Comparative analysis of phrases and phraseological units from Kyrgyz epic “Manas” and its English translation

Phraseological units the same as compound words can have more than two tops (stems in compound words), e.g. to take a back seat, a peg to hang a thing on, lock, stock and barrel, to be a shadow of one’s own self, at one’s own sweet will.

N.M. Shanskiy classified phraseologisms according to the structure into two groups:

• Nominative – phraseologisms denominating this or that phenomenon of reality.
• Communicative – phraseologisms consisting of a whole sentence, for instance proverbs etc.

Koonin made the following structural-semantic classification of phraseological units.

1. Nominative A hard nut to crack
2. Nominative –communicative The ice is broken
3. Interjectional & modal (Emotions, feelings) Oh, my eye! (= Oh, my God!) As sure as eggs is eggs (просто, как 2х2)
4. Communicative (proverbs, sayings) There is no smoke without fire.

 

1.2.3 Syntactic classification of phraseological units

Phraseological units can be classified as parts of speech. This classification was suggested by I.V. Arnold. Here we have the following groups:

a) noun phraseologisms denoting an object, a person, a living being, e.g. bullet train, latchkey child,  redbrick university, Green Berets,

b) verb phraseologisms denoting an action, a state, a feeling, e.g. to break the log-jam, to get on somebody’s coattails, to be on the beam, to nose out , to make headlines,

c) adjective phraseologisms denoting a quality, e.g. loose as a goose, dull as lead,

d) adverb phraseological units, such as : with a bump,  in the soup, like a dream , like a dog with two tails,

e) preposition phraseological units, e.g. in the course of, on the stroke of ,

f) interjection phraseological units, e.g. «Catch me!», «Well, I never!» etc.

In I.V.Arnold’s classification there are also sentence equivalents, proverbs, sayings and quotations, e.g.  «The sky is the limit», «What makes him tick», » I am easy». Proverbs are usually metaphorical, e.g. «Too many cooks spoil the broth», while sayings are as a rule non-metaphorical, e.g. «Where there is a will there is a way». 

Koonin also had classified phraseology into three branches: 1. study of idioms, 2. study of phrases and idioms and 3. study of  phrases.

Idioms contain all information in compressed form. This quality is typical of idioms, it makes them very capacious units (idiom is a compressed text). An idiom can provide such a bright explanation of an object that can be better than a sentence. We can compare idioms with fables (the Prodigal son [3, p. 571]). Idioms based on cultural components are not motivated (the good Samaritan [5], Lot’s wife [5], the Troy horse [5]). Idioms are divided into two according to the structure:

a) Fixed idioms: fixed regular idioms (Ex: It’s a 60-thousand dollar question = difficult question) and fixed irregular -can be varied on the grammatical level (Ex: I have.., She has.. a bee in one’s bonnet).

b) Variable idioms – varied on lexical level. Ex.: to add fuel to the fire/flame.

Semantically idioms are classified into following three groups:

a) Opaque in meaning (трудный для понимания) the meaning of the individual words can’t be summed together to produce the meaning of the whole. Ex.: to kick the bucket = to die. It contains no clue to the idiomatic meaning of this expression. The degree of semantic isolation is the highest. => phraseological fusions

b)  Semi-opaque one component preserves its direct meaning. Ex.:  to pass the buck = to pass responsibility – свалить ответственность => phraseological unities.

c) Transparent both components in their direct meaning but the combination acquires figurative sense. Ex.: to see the light = to understand => phraseological combinations.  There are lots of idioms (proverbs, saying). Ex.: Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back.

In 1964 A.V. Koonin and V.L. Arhangelskiy introduced the term “phraseological meaning”. Phraseological meaning distinguishes from lexical meaning of a word by reflecting subjects, phenomena, features of the real world, by its motivation and by the feature to form a whole meaning from the components of a P.U, i.e. its components built up its whole meaning. Koonin defined phraseological meaning as “an invariant of the information that is expressed by semantically complicated, separately formed linguistic units. Phraseological meaning contains background information. It covers only the most essential features of the object it nominates. It corresponds to the basic concept, to semantic nucleus of the unit. It is the invariant of information conveyed by semantically complicated word combinations and which is not derived from the lexical meanings of the conjoined lexical components [Рыжкова В.В. К проблеме изучения  фразеологических  единиц в современном английском языке ( к постановке вопроса) // Вісн. Харків. ун-ту. – Харків, 1996. №386. – С.109-110.].

   According to the class the word-combination belongs to, we single out:

•        idiomatic meaning;

•        idiophraseomatic meaning;

•        phraseomatic meaning (after Ryzhkova).

The information conveyed by phraseological units is thoroughly organized and is very complicated. It is characterized by:

1) multilevel structure;

2) structure of a field (nucleus + periphery);

3) block-schema (after Ryzhkova).

It contains 3 macro-components which correspond to a certain type of information they convey:

•        the grammatical block;

•        the phraseological meaning proper;

•        motivational macro-component (phraseological imagery; the inner form of the phraseological unit; motivation) (after Ryzhkova).

We also refer: the cliche, set-phrases, proverbs, sayings to phraseological units.

CHAPTER III. COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PHRASES AND PHRASEOLOGICAL UNITS WITH CULTURAL IMPLICATION FROM KYRGYZ INTO ENGLISH

3.1 Translation examples of phraseological units from novels by Ch. Aytmatov “Jamiyla” and Farewell Gulsary”.

Chapter III Translation of Kyrgyz phrases and phraseologisms with cultural implication into English

• Биздин Садык да жылкычы болуп жүрүп, жайлоодогу малчылардын тоюнда кыз куумайга түшүп, Жамийлага жетпей калган имиш, ошондон улам намыстанып аны ала качып келгенин уккам. (Ч. Айтматов, «Жамийла», 200)

Our Sadyk was also a horse-breeder. It was said that at the spring races he could not take overtake Jamila. Perhaps that was so, but they said that the insulted Sadyk had kidnapped her.

• Анан өзү да бирөөгө жемин жегизбеген өжөр, айтышкан менен айтышып, тилдешкен менен тилдешип, ал тургай бир-эки жолу келиндер менен тытышканы да бар. (Ч. Айтматов, «Жамийла», 200)

She got along well with the other women, but if they criticized her undeservedly she would never let them get the better of her; there were even times when she had pulled another woman’s hair in anger. (Ch. Aytmatov, “Jamila”, 10)

Note: өжөр – ‘stubborn as a donkey’

• Эшик төрдү көргөнүнө бир күн болбой жатып, тили менен тим эле буудай кууруйт! (Ч. Айтматов, «Жамийла», 200)

She’s only just come to live with you, and her tongue’s already a mile long! (Ch. Aytmatov, “Jamila”, 11)

• Адамдын ичи койну ачыгы эле жакшы болот (Ч. Айтматов, «Жамийла», 200)

Our daughter-in-law tells a person the truth right to his face. (Ch. Aytmatov, “Jamila”, 11)

• Данияр кой оозунан чөп албаган жоош адам эле.

 

• Катты окуй электе эле анда эмнелер жазылганын мен күн мурун эле биле турганмын, анткени алардын баары эгиз козудай бирине бири окшош болчу.(205)

 

• Аа, тумардай болгон катыңардан айланайын! (205)

 

• Тигини, мышык этке жетпей жатып сасык дейт... (203)

 

• Каймагы алынган сүттөй(209)

 

 

• Анан айылга бир түшкөндө жаңы боз үй тууралуу сөз кылса, үй жасаган кары чеберлер алдагачан көзү өтүп, жаштар болсо ал өнөрдөн куру жалак калыптыр. (Ч.Айтматов, «Кош бол, Гүлсары», 311)

But when he was next in the village and he remembered that he had to ask about a new yurta, it turned out that the old makers of yurtas had died long ago and none of the young men had any idea of how to make them. (Ch.Aytmatov, “Farewell, Gulsary”, 137)

Көзү тирүү, көзү өтүү –       It will be more effective to translate metaphorical phraseologism көзү өтүү as passed away.

• Ит мурун чычкан мурду аралагыс болуп жыш экен, тикенеги кол салдырбайт.

The latter were thick and full of prickles.(description approach) omission of color.

Эл оозунда сөз болуу  –

• Гүлсары Гүлсары болуп турган тушунда арабага чегиш үч уктаса түшкө кирбес эле. (31)

 

• Атаң көрү-ү, атаң көрү-ү!... Азыркы жаштарың эл болуп деле жарытпайт го.

 

 

• Ушундай болот деп уч уктаса Танабайдын түшүнө кирди бекен. (Ч.А.); Тамак чөптү көргөндө

 

• Конституциянын жана азыркы закондордун бешик боосун Кудай бек кылсын! Буга окшогон билдирүүнү газета бетине жарыялоо үч уктаса түшкө кирчү ишпи! Мен сиздин бул оюңузга да кошулам мистер Борк, бул сүйлөшүү менин көзүмдү мурдагыдан да көбүрөөк ачты; Мындай кадам жасоого баруу менен «Трибюн» кандай оор жүктү моюнга алып жатканын жакшы түшүнүп турам; Жоболоң көз ачып-жумганча болду. (Ч.А. «Кассандра тамгасы»)

 

Phraseologisms in the epic “Manas”:

• Айтканымды уккун жайма-жай,  Lion Manas, thus I am well-known

Атым менин Манас деп,  If mighty Allah protects my head,

Алла таала сактаса   I shall live to see you all dead.

Ар балаадан калас деп,  I shall be slaved from disaster he said.

[«Манас» эпосу I том, 252]     [Epic “Manas” part I, 238]

 

• Бешик боосу бек болсун,                    May the cradle’s cord be strong! 

Кундагың боосу кут  болсун!   May the baby’s life be long!

[«Манас» эпосу I том, 70]       [Epic “Manas” part I,63]

• Ботосу жоктон майышып -  I was sad that no fool I had -

Боздоп жүрдүм кайышып  Snorted and spit like a camel bad

Сүйүнчү десе бир адам    If somebody cries “Happy news!”

Тура албасмын тайышып   All control of feelings I’ll lose

[«Манас» эпосу I том, 56]     [Epic “Manas” part I, 49] 

Used method of translation of the fragment - Description approach

• Коңуругу баш жаруу(«Манас» эпосу I том, 23) – His snoring my head was split, He slept serene… (Epic “Manas” part I, 49)

Шылдының, балам, эп деди,    What are you saying, straight to my face,

• Кулакка сыйбас кеп («Манас» эпосу I том, 38) -  Laddie, don’t make a mock of me (Epic “Manas” part I, 49)

 

• ? Барбана болуу башына («Манас» эпосу I том, 66) - 

 

 

• Тырмактай болгон кулунум («Манас» эпосу I том, 82) – He is a Tom Thumb… (74)

 

• Бата берүү – being blessed, to give blessings (78)

 

 

• Кужуру кайноо – to the milk’ sop (84)

 

• Ачууланып Манастын   Then Manas went really mad

Түгү тешти  тонунан (102)   Hair stood up and pierced the lad (92)

 Балтыр эти толо элек   While you’r heart muscles as yet are weak (Up till now his muscles aren’t whole)

Балбан чагың боло элек   Time has not come yet for warrior’s deeds(Time is not ripe yet for knightly deeds)

Жүрөк эти толо элек    While you’r whole body manliness needs

Жүткүнөр чагың боло элек (114)  Time to rush into the battle’s not here. (104)

Used translation method of the fragment – word by word translation

 Төрт түлүк мал  (49) - Cows, sheep and goats, four nines – not more (62) concretization

• Бирөөнүн түбүнө жетүү (128) – To driven somebody to despair (115)

 

• Атасынын көрү (138, 206) – Devil take! (128), Be you accursed! (192)

 

 

• Ат арытып, тон тозуу (133) –

 

Кызы талак (146) – dishonest (134)

Бай Жакып белин бууду  (175) – He(Jakib) has a son (163)

Ат чабышуу (175) – to ride at races(163)

• Каралдым сенден айрылып   How my heart grieved within my breast

Кабыргам  мурда сөгүлдүм (185)   You, my race-horse, my speedy steed (175)

• Бар Кудай жардам берсин деп, –   May Allah come  to u’r aid!

Батасын берип  салганы (206)   Bowed to him too for the gift he’d made (192) – half word by word, half paraphrased

Белге таңуу болуу(221) – To be support for smb. (207)

• Бала болсун мал менен   Let’s have our herds and a child indoors

Аргымак болсун жал менен  (part I, 30) Let long –maned horses run on the plain (I, 24)

• Мурут бар жерде сакал бар,  Where there are whiskers– there is a beard 

Мурунтадан макал бар  (II, 13)  So the ancient folk proverb goes (I, 263)

 Суудай жашы төгүлүү (13) = Ботодой боздоо – Tears in unrestrained steam lets sweep (259)

Кыргыз салтына  байланыштуу фразалар:

Күйөөлөп келүү (Кыргыздын  көөнөрбөс дөөлөттөрү 110)

Чачыла чачуу(113)

Жар-жар айтуу(114)

Нике кыюу(115)

Очок күтүү(116)

Отко кирүү(117)

Кийит кийгизүү(127)

Төркүлөп баруу(144)

Көзү тийүү