The Conceptualization of “Heart” in Uzbek and Russian Phraseology: A Comparative Semantic and Linguocultural Analysis

Abstract

This article examines the semantic, pragmatic, cognitive, and linguocultural characteristics of phraseological units containing the component heart in the Uzbek and Russian languages. The study is based on a comparative analysis of phraseological expressions with the components yurak in Uzbek and сердце in Russian. Particular attention is paid to the ways in which these somatic components conceptualize emotions, psychological states, moral qualities, interpersonal relations, and human behavior. The theoretical framework of the research draws upon the works of Uzbek, Russian, and international scholars in phraseology, including U. M. Rashidova, Sh. Rahmatullayev, B. Yuldoshev, V. V. Vinogradov, A. V. Kunin, V. N. Telia, D. O. Dobrovol’skij, G. Lakoff, and M. Johnson. Special emphasis is placed on Rashidova’s semantic-pragmatic and linguocultural approach to somatic phraseological units with the component yurak. The analysis demonstrates that the heart functions in both languages as a culturally significant conceptual center associated with love, affection, sincerity, courage, fear, compassion, suffering, and moral character. At the same time, Uzbek and Russian phraseological systems differ in their metaphorical models, lexical structures, stylistic characteristics, and pragmatic functions. The study also identifies different types of phraseological correspondence, including full equivalence, partial equivalence, phraseological analogy, and non-equivalence. The findings demonstrate that the comparative study of heart-related phraseological units provides important insights into the interaction between language, cognition, bodily experience, and national-cultural conceptualization. The results may be useful for comparative linguistics, phraseology, linguoculturology, translation studies, lexicography, and foreign-language teaching.