Folk names of animals and plants in the Yakut language, educated on the basis of “connection with mythological images, beliefs and totemism”

Abstract

This article is devoted to the study of folk names of animals and plants in the Yakut language, formed on the basis of “connection with mythological images, beliefs and totemism”. The study uses descriptive analysis to identify the connection between language and culture and the main patterns of motivational features of the nomination of wildlife objects; component analysis aimed at considering the formal semantic structure of zoonyms and phytonyms to determine the role of their use. The research material was extracted by continuous sampling from the database of Yakut phytonyms and zoonyms, created over the course of about ten years as part of the preparation of a dissertation on the topic “Vocabulary of wildlife in the Yakut language: onomasiology and etymology”. The database is based on a large amount of linguistic material from various sources: explanatory and dialectal dictionaries, biological books, field definitions with reference material, archival documents, folklore and ethnographic materials. The purpose of this article is to show the dependence of the nomination, use and semiotic status of wildlife objects on their signs and properties. The tokens associated with traditional beliefs and legends have bright markings that reveal the peculiarities of the culture and worldview of the Sakha people. The study found that the names of mythological creatures are used in the composition of complex phytonyms and zoonyms: abaahy (demon), tangara (deity), kut (soul), oyuun (shaman), etc. The images of mythological creatures abaahy “demon, evil spirit” and tangara “deity” are used to denote the negative and positive properties of plants and animal signs: abaahy “demon, evil spirit” in plants expresses venom, in animals – ugliness; tangara “deity” in plants – benefit and beauty, in animals – deification and totemism; it is curious that the kut lexeme “soul” (mainly referring in these nominations to cattle and large wild ungulates) is used in the nomination of beetles and their larvae (in which the mandibles are the most striking morphological feature – apparently a parallel to the horns). Acknowledgements: The study was carried out within the framework of the scientific project of the Russian National Science Foundation "Vocabulary of wildlife (flora) in the Yakut language: linguistic and geographical distribution", No. 22-78-00221).

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