other. In modern English, the word sad denotes the purely emotional state of “sad”, “dull”, “sad”, and the original meanings of “well-fed” and “overfed” have long disappeared from its semantic structure.
The specific types of connections that serve as the basis for metonymic transfer are very diverse, among them the following models can be distinguished:
material – product, examples: glass(glass) - a glass(cup), iron(iron) - an iron(iron), cooper(copper) - Acooper(copper coin);
consequence - cause, examples: gray hair(meaning “old age”);
part - whole or whole - part ( synecdoche), examples: the foot(infantry); the Royal horse(English cavalry); the hands(sailors);
thing - sign, examples: a tongue – a ready tongue; an ear – an ear for music;
contiguity (location) in space, examples: the House(members of the Chamber); the town(city population); the chair(chairman);
instrument - doer, examples: pen(writer, poet); violin(violinist);
symbol – symbolized object, examples: crown(monarchy);
vessel - its contents, examples: kettle(The kettle is boiling); cup(He drank a cup);
action – object of action, examples: love(object of love); reading(reading subject);
action – subject of action, examples: support(support) - support (person providing support); safeguard(protection) – safeguard(defender);
quality - a person possessing this quality, examples: talent(talent) – talent (talented person); beauty(beauty) - beauty(beautiful person).
Proper names are highly susceptible to transfer: many international physical and technical units of measurement are named after great scientists by their names, for example: ampere, ohm, volt, watt, etc. Often objects are named after the people who invented them, e.g. Diesel- the name of a German mechanical engineer who invented the engine now called a diesel engine; Spencer- the name of the English count, who for some time introduced into fashion a short woolen jacket, since then called a spencer.
Another group of proper names prone to metonymic transfer are place names and geographical names. For example, the name of a London street Downing Street often used in the media to refer to the British government, as the Prime Minister's residence is located on this street. There are very many examples of the transition of geographical names into common names denoting goods or products produced in this place or those that appeared there for the first time, for example: astrakhan(fur) – astrakhan fur, china(ware) – porcelain, damask(steel) - damask steel, holland (linen) – canvas, linen, Morocco(leather) – morocco. This also includes world-famous names of wines and cheeses: champagne, burgundy, madeira, roquefort, etc.
Thus, semantic changes in a word are not arbitrary. They occur in accordance with the logical and psychological laws of thinking, otherwise it would be impossible to understand these new meanings. We can say that in the dictionary aspect, secondary figurative designations have only potential semantics, i.e. do not record specific content, but only vaguely outline a certain semantic area with a probabilistic structure. In speech, a selection is made from this area, and the figurative meaning is semantized according to certain rules from the interaction direct meaning with contextual and situational conditions of speech.
Results of semantic changes . When we talk about the results of semantic changes in a word, then, first of all, we mean the difference between the original and derived meanings that is revealed when comparing them. The derived meaning may become narrower or wider compared to the original one, and the result of such semantic changes is determined, respectively, as narrowing (or specialization) And expansion (or generalization) of meaning . It must be said that these terms are quite conventional, since in fact it is not the meaning that narrows and expands, but the volume of the concept denoted by the word (i.e., the number of referents denoted by this word, respectively, decreases or increases). Moreover, when the scope of a concept expands, its content becomes poorer (the word conveys less information about the referent), and, conversely, when the scope of the concept narrows, its content becomes richer (the word conveys more information about the corresponding referent). Let's illustrate this with examples.
In the Middle English period the word girl had the meaning of “a small child of any gender”, then it began to mean only small child female (narrowing meaning). In the process of subsequent semantic development, this word gradually began to mean young unmarried girl, then any young woman or girl, and in modern colloquial English it has, in fact, become synonymous with the word woman (e.g. The old girl must be at least seventy).
The narrowing of meaning was the result of the semantic development of such English words as fowl(in Old English - “bird”, in modern language - “poultry”), hound(in Old English - “dog”, in modern language - “hound dog”), meat(in Old English – “food”, now – “meat”).
However, much more often we observe the development of the meaning of a word from concrete to abstract, i.e. expansion of meaning. For example, the word camp originally it was an exclusively military term and meant “a place where troops were temporarily located”, now it is “temporary parking, housing”; word pipe, originally meaning “dudochka” (wind musical instrument), now denotes any oblong body of a cylindrical shape, hollow inside - a “pipe”; word ready in Old English it had the narrow meaning of “ready to walk, ride,” and in modern times it means “ready” (for anything).
Thus, the narrowing and expansion of meaning can be established based on a comparison of logical concepts expressed by the original and derivative meanings of the same word.
Improvement And deterioration of the meaning of the word are traditionally viewed as the results of changes in the connotative component of meaning. Here we mean, on the one hand, cases when a neutral word that does not include evaluative semes in its semantic structure acquires positive or negative connotations in the process of its historical development, and on the other hand, cases when any word including its structure, positive or negative evaluative semes, changes the sign “+” to “-” and vice versa. For example: 1) noun lady in Old English it meant "mistress of the house", " married woman", now - "lady", "mistress"; adjective nice it meant “stupid”, in modern English – “good”, “sweet”, “nice”; 2) noun knave originally it meant “boy”, but now it means “rogue”, “swindler”; adjective silly, which meant “happy,” in modern English means “stupid.”
The acquisition of positive connotations by a word (as in lady and nice) is usually defined as "improvement" of meaning(English terms “elevation”, “amelioration”), and the acquisition of negative connotations by a word (as in knave and silly) - like "deterioration" of meaning(English terms “degeneration”, “pejoration”).
It should be noted that these terms do not accurately convey the essence of the corresponding semantic changes in the word, but with some reservations, most researchers still accept them. In fact, meanings cannot become “better” or “worse”; what changes here is the social or emotional assessment of the referent, designated by the corresponding word. As a rule, a change in the connotative meaning is accompanied by certain changes in the denotative meaning of a given word. For example, the word gentleman the original meaning was “a person of noble birth”, and the modern meaning is “a noble, well-bred person”; or compare the original meanings of “farm servant”, “serf” of the word villain with its modern meanings of “villain”, “scoundrel”.
Often, words such as marshal, minister, lord, queen, etc. are given as examples illustrating the “improvement” of meaning. However, upon strict examination, it is difficult to detect any evaluative connotations in these words. Compare their original and derived values:
marshal: “a servant who looks after horses” – "marshal";
minister: “servant” – “minister”;
lord: “master of the house, head of the family” – “lord”;
queen: “woman” – “queen”.
The fact that all of them initially denoted simple poor people, and then began to denote people occupying a high position in society, is extra-linguistic (the speaker’s positive attitude towards the referent is not expressed here), therefore, the given examples can hardly be interpreted as an “improvement” of the meaning .
We don't often think about how the words we use originated and how their meanings may have changed over time. Meanwhile, words are quite living beings. New words appear literally every day. Some do not linger in the language, while others remain. Words, like people, have their own history, their own destiny. They may have relatives, a rich pedigree, and, on the contrary, be orphans. A word can tell us about its nationality, its parents, its origin. Studying the history of vocabulary and the origin of words most interesting science- etymology.
Railway station
The word comes from the name of the place "Vauxhall" - a small park and entertainment center near London. The Russian Tsar, who visited this place, fell in love with it - especially the railway. Subsequently, he commissioned British engineers to build a small railway from St. Petersburg to his country residence. One of the stations on this section railway called "Vokzal", and this name later became the Russian word for any railway station.
Hooligan
The word hooligan English origin. According to one version, the surname Houlihan was once borne by a famous London brawler who caused a lot of trouble for city residents and the police. The surname has become a common noun, and the word is international, characterizing a person who grossly violates public order.
Orange
Until the 16th century, Europeans had no idea about oranges at all. Russians - even more so. Oranges don't grow here! And then Portuguese sailors brought these orange delicious balls from China. And they began to trade them with their neighbors. The Dutch word for apple is appel, and the Chinese word for apple is sien. The word appelsien, borrowed from the Dutch language, is a translation of the French phrase Pomme de Chine - “apple from China”.
Doctor
It is known that in the old days they treated with various conspiracies and spells. The ancient healer said something like this to the sick person: “Go away, disease, into the quicksand, into the dense forests...” And muttered over the sick person different words. The word doctor is originally Slavic and is derived from the word “vrati”, which means “to speak”, “to talk”. Interestingly, “to lie” comes from the same word, which for our ancestors also meant “to speak.” It turns out that in ancient times doctors lied? Yes, but this word initially did not contain a negative meaning.
Scammer
Ancient Rus' did not know the Turkic word “pocket”, because money was then carried in special wallets - purses. From the word “moshna” the word “swindler” is derived - a specialist in thefts from the purse.
Restaurant
The word "restaurant" means "strengthening" in French. This name was given to one of the Parisian taverns by its visitors in the 18th century after the owner of the establishment, Boulanger, introduced nutritious meat broth into the number of dishes offered.
Shit
The word “shit” comes from the Proto-Slavic “govno”, which means “cow” and was originally associated only with cow “patties”. “Beef” means “cattle”, hence “beef”, “beef”. By the way, from the same Indo-European root and English name cows - cow, as well as the shepherd of these cows - cowboy. That is, the expression “fucking cowboy” is not accidental, it contains a deep family connection.
Heaven
One version is that Russian word“heaven” comes from “not, no” and “demon, demons” - literally a place free of evil/demons. However, another interpretation is probably closer to the truth. In the majority Slavic languages there are words similar to “sky”, and they most likely came from the Latin word for “cloud” (nebula).
Slates
In the Soviet Union, a famous manufacturer of rubber slippers was the Polymer plant in the city of Slantsy Leningrad region. Many buyers believed that the word “Shales” embossed on the soles was the name of the shoes. Then the word entered the active lexicon and became synonymous with the word “slippers.”
Nonsense
At the end of the 17th century, French physician Gali Mathieu treated his patients with jokes.
He gained such popularity that he did not have time for all the visits and sent his healing puns by mail.
This is how the word “nonsense” arose, which at that time meant a healing joke, a pun.
The doctor immortalized his name, but nowadays this concept has a completely different meaning.
Greetings to new and regular readers! Friends, the origin of words is very interesting topic. We rarely think about the origin of the common words we use in conversation and writing. But they, like people, have their own history, their own destiny.
The Word can tell us about its parents, its nationality and its origin. This is what etymology deals with - the science of language.
The word (or root) whose etymology is to be established is related to related words(or roots). A common producing root is revealed. As a result of removing layers of later historical changes the original form and its meaning are established. I present to you several stories of the origin of words in the Russian language.
The origin of some words in Russian
Aviation
From Latin avis (bird). Borrowed from French - aviation (aviation) and aviateur (aviator). These words were coined in 1863 by famous Frenchmen: the great photographer Nedar and the novelist Lalandel, who flew on balloons.
Emergency
A term common among seafarers and port workers. From Dutch overal (get up! everyone up!). Nowadays, emergency work is called urgent urgent work on a ship (ship), performed by its entire crew.
Scuba
Was borrowed from in English. The first part is the Latin aqua - “water”, and the second is the English lung - “lung”. Modern meaning the words scuba - “an apparatus for breathing under water. It consists of compressed air cylinders and a breathing apparatus.”
Scuba diving was invented in 1943 by the famous French navigator and explorer J.I. Cousteau and E. Gagnan.
Alley
In Russian the word "alley" is used with early XVI II century From the French verb aller - “to go, to walk.” The word “alley” is used to mean “a road lined with trees and bushes on both sides.”
Pharmacy
The word was known in Russian already at the end of the 15th century. The Latin apotheka goes back to the Greek original - apotheka, derived from apotithemi - “I put aside, hide.” Greek - apotheka (warehouse, storehouse).
Asphalt
Greek - asphaltos (mountain tar, asphalt). In Russian, the word “asphalt” has been known since ancient Russian times as the name of a mineral. And from the beginning of the 16th century. the word “asphalt” already occurs with the meaning “building material”.
Bank
Italian - banco (bench, money changer's counter), later "office", where it came from Germanic languages from bank (“bench”).
Bankrupt
The original source is the old Italian combination bankca rotta, literally “broken, broken bench” (counter, office). This is due to the fact that initially the offices of ruined bankers declared bankrupt were destroyed.
Banquet
Italian - banketto (bench around a table). In Russian - since the 17th century. Now "banquet" means "a formal lunch or dinner party."
Wardrobe
It is borrowed from French, where garderob - from - “to store” and robe - “dress”. The word came to be used in two meanings:
- Dress storage cabinet
- Storage space for outerwear in public buildings
Nonsense
At the end of the last century, the French doctor Gali Mathieu treated his patients with jokes. He gained such popularity that he did not have time for all the visits. He sent his healing puns by mail. This is how the word “nonsense” arose, which at that time meant a healing joke, a pun.
Blinds
French - jalousie (envy, jealousy).
Conclusion
Origin of words: where did they come from, from what languages of the world do words come into the Russian language? There are many such languages, but first of all, we need to name the languages Greek and Latin.
A large number of terms and scientific and philosophical vocabulary were borrowed from them. All this is not accidental. Greek and Latin are very ancient languages of highly cultured peoples, which have greatly influenced the culture of the whole world.
