Semantic Peculiarities of Proper Names in Phraseological Units in English and Turkmen

SEMANTIC PECULIARITIES OF PROPER NAMES IN
PHRASEOLOGICAL UNITS IN ENGLISH AND TURKMEN

My report is concerned with proper names in English and Turkmen phraseology. The problem of the origin of proper names in phraseological units with the problem of social basis is of great interest. Proper names are the names that are necessary elements of communication and mutual understanding between people. (from Greek onoma). English proper nouns include people’s names and surnames (antroponyms- John Smith, Ahmet, Leýli), geographical names (toponyms – the Alps, Africa, America, London), names of Gods (theonyms- Zeus[zjuːs] the supreme god, the son of Cronus (whom he dethroned) and Rhea, and husband of Hera. Zeus was the protector and ruler of humankind, the dispenser of good and evil, and the god of weather and atmospheric phenomena, Apollo [ə'pɔləu] a god, son of Zeus and Leto and brother of Artemis. He is associated with music, poetic inspiration, archery, prophecy, medicine, pastoral life, and the sun; Aurora [ɔː'rɔːrə] goddess of the dawn. Greek equivalent Eos;), names or nicknames of animals (zoonyms- Melegush, Alabay) names of heavenly bodies (astronyms- Moon, Sun), names of cosmic bodies (cosmonym- ), names of plants (phytonym- ), names of historical and other events (chrononym- ), names of folk (ethnonym - ), names of spiritual culture (ideonym - ), names of material culture (chremotonym- ).

The term “phraseology” originated in Russian studies which developed from the late 1940’s to the 1960’s¹. Western scholars usually apply the term “idiom” to this big group but Soviet linguists use it in a more restricted meaning. Professor Koonin gives the following definition of phraseological units: they are stable word-combinations with wholly or partially transferred meaning.² Phraseological units include idioms, phrasal verbs, and proverbs. Linguists have provided various definitions of phraseological units and various criteria to classify them. Idioms can be divided into groups according to the types of proper names. For example: phraseological units which contain antroponyms, in English: “Honest Abe” – it is a nickname of the President Abraham Lincoln (A. Lincoln, 1809-65). For example: And on that fateful July morning in 1881, President Garfield was to take the final fearful pace in the footsteps of “Old Abe”. (J. Cottrell, “Assassinational the World Stood Still”, part I, ch.3) or “Johnny head – in – the- Air” –it is a person who flies in the sky and dreams without paying attention to the surrounded things. Ex: Much of his morning walk was passed in a dream Nanny used to jeer at him, calling him Little Johnny Head in the Air. In Turkmen we can find such kind of phraseological units containg persons’ names: “Weli bolmasa, Welije” – it means if we don’t have a way, we can make another choice. “Don’t worry, if there is no Weli, instead of Weli, there is Welije” (N.Pomma); or another idiom: Alynyng aryny Ahmetden almak- Take Ali’s revenge from Ahmet- ex: Being suffered by Ali on the road, this Ali’s revenge is taken from Ahmet.

Proper names play important role in idioms. Studying onyms as a component of idioms interests in the field of language culture.

1^ Anthony Paul Cowie “Introduction Phraseology, Theory, Applications and analysis”, 1998. Oxford press. pg 4

2^ Shammayeva English Lexicology sah 76