In the system of philological sciences , various directions are distinguished - the theory of language, applied linguistics, stylistics, dialectology, and even onomastics. Today we will talk about what onomastics is, what its subject and object are, what sections are highlighted in it. Consider its relationship with other disciplines, sources that provide material for study.
Onomastics as a science
To begin with, what is onomastics. The definition says that this is a section of linguistics that studies proper names or onyms.
Initially, onomastics was an applied science, which was used by historians, geographers, and literary scholars as an auxiliary discipline. Later it was singled out in a separate section of linguistics with its own methods for analyzing linguistic material. The object of study of science is the history of origin, the motives of the nomination and the functioning of proper names in the language. The subject is directly onyms, names.
He studies onomastics phonetic, morphological, word-building, semantic and etymological aspects of proper names.
History of development
Speaking about what is onomastics, it is necessary to touch upon such a question as the history of the emergence of science.
She is considered relatively young. It has officially existed since 1930, when France hosted the world's first International Onomastics Congress.
Already in 1949, they created the Onomastic Committee at UNESCO, and published the specialized journal Onoma. The peak of the development of onomastics fell on 50-60 years of the last century.
Russian onomastics begins its history in 1812, when A. Kh. Vostokov published the article “Tasks for lovers of etymology”. In 1813, another important work of E. Bolkhovitinov “On the peculiarities of the proper names of the Slavs” was published. Over the course of two centuries, science has developed, establishing its research methods, collecting factual material, and creating theory bit by bit. In 2004, the journal Onomastics Issues began to appear in Russia.
Components of science
Depending on the language features, there are several areas of research. Onomastics of proper names can cover various fields of knowledge, while distinguishing:
- Regional onomastics, which is engaged in the study of the onomasticon of a particular region, are studied by its onomastic subsystems.
- Theoretical, which studies the general laws of development and functioning of onomastic systems.
- Applied onomastics is primarily associated with the practice of naming, their functioning in the modern language. This includes the establishment of a record and pronunciation of names, the development of normative models by which middle names and surnames are formed, adjectives to indicate belonging to a particular locality, region of residence, family.
- Descriptive, which deals with the analysis of the onomastic state of a particular territory. Moreover, any one onomastic class is considered.
- Poetic onomastics - studies the functioning of proper names in literary texts, the principles of their creation, functions in the text.
Sections
Depending on the category of studied objects of proper names, the following sections of onomastics are distinguished:
- Anthroponymy - studies the names of people.
- Toponymy - studies the names of geographical objects.
- Zoononymy - studies animal nicknames.
- Astronomy - studies the names of stellar bodies - planets, stars, comets.
- Hydronymics - studies the name of water bodies - rivers, lakes, seas and oceans.
Communication with other sciences
Speaking of what onomastics is, one cannot fail to note its connection with other disciplines. First of all, it is closely connected with linguistics. Science uses linguistic methods to analyze proper nouns. It is also connected with logic, since the connection between a concept and a word is studied. The connection of onomastics with geography and astronomy is traced. Scientists often turn to onomasts to solve problems such as the correct spelling and translation of names.
History, ethnography and archeology provide a lot of useful information to onomast scholars. Those, in turn, help historians. The importance of onomastics for scientists connected with history is invaluable. So, these onomastics help to study the settlement of peoples, their customs and rites, since the formation of names, their use, are closely related not only to certain peoples, but also to eras. With the help of onomastics, you can not only determine the boundaries of the settlement of peoples, but also date various written memos.
Sources of study
You and I found out what onomastics is, a definition was given to it, and we identified the main sections. But one question nevertheless remained uninitiated - where do scientists get the actual material for study?
There are many sources. The most used include:
- Lists of names and surnames.
- Church books and calendars.
- Dialect entries and memos.
- Geographical and astronomical maps.
- Address books.
- Books describe the land.
- Catalogs of animal exhibitions.
- Lists from horse racing.
- Works of art.
The study
They study this science exclusively at universities at the philological faculties. Acquaintance with the section occurs when studying the course "Lexicology" or as a separate special course. During the training, students will learn what onomastics is, what methods it uses, what sections stand out in it.
In school, it is rarely studied, except in high profile classes. But at the same time, acquaintance with science is superficial and gives only basic information about it.
conclusions
Onomastics is one of the linguistic disciplines that studies proper names and their functioning in Russian. She is relatively young. They study it at the philological faculties.