The Universal and National-Cultural Specificity of Idioms

Incorporating the Component 'Black'

Ch. B. Abdullaeva and F. F. Tairova

Tashkent State University of Uzbek Language and Literature named after Alisher Navoi, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Keywords: Phraseological Units, Universal, National-Cultural, Concept, Culture, Cognitive, Symbol, Conceptual Sphere.

Abstract: This article analyses idioms incorporating 'Black/Чёрный/Қорa', representing universal and culturally

specific elements. The author notes no significant distinctions between English and Russian idiomatic units,

with many shared features. Universally, 'black' symbolises evil, unhappiness, and mourning, and associates

with concepts such as gloominess, negative traits, stubbornness, challenges, and illegality. English idioms

highlight cultural specifics like anger-driven violence, mundane aspects, and affiliations with the church or

judiciary. The emergence of non-equivalent phrases is linked to historic factors like the invention of printing,

cultural realities, slavery, piracy, and geographical elements.

1 INTRODUCTION

The ability to discern various forms, sounds, scents,

and tastes is possessed by every individual. Similarly,

the capacity to recognize different colours is a crucial

aspect of human visual perception. "Because we

perceive the colours of objects, we are able to

distinguish objects more effectively" (Kravkov S. V.

(1951)). However, it is impossible to imagine a

human activity without the presence of colour.

Moreover, people's moods, emotions, and even

physical health are often influenced by colour.

Differentiating between colours also provides us with

aesthetic experiences; the frequently used association

of the words "meaningful" and "pleasant" with the

adjective "colourful" expresses our emotional attitude

towards a variety of colours. For instance, the

adjective "colourful" contrasts with the word "grey"

(Kravkov S. V. (1951)).

The same colour is associated differently in the brains

of two distinct individuals, leading to diverse modes

of expression in words. In Western society, for

example, "green" represents security, while in France,

it signifies criminality; in Chinese culture, "white"

symbolizes mourning and sorrow, whereas in

European culture, "black" serves the same functions.

Therefore, the language of colour is largely

Corresponding author

subjective. Meanings are attributed to colours as

perceived by humans (Maslova V.A. (2001)).

The innate ability to perceive the environment and the

natural world through colour drives people to not only

give shape to new creations but also assign them a

specific colour. Due to its close connection with

philosophical and aesthetic views of the world, colour

holds significant cultural importance. Numerous

scientific studies in various fields, including

philosophy, psychology, ethnology, linguistics, and

related disciplines like ethnolinguistics and

psychosemantics, explore topics related to colour and

chromaticism (Mironova L.N. (1993)).

Linguists have made significant contributions to the

study of colour and colour semantics. Concepts such

as "linguistics of colour" and "linguocolour picture of

the world" are of interest to many researchers in

modern science. The study of the theoretical aspects

of colour linguistics is associated with this scientific

direction (Abdullaeva, C. B. (2022)). It encompasses

the "historical study of colour lexicon (evolutionary

approach), psycholinguistic component of colour

names, cognitive aspects, linguocultural and

nominative-terminological aspects of colour lexicon

research" (Bairamova L.K. (2001)). Psycholinguistic

descriptions have explored the composition of

denotative vocabulary related to colour (A.P.

Vassilevich), the semantic structure (A.A. Bragina,

Abdullaeva, C. and Tairova, F.

The Universal and National-Cultural Speciﬁcity of Idioms Incorporating the Component ’Black’.

DOI: 10.5220/0012489600003792

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 1st Pamir Transboundary Conference for Sustainable Societies (PAMIR 2023), pages 419-422

ISBN: 978-989-758-687-3

419

I.V. Mokienko, L.N. Mironova), and the stylistic

functions of colour designations (R.V. Alimpiev).

Comparative-historical analysis has extensively

studied colouronyms (N.B. Bakhilina), while

psycholinguistic experiments have been conducted

(L.V. Vasilevich, R.M. Frumkin, P.V. Yanshin). T.I.

Vendina and A. Vezbitskaya explore linguistic

consciousness, the role of colour in human existence,

and the ethno-cultural system of the Russian

language. V.A. Maslova, S.G. Ter-Minasova, E.F.

Arsentyeva, Z.Z. Chanysheva, A.V. Zelenin, M.I.

Baeva, and U.N. Fysina address the peculiarities of

colour designations within the context of intercultural

communication. Various approaches to the study of

colour cognition exist, including anthropological (B.

Berlin, P. Kay), psychological (I. Roche), gender

(R.T. Lakoff, D. Simpson, A. Tarrant), and

linguocultural approaches (A. Vezbitskaya, L.I.

Isaeva, Sh.K. Zharkynbekova, and others).

2 OBSERVATIONS AND

DISCUSSIONS

Nearly everyone agrees that the colour "black"

connotes negativity and depressing situations. In

Christianity, it represents the darkness of death,

ignorance, despair, anguish, desire, sorrow, and evil

(Satan is known as the Prince of Darkness), as well as

the lowest levels or stages of the world (the afterlife,

primal chaos, "material prima" in alchemy), gloomy

prophecies, gloom, and death. Additionally, the

blackbird represents temptation in Christianity.

According to beliefs that have become part of modern

idiom, black is synonymous with misfortune, as seen

in phrases like "black cat" and "қора мушук."

Furthermore, in Islam, black is considered the colour

of revenge. However, black had more positive

connotations in ancient societies, including Egypt.

For example, in English linguistic culture, a black cat

is considered a sign of good luck (Lokid: Mif, 2000.).

The colour "black" also has positive symbolism in

Egypt and other ancient cultures, representing the

colour of the earth and rain clouds, the darkness of the

mother's womb, and the maternal beginning

(Kadirova, K. B., & Abdullaeva, C. B. (2020)). Black

reflects the initial "embryonic stage" of all processes.

Jung emphasized that carbon, the predominant

element in the human body, is black in the form of

coal or graphite. When coal is in the form of a

diamond, it is pure and transparent like water. Jung

believed that black represents stages corresponding to

the "descent into hell" as a redemption of all previous

stages (Kunin A. V. 1984.).

Black was the colour associated with the ancient

Egyptian gods Anubis (who conveyed souls to the

afterlife) and Minus, the god of the harvest. The

Greek goddess of hunting, Artemis of Ephesus

(known as Diana of Ephesus in Roman mythology

and Mother Earth), was sometimes depicted with

black palms and a black face (Kadirova, K. B., &

Abdullaeva, C. B. (2020)).

Moreover, black is the symbolic equivalent of white

and the absolute, as it can express both absolute

wholeness and absolute emptiness. Black often

denotes gloom, chaos, and death, and it can be

associated with the inner or underground realm. In

paganism, black animals were sacrificed to the

underground gods. Additionally, black represents the

colour of the night (Tresidder J. (1999).). The primary

meaning of black is darkness and the birth of

darkness. Furthermore, the symbolic range of black

includes a variety of ideas: motherhood, fertility,

mystery, and death. Black is also associated with

original black occult or unconscious wisdom

originating from a hidden source (Telia V. N. (1996)).

Black symbolizes time in contrast to white, which

represents eternity and ecstasy.

It is worth mentioning that in other languages, there

are numerous idiomatic meanings incorporating the

component "black" /черный/қора, similar to those

described in the languages outlined in this study.

In all linguistic cultures, this colour designation is

seen as a symbol of evil and misfortune. Examples

include phrases like "gentleman in black," "black

Friday," "black art," "black ball," "black belt," "black

magic," "black hole," "black man," "things look

black," "black bottle," "black magician" (Eng.);

"черная магия," "черный маг," "чёрная кошка,"

"черный шар" (Rus.); "бахти қора," "қора пешона,"

"қора мушук йўлини тусди," "қора курси," "қора

хабар," "ораларидан қора мушук ўтди" (Uzb.). It is

also seen as a symbol of mourning, as in phrases like

"to be dressed in black" (Eng.), "черный канал"

(Rus.) or "қора киймок" (Uzb.).

Due to the symbolic meaning of the colour black as a

representation of evil and the fact that night is a dark

time of day, various phrases have emerged in legends

of the supernatural that connote night and express

concepts associated with darkness and gloom: eng.:

black as hell, black as night, black as midnight, black

PAMIR 2023 - The First Pamir Transboundary Conference for Sustainable Societies- | PAMIR

420

as pitch, black as my hat, black as your hat; rus.:

черная ночь.

Furthermore, English also features idioms that

convey the idea that not everything black is a sign of

evil: eng.: be not so black as one is painted, black hen

lays a white egg, paint smb black, prove that black is

white and white black.

Based on the analysis, idioms incorporating the

component black/чёрный/қора express features

linked to the psychological state of a person.

However, the majority of idioms with the colour

black/чёрный/қора represent negative human

characteristics and possess a negative emotional

value: a) gloomy, depressed state: eng.: ride the black

donkey (to be in a bad condition, slang), black as ink,

black dog, black dog is on his back, look black, things

look black, see (or present) something in black, black

as coal, black as a crow, black as a raven's wing, black

as sloe, black as sin, black as soot, black as the ace of

spades, black as thunder, black looks, as a thunder

cloud; rus.: чернее ночи (someone very gloomy,

sullen); uzb.: қора хаёллар. b) negative qualities of a

human being, idleness, and depravity: eng.: black

ingratitude (expressing evil or deceit instead of

gratitude), a black soul (a cunning person capable of

low actions), black jack; rus.: черная душа

(condemnable deeds, actions), черная

неблагодарность за добро (ingratitude for

kindness), почерневший от злости (blacked out

from anger), черная клевета (baseless slander),

черное пятно (stain); uzb.: қора ният. c) violence in

a state of anger and rage: eng.: give smb a black eye,

beat somebody black and blue, black in the face; d)

obstinacy: eng.: make white black, turn white into

black, swear black is white; rus.: называть белое

чёрным, а чёрное белым; uzb.: Қорани оқ, оқни

қора демоқ.

This process is linked to the optical influence of

colour on the human body and the associations

formed at the mental level. Absolute black affects a

person, evoking feelings of hopelessness, depression,

or pessimism (Kunin A.V. (2005).).

Another example is describing a person's appearance:

eng.: black (blue) in the face - purple (due to effort or

irritation); (as) black as coals - black as embers

(describing eyes); black eye; black and blue - with

bruises, a black eye, etc.; rus.: black as a negro; black

as a chimney sweep (referring to a person's body,

face, or hands). Furthermore, there are phrases in

English associated with aging: black ox has trod on

one's fat. Phrases denoting attributes related to

specific concepts exist in every language:

a) a difficult period of life, a time of hardship and

poverty: eng.: black season; rus.: черный день; uzb.:

қора кун;

b) illegal, unofficial: eng.: black market; rus.: черный

рынок; uzb.: qora bozor;

c) to be in the black list; eng.: Be in the black books

of smb.; Black list, Black book, Black Marn; rus.:

быть в чёрном списке;

d) minerals: eng.: black diamonds, Black Country,

black gang; black gold; rus.: черное золото; uzb.:

қора олтин.

Considering that oil production is a significant

element in the economic systems of the three

linguistic cultures, idioms like қора олтин - чёрное

золото - black gold represent the equivalent and

connote the same attributes. However, the coal

industry holds equal importance to the oil industry in

English culture, which is reflected in the existence of

a larger number of phrases related to this sphere:

Black Country, black diamonds, black gang.

It is worth noting that the phrases in the languages

under investigation have connotations of similar

features, but their semantic content differs: eng.:

black frost; rus.: черная буря; uzb.: қора совуқ.

The analysis of idioms incorporating the component

black/чёрный/қора in English, Uzbek, and Russian

languages has revealed that these phrases contain

both universal and national-cultural characteristics.

Generally, these idioms encompass several

conceptual zones and can be used to describe a

person's: 1) psychological characteristics; 2) external

features; 3) social affiliation; 4) professional

affiliation. The semantic range and quantity of idioms

in each conceptual zone vary depending on the

language being considered (E.F.Rogov. (2000)).

Therefore, phrases incorporating the color component

black/чёрный/қора represent both universal and

national-cultural specific features. It is noteworthy

that no significant differences have been identified

between the idioms in English and Russian, as they

share common characteristics.

The universal specificity includes:

1) the perception of black as a symbol of evil,

unhappiness, and mourning;

2) signs associated with concepts such as a) gloomy,

depressed state; b) negative qualities of a person,

idleness, and viciousness; c) stubbornness; e)

The Universal and National-Cultural Speciﬁcity of Idioms Incorporating the Component ’Black’

421

physical characteristics of a person; f) difficult

periods of life, times of deprivation and poverty; g)

illegal, unofficial; h) being in disrepute; i) minerals.

The national-cultural specificity includes concepts

expressing:

1) violence in a state of anger and rage;

2) something ordinary, mundane, not festive;

3) professional affiliation with the church or

judiciary.

The majority of non-equivalent and distinctive

phrases emerge due to extra-linguistic factors of

historical nature, including:

a) the invention of printing;

b) historical realities of English linguistic culture;

c) everyday life realities;

d) slavery;

e) piracy;

f) natural phenomena and geographical factors.

Figure 1 illustrates the continuous selection approach

used in analyzing 116 idioms in English, Russian, and

Uzbek languages incorporating the color component

black/чёрный/қора. Furthermore, the figure

demonstrates that universal specificity is more

prevalent across all languages compared to national-

cultural specificity. According to this analysis, 70%

of idioms exhibit rich semantic attributes and are

exclusive to the English language.

3 CONCLUSION

According to the Uzbek language, the color қора in

idioms serves as a substitute for the third person,

carrying a negative meaning and often used as a

curse. The national-cultural specificity of Uzbek

idioms also reveals the presence of attributes such as

a) hard and unrewarded work; b) poverty and social

belonging to lower classes; c) value; d) wisdom.

Regarding axiological marking, it is worth noting that

the evaluation of black color designations in these

three languages is polar in nature. This topic has

garnered significant attention and is being

investigated by numerous linguistic scholars as an

important concept in linguistic cultures that assess

color cognition, encompassing both positive and

negative meanings.

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