M.K.Samambet1, T.K.Imanmagzumova2
1candidate of philological sciences, associate professor, professor of the department of foreign philology, A.Baitursunov Kostanai State University, Kostanai, Kazakhstan
2master student of the department of foreign philology, A.Baitursunov Kostanai State University,
Kostanai, Kazakhstan, e-mail: i.tansholpan@mail.ru
PHRASEOLOGICAL UNITS WITH COLOUR COMPONENTS IN THE KAZAKH
AND ENGLISH LANGUAGES
The article discusses the phraseological units with colour components in the Kazakh and the English languages. The article is aimed to reveal that phraseological units with colour components reflect the unique way of the people’s thinking and the brightness of the national character traits that distinguishes one language from another. It investigates the meaning of colours and their role in two cultures. In addition, it describes the general and specific characteristics of the studied idioms in the Kazakh and English linguistic picture of the world.
Key words: phraseological units, colours, idioms, symbol, culture, meaning, mentality.
INTRODUCTION
Young people use to amuse themselves by applying coloured glasses to the eyes: if there is a blue glass, the world becomes serious, strict, and sad. If it is yellow, it makes them smile unintentionally, everything seems festive, even though the day is cloudy. Since the time of Newton, colours have almost lost its magical, ritual functions. Once colours were considered almost deity. However, objective science has proved that colour is only a subjective sensation that occurs when the visual analyser is exposed to an electromagnetic wave of a certain length [1, 2]. Therefore, colours are the subject for investigation in various areas of science. One of them is linguistics. The language is a tool for communication and a storehouse of knowledge and memory about the social, spiritual, cultural achievements and wealth of various nations.
The most important layer of the vocabulary of any language is phraseology. It should be pointed out that for the first time the question of scientific foundations of phraseology is traced in the work of the French researcher Charles Ballie [2]. His attempt to systematize and classify phraseological units led to a number of consecutive studies in the field of phraseology in other languages, including English and Kazakh.
English linguists use the term «idiom». The first scholar, who studied idioms, was L.Smith. The author used the word «idiom» to refer to such features of the language, which are speech anomalies that violate either the rules of grammar or the laws of logic [3]. Moreover, the most significant works were written by A. Mackay [4], J.Seidi and W McMordie. [5].
The special study of phraseological units in the Kazakh linguistics begins with academician I.Kenesbaev’s works. As a result of his many years of research in 1977, he published a large volume of «The Kazakh Dictionary of Phraseology», which contained more than 10 thousand idioms [6]. H.Kozhakhmetova, R.Zhaysakova, Sh.Kozhakhmetova produced a Russian-Kazakh dictionary covering more than 2300 idioms. G.Smakulova has made about 3 500 words in total, covering a considerable group of the Kazakh phraseology [7].
MAIN PART
A sufficiently large number of idioms are associated with colours. Idioms with colours are a special category, with the help of which the surrounding reality is perceived through the prism of colours. The meaning of colours depends on cultural traditions, customs, ways of life, peculiarities of national mentality and consciousness. As N.Amosova states, colours play a vital role in formation of the linguistic picture of the world, since each colour in different linguistic and cultural communities are linked with certain associations, various colour preferences [8, 62]. E.Rogulina notes, social stereotypes and ethnopsychological features are imposed on the physiological meaning of colour, thereby causing specific connections, which are characteristic only for this linguistic community.[9, 9]
The role of colour meanings in the formation of the linguistic picture of the world is significant. They are widely used in everyday and literary speech, and have become an integral component of modern languages.
B.A.Bazym considers that the number of colour symbols is quite limited. The most commonly used are the so-called «basic colours», which usually include white, black, blue, green, yellow and brown. This list may vary depending on the specific culture. (1, 3)
Thus, the white colour in different cultures is a symbol of hope, kindness, love, joy and other concepts close to them. In the English language, white has positive and negative meanings.
1. Idioms, which are associated with purity, innocence, honesty:
• Great white hope ‒ something or someone that is expected to succeed. This expression dates from the early 1900s, when heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson, who was black, seemed invincible and the term was used for any white opponent who might defeat him;
• White lie ‒ an innocent lie, a lie for salvation;
• White-handed ‒ decent, honest, spotless; [10]
• White as the driven snow — clear, innocent; • White list ‒ a list of approved or favored items;
• White knight ‒ the one that comes to the rescue of another.
2. Negative meaning of white:
• Whitewash ‒ to gloss over or cover up (something, such as a record of criminal behavior);
• White elephant ‒ something of little or no value;
• White knuckle ‒ marked by, causing, or experiencing tense nervousness. [11]
In the Kazakh language the white colour indicates the symbol of purity, innocence, for instance:
• Ақ сүтін ақтады (aq sýtin aqtady) (justified mother’s milk) means a sign of the noble trait, has performed with honor the debt, fulfilled the cherished wishes of parents.
• Ақ бата (aq bata) ‒ wishing a bright future to someone,
• Ақ қөңіл (aq kóńil), ақ жүрек (aq júrek) means an honest, good-natured man, • Ақ білек (aq bilek), ақ құба (aq quba), ақ дидар (aq didar) ‒ a beautiful lady; • Ақ сүйек (aq súɪek) (nobleman) ‒ a symbol of aristocracy, belonging to the Khan, an aristocratic family, ақ орда (aq orda) (Khan’s Horde), ақ үй (aq úɪ) (white house), ақ кигізге көтерді (aq kɪgizge kóterdi) (choosen as the leader/ruler);
• Ақ сақалды (aq saqaldy) (а white-bearded elder), ақ жаулықты ана (aq jaýlyqty ana) (a mother) ‒ the symbol of honour, recognition. [6]
However, it could not be found phraseological units with the white colour, which have the negative conations in Kazakh.
It can be drawn from the analysis above that the semantics of white in the Kazakh and English phraseological units illustrate the predominance of common features over specific such as purity, good, innocence.
The black colour is used to explicate suffering; the Kazakh people use both to exaggerate the bad, negative, and the good, positive. According to the German ethnographer E.Grosse, the black colour is polysemantic for Kazakhs. Academician A. N. Kononov, who studied the semantics of colours in Turkic languages, notes the adjective black has about twenty additional figurative meanings. In the explanatory dictionary of the Kazakh language, the word black has nine direct and metaphorical definitions [12, 63].
The main meaning of the word black is the colour of coal. It became the basis of the origin of many phraseological units with the various meaning.
1. Unpleasant: қара қағаз (qara qaǵaz) ‒ a mourning letter, қара жұмыс (qara jumys) ‒ a manual labor, toil, work that requires physical effort or exertion.
2. Curse: қара басыңа көріңгір (qara basyńa kóringir), қара аспан аналып түскір (qara aspan aɪnalyp túskir), басыңа қара күн тусын (basyńa qara kún týsyn) ‒ wishing a bad luck.
3. Ungrateful, shameless: қара жерге отырғызу (qara jerge otyrǵyzý) ‒ put in an awkward position, қара бет (qara bet) ‒ tarnish one’s reputation, қара жермен тең болды (qara jermen teń boldy) ‒ to become unnoticed, unrespected.
4. Villain: қара жау (qara jaý) ‒ the greatest enemy, қара бауыр (qara baýyr) ‒ a cruel, unmerciful person, қара бастың қамын жеді (qara bastyń qamyn jedi) ‒ to look for his/her own benefit/profit. [6]
Not only has the black colour the negative meaning, but also it can be identified some positive aspects:
1. Justice: қара қылды қақ жару (qara qyldy qaq jarý) (to cut the black hair in the middle) ‒ to resolve the dispute in the right way;
2. Holiness: қара шаңырақ (qara shańyraq) (a black wooden circle crowning the top of the Yurt) ‒ a big, holy family, қара қазан (qara qazan) ‒ a sacred hearth, қара домбыра (qara dombyra) (the Kazakh national instrument) ‒ a holy dombra, қара сөз (qara sóz) ‒ wise sayings, qara jer (a black ground) ‒ the sacred land that feeds.
3. Welfare, prosperity: қара қазан көтеру (qara qazan kóterý), қара қанат болды (qara qanat boldy) ‒ to grow up/mature.
4. Beauty: сүмбіл қара шаш (súmbіl qara shash) ‒ blue-black hair, қара қасы қыйылып
(qara qasy qıylyp) ‒ black eyebrows, ботадай қара көздері (botadaı qara kózderі) (camel eyes) ‒ big beautiful eyes.
Proceeding from the above, it follows that in the Kazakh language the black colour differs in range of use and semantic features. This is due to the fact that it is the prevalent, expressive and complex colour in nature.
The English language is characterized by the traditional correlation of black with something bad, which is why phraseological units with the adjective black in the composition have negative connotations [13].
There are many idioms in the English language where black symbolizes negative events in a person’s life:
1. Pessimistic perception of certain events: paint a black – to paint a dark picture, to paint something with dark colours; a black day (for somebody) – a sad/disastrous day, a day when something unfortunate happens.
2. The negative attitude of others: pot calling the kettle black ‒ a guilty person accusing another guilty person, black-listed ‒ excluded, not be invited, not allowed to join, paint the devil blacker than he is – to exaggerate, to portray someone in a bad light, worse than he really is; black ingratitude – the state of being ungrateful; a black mark the fact of people noticing and remembering something that someone has done wrong or failed to do, a black sheep ‒ the bad one, the one who does bad things.
3. The negative characteristics of the qualities of nature, human senses: as black as ink ‒ joyless, black as thunder ‒ full of rage or hostility, likened to the black clouds that accompany thunderstorms.
4. Dishonesty or even criminality: give a black eye ‒ cause a loss of respect for a person or organization, black money ‒ dirty money, illegal profit [14].
The word blue was widely used in phraseological units and word combinations in different meanings. Therefore, this colour is a symbol of heaven and eternity in many cultures.
As stated in the “Explanatory Dictionary of the Kazakh language”, blue has different meanings and one of them is an endless sky [15, 407].
In the understanding of Kazakhs, the blue sky meant the divine principle. The word “heaven” denoting “көк” (kók) is the homonym of the word blue. In accordance with the cult of heaven, its colour is blue also deified as “Тәңірлік (Táńirlik) – Tengriism”: төбесі көкке жету (tóbesi kókke jetý) ‒ to reach to heaven, көк тәңірге табынған (kók táńіrge tabynǵan), көк бөрінің ұрпағы (kók bórіnіń urpaǵy) ‒ those who worship heavenly Tengri, become heavenly generation, көктен түсті
(kókten tústi) ‒ out of the blue, көкте тұрған жұлдыз (kókte túrǵan juldyz) ‒ a pie in the sky (something that you hope will happen but is very unlikely to happen).
At the same time, the meaning of the word blue can have negative connotation. For example, көк келсін! (kók kelsin!), көк ала келгір (kók ala kelgіr), көк сойғыр (kók soqqyr) (curse) ‒ let the heavens punish you!, көк ми (kók mı) ‒ a silly man, көк есек (kók esek) ‒ stubborn, easily controlled people.
In the English language the blue color is associated both with the positive and negative as well.
According to the legends, devils, witches, ghosts often appeared in a blue robe. There was a sign that meeting a woman in a blue apron was a harbinger of misfortune. It was forbidden to paint houses and windows in blue. Moreover, it was not allowed to put an object of the blue color on the marital bed: it meant that the spouses would not have children. This worldview is reflected in the following idioms: blue Monday ‒ the worst day of the year; blue stocking is a symbol of impersonality, a lack of femininity, charm inherent in a real woman; feel blue ‒ feel sad, down; till you are blue in the face ‒ until you are tired or sick; the sky is not blue ‒ something is wrong, there is a problem; between the devil and the deep blue sea ‒ in a difficult position, no place to go.
There are also phraseological units with positive meanings: the idiom “blue blood” characterizes aristocratic origin of a person. Blue-eyed boy/girl – someone particularly favoured by an authority. There is an idiom “something borrowed and something blue”, which means two of the things required for a happy wedding and a successful marriage [14]. The rhyme dates back to the Victorian era and came out of the English country Lancashire. At that time, the “something blue” was usually a garter, and the blue and old items protected the bride against the Evil Eye, a curse passed through a malicious glare that could make the bride infertile. “Something borrowed” was preferably the undergarment of a woman who already had children. The legend says that wearing this would confuse the Evil Eye into thinking the bride was already fertile, and the curse would be thwarted [16]. “True blue” means loyal, faithful, also people who works at a trade are called bluecollar workers. The blue sky has the definition of the great opportunity, an easy life [14].
The brown colour symbolizes on the one hand silence, warmth, and safety, on the other hand it depicts something that is cold, to show indifference in the Kazakh. For instance, қоңыр күз (qońyr kúz) ‒ a warm autumn, қоңыр салқын қабақпен қарады (qońyr salqyn qabaqpen qarady) ‒ to give someone the cold shoulder. Moreover, it expresses the meaning of «neutrality». For example, қоңыр салқын (qońyr salqyn) ‒ breezy weather, қоңыр көлеңке (qońyr kóleńke) ‒ a shady cool place, қоңыр кеш (qońyr kesh) ‒ cool evening (usually it can be said about summer evenings), қоңыр дауыс (qońyr daýys) ‒ a lovely voice [6]. As it might be seen that when it describes the weather it is neither cold nor hot or the voice is not dreadful, at the same time not outstanding, but pleasant.
In the English language the brown colour defines a state of darkness or being bored: brownnose ‒ to try hard to please someone, especially someone in a position of authority, in a way that other people find unpleasant; in a brown study ‒ a mood in which he/she is involved in his/her own thoughts and not paying attention to anything else; to be browned off ‒ to be bored, annoyed [17].
CONCLUSION
Thus, colour plays an important role in human perception of the world. Phraseological units with component colour terms open direct access to vast spiritual wealth of the people, reflect the characteristics of mentality and the national character. It is a critical tool for understanding nation in the process of intercultural communication.
Taking everything into consideration, research reveals that in comparison with the Kazakh language in English there are fewer phraseological units associated with resentment, scandal, human appearance, natural phenomena, human characters, etc. Phraseological units related to money and property, and society dominate in the English language such as black money, blue eyed boy/girl, brown nose, blue Monday, black mark. These data indicates the peoples’ mentality of the two ethnics, the territories of usage and the level of development of these languages. It should also be noted that Kazakhs are quick-tempered and express their feelings in a direct way compared with the British. This can be illustrated in the fact that there are a lot of phraseological units associated with the death of a person, traditions and customs, quarrels, resentment, curses and blessings as for instance aқ бата (aq bata), ақ кигізге көтерді (aq kɪgizge kóterdi), қара қағаз (qara qaǵaz), көк ала келгір (kók ala kelgіr), көк сойғыр (kók soqqyr) etc. These data once again prove the diversity, feature of the Kazakh language and the spiritual wealth of the Kazakh people.
REFERENCES:
1 Базым Б. А. Цвет и психика. Монография. ‒ Харьков, 2001. ‒ 10 с.
2 «Семантико-структурный анализ фразеологических единиц таджикского, арабского и русского языков». Научная электронная библиотека диссертаций, 2011.
https://www.dissercat.com/content/semantiko-strukturnyi-analiz-frazeologicheskikh-edinitstadzhikskogo-arabskogo-i-russkogo-ya.
3 Smith L.P. Words and idioms. ‒ The University Press, Glasgow, 1928. ‒ 292 p 4 Makkai. A. Idiom Structure in English. ‒ The Hague, 1972. ‒ 371 p.
5 Seidi J., McMordie W. English idioms and how to use them. ‒ Oxford University Press, 1978. ‒ 267 p.
6 Кенесбаев І. Қазақ тілінің фразеологиялық сөздігі. ‒ Алматы, 1977. ‒256 б.
7 Қожахметова Х., Жайсақова Р.Е., Қожахметова Ш.О. Қазақша-орысша фразеологиялық сөздік. ‒ Алма-Ата, 1988, PDF.
8 Амосова Н.Н. Основы английской фразеологии. ‒ М.: Инфра ‒ М, 2008. ‒ 226 с.
9 Рогулина Е.Э. Национальная культурная семантика цвета в испанской фразеологии (на материале пиренейского национального варианта испанского языка): Автореферат диссертации на соискание ученой степени кандидата филологических наук. ‒ М., 2006, PDF. 10 Christine A. Dictionary of Idioms. 1992, PDF.
11 Dictionary by Merriam Webster. https://www.merriam-webster.com/
12 Елибаева К. Ж. Символика и семантика цвета в казахской культуре. ‒ Вестник Московского государственного университета культуры и искусств, 4 (48) июль–август 2012. 13 Тер-Минасова С. Г. Язык и межкультурная коммуникация. – М.: Слово, 2000. ‒ 262с. 14 English Idioms. ‒ Canada, Prairie House Books, 2003, PDF.
15 Казақ тілінің түсіндірме сөздігі. Жалпы редакциясын басқарған Т.Жанұзақов. ‒ Алматы: Дайк-Пресс, 2008. ‒ 968б.
16 Nowak C. “Why Do Brides Need to Have Something Old, New, Borrowed, and Blue?” Reader’s Digest. Accessed September 15, 2019. https://www.rd.com/culture/something-old/.
17 Cambridge International Dictionary of Idioms. ‒ Cambridge, 1998. ‒ 587 p.PDF.
М.К.Самамбет1,Т.К.Иманмагзумова2
Қазақ және ағылшын тілдеріндегі түс компоненттері бар фразеологизмдер 1,2А.Байтұрсынов атындағы Қостанай мемлекеттік университеті, Қостанай қ., Қазақстан
Осы зерттеуде қазақ және ағылшын тілдеріндегі түс компоненттерінің фразеологиялық бірліктері қарастырылады. Мақаланың мақсаты – түрлі-түсті компоненттері бар фразеологизмдер халықтың ой-өрісінің бірегей бейнесін және бір тілді екіншісінен ерекшелендіретін ұлттық сипаттағы белгілердің айқындылығын көрсету. Түстердің мәні және олардың екі мәдениеттегі рөлі зерттеледі. Сонымен қатар, қазақ және ағылшын тілдік бейнесіндегі зерттелетін идиомалардың жалпы және өзгеше ерекшеліктері сипатталады.
М.К.Самамбет1, Т.К.Иманмагзумова2
Фразеологизмы с цветовыми компонентами в казахском и английском языках 1,2Костанайский государственный университет им.А.Байтурсынова, г.Костанай, Казахстан
В настоящем исследовании рассматриваются фразеологические единицы с компонентами цвета в казахском и английском языках. Цель данной статьи – выявить, что фразеологизмы с цветовыми компонентами отражают уникальный образ мышления народа и яркость черт национального характера, отличающих один язык от другого. Исследуется значение цветов и их роль в двух культурах. Кроме того, описываются общие и специфические особенности изучаемых идиом в казахской и английской языковой картине мира.