Cross-cultural analysis of proper names in everyday realia (based on the English and German languages)

The present paper is devoted to cross-cultural analysis of toponyms in everyday realia based on the material of the English and German languages.

Only those objects which are of particular interest to a person receive a proper name. The latter one corresponds with the objective world. Proper names include several groups of names: toponyms, anthroponyms, mythonyms, zoonyms, chrematonyms, names of vehicles, varietal and company names.

The most important feature of the lexical meaning of a proper name is its formation in the course of historical development of the language, its general understanding and objectivity.

The relevance of the study is in the fact that proper names in everyday realia are insufficiently studied both in native and in foreign linguistics.

The novelty of this study is defined by the fact that comprehensive study of proper names in everyday rea-lia in the English and German languages is carried out for the first time.

Everyday realia characterize various areas of life of the British and Germans, as well as other peoples. According to O.S. Akhmanova, “realia are objects of material culture” [1, p. 381]. Realia are closely connected with the historical period of the country in which they appeared. To have an idea about the historical era, you need to know the etymology of everyday realia.

The paper considers proper names (toponyms – geographical names) in everyday realia on the material of the English and German languages; also, their etymology is given.

Geographical names – proper names of oceans, continents, seas, rivers, lakes, swamps, beaches, springs, wells, mountains, hills, forests, cities, villages, farms, lands, tracts, rivers, lakes, islands and other geographical objects are always multilingual and always of different age formations that are combined into a toponymic system in any region of the globe [3, p. 53].

Toponyms include: choronyms (names of large areas, geographical, economic, historical), comonyms (names of rural settlements, communes), astyonyms (names of cities), limnonyms (names of lakes), pota-monyms (names of rivers), insulonyms (names of islands), etc.

The main purpose of this work is to carry out cross-cultural analysis of toponyms in everyday realia in the English and German languages.

The practical significance of the paper is that the results can be used in the preparation of bilingual onomastic dictionaries, in preparation of courses and textbooks on toponymics and onomastics.

Sixty three English and German lexical units (toponyms in everyday realia) served as the material for the research and were selected by continuous sampling from English and German lexicographical resources [8–11].

Methods

While analyzing proper names in everyday realia in the English and German languages the following methodological techniques were used:

– etymological analysis;

– cross-cultural analysis;

– lexical analysis;

– continuous sampling.

The works of foreign and native authors serve the theoretical framework of the study:

– on onomastics: A.V. Superanskaya [7], A. Gardiner [2];

– on toponymics: N.V. Podolskaya [6], E.M. Murzaev [4, 5].

Classification

Toponyms (choronyms, comonyms, astyonyms, limnonyms, insulonyms and potamonyms) in everyday realia in the English and German languages, are considered in the paper. They reflect historical and cultural information, have peculiar cognitive classification.

ChoronymsFood:

– (Eng.) Greek peasant salad – (Germ.) grie-chischer Bauer Salat : consists of tomatoes, garlic, spices (by the name of the state in Southern Europe).

– (Eng.) Ukrainian borscht – (Germ.) Ukrai-nischer Borschtsch : soup made from beets, vinegar, fat, sugar, tomato puree with the addition of broth (by the name of the state in Eastern and partially Central Europe)

– (Eng.) Beshbarmak in Kyrgyz style – (Germ.) Beshbarmak auf Kirgisisch : soup made from boiled lamb, flour, eggs, water and unleavened thinly rolled dough, with the addition of onions and peppers (according to the name of the state in Central Asia, located in the western and central parts of the Tien Shan mountain system and Pamir-Alai).

– (Eng.) Bashkir barbecue – (Germ.) Baschki-risches Grillen : a meat dish with the addition of salt, black pepper, lemon juice or vinegar, finely chopped onion (by the name of the subject of the Russian Federation, the republic in its composition).

– (Eng.) Venison larded, marinated in Yakut style – (Germ.) Wildfleisch gespickt, nach jaku-tischer Art mariniert : pieces of venison stuffed with bacon, cut into cubes, filled with marinade, with added sugar, salt, vinegar, pepper, bay leaf, dry wine (by the name of the subject of the Russian Federation, the republic in its composition, as well as the largest administrative-territorial unit in the world).

– (Eng.) Chuvash Shartanchiki (zrazy stuffed with liver and rice) – (Germ.) Chuvash Shartan-chiki (Zrazy gefüllt mit Leber und Reis) : beaten pork stuffed with liver, with the addition of salt, ground black pepper and rice (by the name of the subject of the Russian Federation, the republic in its composition).

– (Eng.) Roast offal in Ingush style – (Germ.) Gebratene Innereien in Ingusch : boiled offal with potatoes, carrots, onions, salt, ground black pepper, sprinkled with finely chopped parsley (by the name of the subject of the Russian Federation, the republic in its composition).

– (Eng.) Hollandaise sauce – (Germ.) Holländische Sauce : hot egg-and-butter sauce. One of the main sauces of French cuisine (by the name of the state, consisting of the main territory in Western Europe and the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba in the Caribbean).

– (Eng.) Thai chicken soup – (Germ.) Thailändische Hühnersuppe : a balanced combination of sweet, salty and spicy. Soup – fresh, bright, light and hearty (by the name of the state in Southeast Asia, located in the southwestern part of the Indochina peninsula and in the northern part of the Malay Peninsula).

– (Eng.) Provencal salad – (Germ.) Provenza-lischer Salat : consists of head lettuce, eggs and spices (after the name of the region in southeastern France).

– (Eng.) Peruvian beef chowder – (Germ.) Pe-ruanische Rindersuppe : a dish of beef brisket, celery, onions, carrots, corn, sweet potatoes, savoy cabbage, with oregano, sea salt, black pepper ( by the name of the state in South America).

– (Eng.) Bengali perch – (Germ.) Bengalischer Barsch : a dish of perch, onions, tomatoes, ginger, pepper, turmeric, coriander (after the name of the historical region in the northeastern part of South Asia) .

– (Eng.) Salmon Goa – (Germ.) Lachs-Goa : a dish of salmon fillet, sprinkled with lemon juice, salt, onion, tomatoes, ginger. Peppers turmeric and coriander (named after the state in southwestern India).

– (Eng.) Brandenburg cheese salad – (Germ.) Brandenburger Käsesalat : a salad of thinly sliced cheese, with apple and pear, dressed with mayonnaise, yogurt, mustard and lemon juice (named the land of Germany).

– (Eng.) Fish Eintopf “Spreewald“ – (Germ.) Fisch-Eintopf “Spreewald” : soup of butter dumplings, fish fillet, milk sauce, salt, pepper and herbs (named after the lowland areas in Germany).

– (Eng.) Thuringian pot roast – (Germ.) Thüringer Schmorbraten : pot roast made from kidneys, with bay leaves, black peppercorns, honey, butter, salt (after the name of the land in the eastern part of Germany).

Drinks:

– (Eng.) Amontillado – (Germ.) Amontillado: the most famous Spanish sherry with an incomparable nutty bouquet and smell. Its unique smell reminds of Montilla wine, manufactured in the Spanish province of Montilla in Cordoba.

– (Eng.) Barolo – (Germ.) Barolo: red wine, considered to be one of the best European wines. It is made in the Italian province of Barolo in Piedmont. When stored in bottles, it may produce strong sediment. It is recommended that bottles be stored in an upright position.

– (Eng.) Burgundy – (Germ.) Burgund: red and white, exquisite wines produced in French region of Burgundy southeast of Paris. Bottled in a specific shape. The reputation of Burgundy wines is often questioned, as they are blended before bottling. Red burgundy wines are made from Pinot noir grapes, and white wines are made from Chardonnay.

– (Eng.) Valpolicella – (Germ.) Valpolicella: Italian red wine produced in Italian subregion in the northeast of Verona at the foot of the Alps. It has a beautiful cherry red color, sweetish bouquet, light fruity smell and even fullness. Usually bottled after 18 months in wooden buttes, matures in bottles, which should not be stored for more than five years.

– (Eng.) Chianti – (Germ.) Chianti: the best Italian red wine. It is made in the Italian province of Chianti in Tuscany south of Florence from various grape varieties, bottled in a specific form, braided by straw. Wine is consumed young.

– (Eng.) Pouilly Fuisse – (Germ.) Pouilly Fuisse: magnificent dry white Burgundy wine made exclusively from Chardonnay grapes grown in French region Poilly Fuisse in the west of Macon in southern Burgundy.

– (Eng.) Pouilly-fumé – (Germ.) Poilly-fumé: dry white wine made, as a rule, from light grapes of Sauvignon variety in the valley of Upper Loire. In a mature state it has a smoky green color and a spicy taste with a metallic aftertaste. After bottling, it is aged for one to two years.

– (Eng.) Champagne – (Germ.) Champagne: sparkling wine. In France, specific white sparkling wines made from a mixture of different varieties of light grapes growing in a strictly limited area east of Paris belong to champagne. This type of wine is bottled in a unique shape with specific corks, as fermentation takes place inside the bottle itself and the sediment is removed directly through the neck of an inverted bottle.

– (Eng.) Alsatian wines – (Germ.) Elsasser Wein: fragrant, dry, usually white wines made in French province Alsace from grapes of Riesling grapes. They are bottled in elongated green glass bottles similar to Moselle wines in Germany.

In the group of “Choronyms” 25 units were found (39 % of the sampled units). Among them, 16 units (25 %) denoting food and 9 units (14 %) denoting drinks were found.

AstyonymsFood:

– (Eng.) salad Nice – (Germ.) Salat Nizza : a salad of greens, vegetables, Provencal herbs, tuna, olives, anchovies and eggs (after the name of the city in France).

– (Eng.) Leningrad rassolnik – (Germ.) Leningrader Rassolnik : soup boiled in broth or water with prepared cereals and with the addition of sautéed tomato puree (after the name of the city of St. Petersburg, which from January 26, 1924 to 6 September 1991 was called Leningrad).

– (Eng.) Rossosh rassolnik – (Germ.) Ros-soscher Rassolnik: soup boiled in broth with the addition of finely chopped bacon, onions, carrots and to- mato puree (after the name of the city in the Voronezh region of the Russian Federation).

– (Eng.) Rostov fish soup – (Germ.) Rostowe Fischsuppe : soup cooked in fish broth, with the addition of potatoes and vegetables, cut into slices, pikeperch fillet (with skin and costal bones), tomato, cut into slices, and spices (by the name of the city in Russia, the administrative center of the Rostov district of the Yaroslavl region).

– (Eng.) Moscow fish baked in sour cream sauce with mushrooms – (Germ.) Moskauer Fisch gebacken in Sauerrahmsauce mit Pilzen : fish fried from boiled, as well as onions, mushrooms and slices of boiled eggs (after the name of the capital of Russia, a city of federal significance).

– (Eng.) Saransk pork cutlet – (Germ.) Sa-ransker Schweinkotelette: baked pork, cut into portions, sprinkled with salt, pepper, finely chopped garlic, with a piece of butter or margarine, wrapped in an oblong form (by the name of the city in Russia, the capital of the Republic of Mordovia).

– (Eng.) Roast Kazan with prunes – (Germ.) Braten Kasan mit Backpflaume : fried meat in pieces in a pot, with the addition of raw peeled potatoes, finely chopped onion, prunes, tomato, salt , pepper, bay leaf and filled with broth (by the name of the city in Russia, the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan).

– (Eng.) Aylesbury duck – (Germ.) Aylesbury Ente : roasted for 4 hours on a grill in the oven with the addition of a lot of salt and pepper (after the name of the city in England, the main city of Buckinghamshire).

– (Eng.) Salad old Munich – (Germ.) Salat Altmünchen : sausage, cucumber, onion and cheese salad with green onions, parsley and dill, dressed with mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, mustard, salt sauce and pepper (after the name of the city on the Isar, in southern Germany).

Drinks:

– (Eng.) Warsaw milk coffee – (Germ.) War-schauer Milchkaffee : strained black coffee with added sugar, hot baked milk. Before serving, hot milk froth is added to the coffee, removed during the heating of milk (after the name of the capital and the largest city in terms of population and area occupied by the territory of Poland).

– (Eng.) Viennese black coffee with whipped cream – (Germ.) Wiener schwarzer Kaffee mit Schlagsahne : sugar and whipped cream are added to the finished black coffee (after the name of the federal capital of Austria).

– (Eng.) Bardolino – (Germ.) Bardolino: a very light Italian wine, almost pink, produced in the area of the city of the same name near Verona. It is aged from one to three years. It has delicious fruity smell.

– (Eng.) Bordeaux – (Germ.) Bordeaux: red and white wines produced from various grapes grown in the province of Gironde, around the port city of Bordeaux in southern France. Poured into tall angular bottles.

– (Eng.) Macon – (Germ.) Macon: expensive wines produced west of the city of Macon, located on the banks of the Saona River in southern Burgundy. Red Macon wines have pleasant taste with a less pronounced fruity aftertaste than that of bouguet-le. To the most famous belongs to the Puyi-fuiss.

– (Eng.) Marsala – (Germ.) Marsala: the best of the famous Italian fortified wines produced in the area of the city of the same name in the west of the island of Sicily. The properties resemble sherry, usually served as aperitifs. They have an intense brown colour and the smell of molasses (black molasses).

– (Eng.) Merceau – (Germ.) Merceau: dry white Burgundy wine with nutty flavour, is produced in the area of the cities of Merceau and Volna in Côte de Beaune. It has greenish-golden colour, good fullness, but slightly harsh taste. Refers to the best burgundy wines.

– (Eng.) Orvieto – (Germ.) Orvieto: Italian light white wine produced in the area of the city of the same name in the center of Italy between Florence and Rome. Vineyards in these places are interspersed with fields and groups of trees. This sweet wine is bottled with straw.

– (Eng.) Tavel – (Germ.) Tavel: one of the most famous rosé wines produced in the city of Tavel in the Rhone Valley north of Avignon. The wine has orangepink colour, intense aroma and bouquet. Wines of this type are aged for at least two years.

– (Eng.) Sherry – (Germ.) Sherry: fortified wines of golden amber color, most often used as an aperitif. Traditionally produced in the area of the city of Jerez de la Frontera in southeastern Spain.

– (Eng.) Chablis – (Germ.) Chablis: dry white Burgundy wines made exclusively from Chardonnay grapes near the town of Chablis to the south-east of Paris. They have pale straw colour and specific “flint” flavor. In the USA and other wine-producing countries, various types of wines made from various grape varieties with one or another share of Chardonnay grapes are classified as Chablis.

– (Eng.) Nuits-Saint-Georges: (Germ.) Nuits-Saint-Georges: delicate red Burgundy wine made in the city of the same name in the southern part of Côte de Nuits. This is soft, well-balanced red wine that tastes like red Cote de Nuits, but more persistent. It has more intense colour than red wines such as Cote de Bon.

– (Eng.) Pomerol – (Germ.) Pomerol: one of the best Bordeaux wines produced only in the city of the same name, located 25 miles from Bordeaux. It is considered the thinnest and at the same time the most exquisite of Bordeaux red wines. Pomerol wine quickly ripens (usually within five years, unlike Medoc wines, whose ripening period is 8–10 years), has a bright red color, velvety texture and intense smell.

In the group of “Astyonyms”, 22 units were found (35 % of the sampled units). Among them, 9 units (14 %) denoting food and 13 units (21 %) denoting drinks were found.

ComonymsFood:

– (Eng.) Salad “Tsada” – (Germ.) Salat “Tsa-da”: meat salad with beans and potatoes (after the name of the village in Dagestan)

– (Eng.) Chicken stuffed with offal, tatsin style – (Germ.) Mit Innereien gefülltes Hühnchen nach Tatsin-Art : chicken carcass stewed with butter or margarine. stuffed with minced meat and fried in an oven, with the addition of finely chopped parsley, buckwheat porridge or boiled rice (after the name of the farm in the Krasnosulinsky district of the Rostov region).

Drinks:

– (Eng.) Volnay – (Germ.) Volnay: red Burgundy wines produced near villages Volney and Meursault in France. These are exquisite and tender, mild wines with delicate aftertaste.

– (Eng.) Vouvray – (Germ.) Vouvray: the best of wines produced on the banks of the Loire River in the commune of Vouvray near the city of Tours. One of the most persistent white wines. Depending on the weather and the quality of the grapes, it may be dry with fruity smell, like Rhine wines, or pale and sparkling.

– (Eng.) Montrachet – (Germ.) Montrachet: classic white Burgundy wine, perhaps the most famous and expensive of all French white wines. Produced in commune of Montrachet in Côte de Beaune from Chardonnay grapes. The wine has slightly golden colour with greenish tint, unusual soft bouquet and smell.

– (Eng.) San Emilion – (Germ.) San Emilion: red wines produced in the most fertile part of Burgundy in French commune of San Emilion. The best vintage varieties of wines of this type are priced slightly lower than Medoc wines. They are refined, tart, warm and ripen more slowly than the pome-role, but faster than the Medoc.

– (Eng.) São Julien – (Germ.) San Julien: soft and delicate Bordeaux wines, more complete than Margot wines, more fragrant than San Estef and mature faster than Poiac.

– (Eng.) Soave – (Germ.) Soave: one of the best Italian white wines produced in northern Italy east of Verona at the foot of the Alps. This is a simple, dry, white wine with a distinctive smell of freshness. It is bottled in specific green glass bottles. Exposure should not exceed three years.

– (Eng.) Chambertin – (Germ.) Chambertin: one of the best red burgundy wines, produced in limited quantities in the north of Cote Dore. This is a very expensive refined and persistent wine, the beginning of production of which dates back to 600 CE. Known as the favorite wine of Napoleon and Alexander Dumas.

In the group of “Comonyms”, 9 units were found (14 % of the sampled units). Among them, 2 units (3 %) denoting food and 7 units (11 %) denoting drinks were found.

Table 1

N/n	Food	Drinks
Choronyms	16 (25 %)	9 (14 %)
Astyonyms	9 (14 %)	13 (21 %)
Comonyms	2 (3 %)	7 (11 %)
Limnonyms	1 (2 %)	—
Potamonyms	3 (5 %)	—
Insulonyms	3 (5 %)	—
Total	34 (54 %)	29 (46 %)

LimnonymsFood:

– (Eng.) Fish soup Ladoga with quenelles and pies – (Germ.) Fischsuppe Ladoga mit Quenelles und Pasteten : small fish soup with parsley, onion, salt and spices freshwater lake in Europe and the second largest lake in Russia after Baikal.

In the group of “Limnonyms”, 1 unit was found (2 % of the sampled units). Among them, 1 unit (2 %) denoting food was found and units denoting drinks were not found.

PotamonymsFood:

– (Eng.) Don Solyanka – (Germ.) Don Soljan-ka : sturgeon boiled in broth with browned carrots, onions, tomato puree, with the addition of cucumbers, capers, fresh tomatoes and spices (after the name of the river in the European part of Russia, the fifth longest river in Europe).

– (Eng.) Don Zrazy – (Germ.) Don Zrazy : fish fillets without skin and bones or without skin and cartilage are cut, beaten, salted, sprinkled with pepper, and then minced meat is wrapped in them (after the name of the river in the European part of Russia, the fifth longest river in Europe).

– (Eng.) Volga-style fish – (Germ.) Fisch nach Wolga-Art: fish fillets are marinated, breaded in breadcrumbs and deep-fried, with the addition of salt, pepper, finely chopped parsley (after the name of the river in the European part of Russia).

In the group of “Potamonyms”, 3 units were found (5 % of the sampled units). Among them, 3 units (5 %) denoting food were found and units denoting drinks were not found.

Insulonyms

Food:

– (Eng.) Cretan sweet cheese Calcuña – (Germ.) Kretischer Süßkäse Calcuña: oil is combined with lemon juice, water, salt, flour, cheese, mixed with 2 eggs and mint (after the name of the largest Greek island, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean).

– (Eng.) Balkan salad with fish – (Germ.) Bal-kansalat mit Fisch : fish fried in vegetable oil, with the addition of boiled eggs, cabbage, parsley, apples, cucumbers, seasoned with mayonnaise (after the name of the peninsula located in the southeast of Europe).

– (Eng.) Dalmatian fish goulash – (Germ.) Dalmatinisches Fischgulasch : fish fillet sprinkled with lemon juice, salt, pepper, onion and garlic (after the name of the Dalmatian Islands belonging to Croatia and numbering 1246 islands in the archipelago in the Adriatic Sea).

In the group of “Insulonyms”, 3 units were found (5 % of the sampled units). Among them, 3 units (5 %) denoting food were found and units denoting drinks were not found.

Conclusion

As a result of cross-cultural analysis, the author comes to a conclusion that most everyday realia of toponymic origin in the English and German languages received their names after the countries (choro-nyms) where they were first produced (25 units – 39 % of the sampled units).

The formation of everyday realia with a toponym component is based on the complete transfer of the geographical names of those regions, subregions, provinces, cities, communes, villages and farmlands, lakes, rivers and islands where they first appeared. Everyday realia with a toponym component refer to international vocabulary, as they are used in two or more languages.

As a result of international cooperation and relations, everyday realia of toponymic origin in the English and German languages have become common words in different countries. They transmit collective experience that allows to explore the past and culture. These words are the historical memory of different peoples.