BIRDS, BEASTS, AND NATURE: AN ECOLINGUISTIC AND AXIOLOGICAL STUDY OF METAPHOR SOURCE DOMAINS IN ENGLISH AND UZBEK PROVERBS
- Authors
-
-
Ikboljon Axmedov
Kokand University, English language teacher
-
- Keywords:
- Array
- Abstract
-
This study investigates animal- and nature-based metaphorical source domains in English and Uzbek proverbs to reveal the ecological and axiological beliefs encoded in folk wisdom. Using a purposive corpus of 240 proverbs (120 English, 120 Uzbek) selected from proverb dictionaries, academic collections and national folklore archives, the paper applies Conceptual Metaphor Theory and an ecolinguistic/axiological interpretive framework to (1) identify recurring animal and natural source domains, (2) classify axiological (value) loadings attached to those domains (positive, negative, ambivalent), and (3) compare cross-cultural similarities and differences. Results show strong overlap in animal metaphors (dog, fox, wolf, sheep, horse, lion) but culture-specific mappings too (camel, steppe/desert imagery in Uzbek proverbs; lion/kingly imagery in English). Uzbek proverbs display pronounced ecological embedding — values emphasizing endurance, communal harmony, and contextual prudence — while English proverbs reflect individual-centered moral evaluations alongside animal trait metaphors. The findings demonstrate how proverb metaphors act as cultural-ecological memory, preserving long-standing human–nature relations and moral priorities.
- References
-
1. Dobrovol’skij, D., & Piirainen, E. (2005). Figurative language: Cross-cultural and cross-linguistic perspectives. Elsevier.
2. Fill, A., & Mühlhäusler, P. (Eds.). (2018). The Ecolinguistics Reader: Language, Ecology and Environment. Continuum.
3. Granger, S. (2018). The Cambridge handbook of learner corpus research. Cambridge University Press.
4. Haugen, E. (1972). The ecology of language. In A. Dil (Ed.), The ecology of language (pp. 325–339). Stanford University Press.
5. Jo‘rayev, B. (2012). Maqollar xazinasi [Treasure of Proverbs]. Tashkent: Sharq.
6. Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (1980). Metaphors We Live By. University of Chicago Press.
7. Mieder, W. (2004). Proverbs: A Handbook. Greenwood Press.
8. Miles, M. B., Huberman, A. M., & Saldaña, J. (2014). Qualitative data analysis: A methods sourcebook (3rd ed.). SAGE.
9. Sattorova, M. (2019). Comparative analysis of English and Uzbek proverbs: Semantic and cultural aspects. Journal of Linguistics and Culture, 3(2), 45–53.
10. Sharipova, Z. (2020). Using proverbs in foreign language teaching: A cultural approach. Language and Education Journal, 7(1), 66–73.
11. Speake, J. (Ed.). (2015). The Oxford dictionary of proverbs (6th ed.). Oxford University Press.
12. Stibbe, A. (2015). Ecolinguistics: Language, Ecology and the Stories We Live By. Routledge.
13. Stibbe, A. (2021). Ecolinguistics and the stories we live by: A second look. Bloomsbury Academic.
14. Wierzbicka, A. (1997). Understanding Cultures through Their Key Words: English, Russian, Polish, German, and Japanese. Oxford University Press.
15. Axmedov, I. (2025). PROVERBS AS SOCIAL GLUE: HOW SHARED WISDOM CREATES CONNECTION AND UNDERSTANDING. Journal of Multidisciplinary Sciences and Innovations, 1(3), 1058–1065. Retrieved from https://inlibrary.uz/index.php/jmsi/article/view/113188
16. Axmedov Ikboljon. (2025). A SPEECH ACT ANALYSIS OF PROVERBS: EXPLORING THE ILLOCUTIONARY FORCE OF TRADITIONAL WISDOM. PEDAGOGIK TADQIQOTLAR JURNALI, 5(1), 96–105. https://doi.org/10.1075/jhp.6.2.03arc
- Downloads
- Published
- 2025-10-08
- Section
- Maqolalar
- License
-
Copyright (c) 2025 QO‘QON UNIVERSITETI XABARNOMASI
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
