Zoomorphic proverbs in the Armenian-Kipchak language: their semantic and structural features

Abstract

The article aims to provide a comprehensive description of the linguocultural, structural, and semantic traits of zoomorphic proverbs and sayings in the Armenian-Kipchak language written in Armenian script.

The Armenian-Kipchaks were Kipchaks who adopted the Armenian Gregorian branch of Christianity as their faith; today, both historians and linguists adhere to the term "Armenian-Kipchak" to describe this community. Historical sources indicate that the native speakers of the Armenian-Kipchak language referred to their own tongue as "khypchakh tili" (the Kipchak language), "bizdin til" (our language), or "tatarsha" (in Tatar). Currently, 112 extant written monuments composed in the Armenian-Kipchak language, dating from 1521 to 1669, constitute an extensive corpus of scholarly manuscripts. This vast written heritage conclusively underscores the profound cultural and historical significance of the Armenian-Kipchak monuments.

This paremiological corpus, dating from the Middle Ages, constitutes a significant source for reconstructing the social experience, worldview and linguistic system of the Gregorian Kipchaks of that era. The research material includes paremias containing animal names, along with their equivalents in other Turkic languages. The study applies a combination of descriptive analysis, historical and comparative methods, structural-semantic approaches, and statistical analysis designed to determine patterns of frequency and usage of the proverbs under consideration.

The analysis of the metaphorical models, syntactic structures, and semantic cores of the proverbs, alongside frequency data, highlights the central role of zoomorphic imagery in articulating the ethical norms, behavioural patterns, and social values of the Armenian-Kipchak community. The findings demonstrate that Armenian-Kipchak paremiology is closely integrated into the broader pan-Turkic tradition and is marked by a considerable degree of cultural and cognitive importance.