Culture-bound and universal features of phraseological units with amphibian names in Russian, Chuvash, English and German

Abstract

The aim of the study is to identify the culture-bound and universal features of phraseological units with amphibian names in Russian, Chuvash, English and German, as well as the productivity of the zoonyms under consideration in the formation of set expressions. The paper discusses the most common names of amphibians, namely “frog” and “toad”; analyses zoometaphors of the Russian, Chuvash, English and German languages and their functioning in set expressions of languages with different systems, which makes it possible to identify the national peculiarities of expressing native speakers’ knowledge about people, animals and the world. The study is novel in that it is the first to consider this group of zoonyms in a comparative aspect involving the material of languages with different systems to identify, analyse and describe national and cultural characteristics, similarities and differences in the functioning and productivity of zoonyms in phraseological units. As a result, it was proved that the national specifics of native speakers’ worldview and lifestyle, as well as different living conditions, traditions, history and religion often influence the figurative meaning of zoonyms.