The yellow color in the phraseological picture of the world of the Russian and Persian languages: an axiological aspect

Haji Mousaei Svetlana Aleksandrovna Postgraduate student, Department of Russian Language and Literature, University of Tehran 15 Kargar-E-Shomali str., Tehran, Iran, 1439813164 shsveta21@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Madaeni Awwal Ali PhD in Philology Associate Professor, Department of Russian Language and Literature University of Tehran 16 Kargar Shomali Street, Tehran, Iran, 1439813164 amadayen@ut.ac.ir Other publications by this author

Color surrounds us everywhere, it causes various feelings and associations, affects our emotions and perception of the world around us, sets the mood, and through color designations included in the linguistic picture of each nation, it is possible to convey the speaker's attitude to the surrounding reality. The linguistic picture of the world is reflected in the language and develops in the everyday consciousness of the people, thereby forming a collective philosophy with a system of universal and national-specific views, which all native speakers of this language consciously and unconsciously accept.

A special role in the study of the linguistic picture of the world is assigned to lexicology and, in particular, phraseology, since it is phraseological units "... associated with cultural and national standards, stereotypes, mythologems, etc. and when used in speech reproduce the mentality characteristic of a particular linguistic and cultural community" ^{[1, p.9]}. Phraseological units play an important role in identifying national and cultural characteristics. Phraseological units, reflecting in their semantics the long process of development of the culture of the people, fix and transmit from generation to generation cultural attitudes and stereotypes, standards and archetypes. They have always played an important role in the speech of any nation. They make speech expressive and vivid, rich and emotional, specific and concise. Phraseological units belong to one of the foundations of people's knowledge about the world in which they live, and familiarity with them helps not only to master a foreign language well, but also to better understand the peculiarities of thinking and character traits of this people ^{[2, p.57]}. Values define "the most important meanings of human activity, and as such have both a universal (psychological) and culturally specific nature" ^{[3, p.26]}, which, using linguistic means, express "the verbal objectification of assessments, values and judgments based on them" ^{[4, p.92]}. With the help of axiological analysis in the studied languages, it is possible to determine values and assessments in language and speech.

Work on the comparative analysis of FE with a color component was carried out earlier: FE of the Russian language were compared with Italian FE ^[5], with German FE ^[6], with French FE ^[7].  Studies on the comparison of FE with the color component of the Russian and Persian languages were also conducted, but black and white colors were studied as a color component ^[8], as well as yellow, which was analyzed from the point of view of the linguistic and cultural aspect ^[9]. The scientific novelty of this work consists in the study and comparison of phraseological units with the colorative "yellow" in Russian and Persian from the point of view of axiology.

Yellow, in addition to red and blue, is included in the group of so-called "primary colors". The explanatory dictionary of Ushakov D. N. gives the following definition of the adjective "yellow": "The designation of one of the seven primary colors located in the solar spectrum between orange and green; similar to the color of gold" ^{[10, p. 856]}, and in the explanatory dictionary of the Persian language, zard is all that has the color of gold, lemon or saffron ^{[11, p. 376]}. Note that the Persian word "z?rd" () has a common root with the word "z?r" (), i.e. gold.  Yellow is perceived in comparable languages as the sun, as bright and sparkling, it is light, radiant, exciting and therefore warming ^{[12, p. 36]}. The yellow color coinciding visually with the color of gold and identifying power and strength, was often used in the heraldry of the state symbols of the two countries. An example of this is the following facts: in the second half of the XIX century, the Russian Emperor Alexander II approved a drawing "with the arrangement of the armorial black-yellow-white colors of the empire on banners, flags and other items for decorations on the streets on special occasions"; the official coat of arms of Iran (1956-1979). It included images of yellow lions and the sun, which became the national emblem of Iran during the Qajar dynasty, where the lion symbolizes bravery and greatness, and the sun – warmth, a source of energy and life, continuity ^{[13, p. 69]}. Even in his work Goethe I.V. "The Study of color" argued that yellow belongs to the group of "positive" colors, and pure yellow is a color pleasant to the eye: "Experience has proven that yellow creates the impression of warmth and comfort. The eye rejoices, the heart is overflowing with delight, the soul sings and it seems that real warmth has blown on us," but when it is "polluted", i.e. when other darker colors are added, it acquires a negative sound and a negative symbolic meaning ^{[14, pp. 30, 57]}. The French historian M. Pastoureau adheres to the same point of view in his book, saying that "yellow is perceived positively only in one case — when it is likened to gold; yellow as such, in itself, is always regarded negatively" ^{[15, p. 49]}.

The colorative "yellow", having many shades, is also one of the most controversial colors:  the yellow color in the traffic light was chosen in 1920 because it is clearly visible in various weather conditions and is perceived as a color capable of concentrating attention; in sports games, in particular football, a yellow card shown to a player means a warning;  A yellow flag on ships means that everyone on board is healthy; the yellow color on the scale of weather hazard codes serves as a warning of potential danger. In the palette of meanings, the yellow color again indicates its inconsistency: yellow autumn is a wonderful time before the cold snap, the time when the foliage on the trees turns all shades of yellow before ending its life cycle, but at the same time the yellow color reminds of withering and approaching death:

The yellow autumn will also pass // With a sheaf, with a stack and with a bratchina.

(Ostrovsky A. N., The Snow Maiden, 1873)

Based on the analysis of the linguistic material, the following aspects of the semantics of phraseological units with the color designation "yellow" in the Russian and Persian languages were identified:

- nature. The brightly shining sun at the zenith, in the Persian language, has a figurative expression rubakh-e zard ( )*, which literally means "yellow fox" ^{[11, p. 618]}.

* Hereafter, the translation and Russian transcription from Persian sources are performed by the authors of the article

- the name. The Russian phraseologism yellow race ^{[16, p. 233]} and the Persian phraseologism zardpust ^{[17, p. 759]}, literally translated as "yellow-skinned", serve as the name of the Mongoloid race or a representative of the Mongoloid race. The medical term macula, which refers to a particularly light-sensitive place of the retina at the exit of the optic nerve, has the same names in both Russian and Persian as the yellow spot and the lakhkeh zard ( )  accordingly.

- the room. At the end of the 18th century, the first psychiatric institution of the city was opened in St. Petersburg, the outer walls of the building of which were painted dirty yellow ^[18]. The winged expression yellow house became used in relation to the unofficial name of psychiatric hospitals in Russia (madhouse) after the release of Voeikov A. F.'s satirical poem "House of the Insane":

I dreamed that in Petrograd / Across the Obukhov bridge on foot /

I crossed over, I'm rushing to the fence / And I enter the Yellow House

(1814—1830)

- the disease. Glaucoma, an eye disease in which the pupil turns yellowish, is popularly called yellow water ^{[10, p. 324]}. In the Persian language, this disease is called abe s?bz ( ), literally meaning "green water". The expression yellow fever refers to an acute viral hemorrhagic disease, common in tropical countries, transmitted by infected mosquitoes ^{[10, p. 856]}.  

- under the influence. We know that the trade union is a public organization designed to represent the interests of employees and protect them. But the expression yellow trade unions, borrowed into Russian by quoting from French, serves as a common name for trade unions whose leaders pursue a policy of cooperation with entrepreneurs, being under its influence, i.e. the protection of workers in such unions is formal in nature, pursuing the goals of employers ^{[19, p. 58]}.

- danger. The Russian phraseological unit yellow danger and the Persian - khatar-e zard ( ) are expressions of the imperialist ideology of Europeans, which implies a threat to European culture from the yellow race ^{[10, p. 856]}. This expression entered Russian and Persian by way of calculus from English, in which "yellow peril" was a term used in politics and popular fiction in the late 19th and early 20th century to describe the perceived economic and cultural danger posed by Chinese immigration to Europe and America.

- low-grade edition. The expression yellow press and mokht?vi-e z?rd ( ), literally translated as "yellow content", meaning publications of the print press distributed at a fairly low price and, in pursuit of sensation, specializing in rumors, sensations (often imaginary), scandals, gossip, came from English into Russian and Persian about the lives of famous people. This phraseology became popular after in 1896, Erwin Wardman, editor of the third edition of the New York Press, published an article in his magazine in which he contemptuously called two competing newspapers "yellow press".

- a reminder of patience. The Persian proverb x ane shokhar-e h?ft homre z?rd-ab dar?d ( *), literally translated as "there are seven homres* bile in the husband's house," can be uttered by a mother, escorting her daughter-in-law to her husband's house, warning her of the inevitable fate and urging patience ^{[20, p. 53]}.

A clay vessel with convex walls for wine, water, etc.

- valuable, dear. It is possible to express something as something that is very expensive and has high value using the expression yellow gold ^{[21, p. 303]}.

- Inexperienced. A young, inexperienced and naive person is characterized, often disparagingly, by the phraseology of a young chick ^{[22, p. 79]}. This expression arose by analogy with newly hatched chicks, whose beak is yellow.

- a symbol of profit. The phraseology yellow devil is the name of gold, which enslaves people, and also characterizes the spirit of profit and greed ^{[23, p. 220]}. This expression became widespread after the publication in 1906 of M. Gorky's essay "The City of the Yellow Devil".

- Greed. The Persian proverb ad?m-e t?m?'kar r?ngesh z?rd ast ( ), literally translated as "a greedy yellow man", says that excessive greed and the desire for profit can lead to loss of reason and wisdom ^{[24, p. 91]}. This phraseology corresponds to Russian: greed deprives the last mind.

- proximity to death, precarious position. The Persian expression aftabesh zard shode (), literally translated as "his sun has already turned yellow", is given in the meaning "the end is coming" and 1) is often used in relation to elderly people, hinting at old age and proximity to death. Grave Russian phraseological meaning corresponds to the Russian expressions not a dweller in the white world, breathing hard or with one foot in the grave. 2) sometimes this phraseology is used when they want to talk about the precarious position of an official or boss ^{[20, p. 87]}.

- fatigue. The proverb gham bin?v?yan rokh?m z?rd k?rd ( ), literally meaning "the sadness of the poor has turned my face yellow", says that a person feels tired not from work, but from anxiety and corresponds to Russian: not work dries, but care ^{[20, p. 182]}.

- failure. The proverb r?ng-e z?rd?m ra bebin, ahval zar?m ra m?ports (Russian:? ? ), literally translated as "look at my yellow color, do not ask how I am," speaks of a bad state of affairs, failure in business and corresponds to Russian: things are like soot white ^{[24, p. 73]}.

- similarity. Speaking about people who are similar to each other in their bad deeds or behavior, you can use the Persian proverb s?g-e z?rd b?rad?re shogal ast (? ? ), which literally translates as "the yellow dog is the brother of the jackal." This expression in Russian corresponds to: each other are standing (in a negative sense), two boots are a pair ^{[24, p. 72]}.

- appearance. The phraseology of shogali ke morgk migire bikh-e gushesh z?rde ( ), literally translated as "the jackal who takes chickens has yellow ears", tells us that by the appearance of a person it can be understood that he did something bad and corresponds to the Russian proverb: to steal flour is to turn white ^{[24, p. 152]}. The use of the expression z?rd chehre ( ), literally meaning "yellow-faced", conveys to us such external characteristics of a person as a yellow and withered complexion; pallor; lethargy and depression ^{[17, p.759]}. The Persian phraseology z?rd shod?n ()?)), literally translated as "to turn yellow", is used in the meaning of turning pale ^{[17, p.759]}.

- character traits. A hot-tempered, angry, bilious person is characterized by the Persian phraseologism zardabi (), literally translated as "yellow water", and a hypocritical, scary, unemployed or repentant person is called the phraseologism zardgush(), literally translated as "yellow-eared". The phraseologism z?rdd?ste ( ? ?)))) is used in relation to a stingy, greedy person (letters. "yellow hands")^{[17, p.760]}.

- condition. The phraseology zardab richt?n ( ), literally translated as "pouring yellow water", indicates that the one to whom this expression is addressed is in a bad, angry, irritable mood and this phraseology is close to Russian: to throw thunder and lightning ^{[17, p.759]}.  The Persian phraseological units z?rd roh () and z?rd ru (), literally meaning "yellow face", characterize a person's condition as ashamed of fear or shame, turned pale as a result of shame or embarrassment, confused. In addition to these meanings, the expression <url> can also serve as a description of a painful condition ^{[17, p.759]}. The phraseologism z?rd k?rd?n ( ), literally translated as "to become yellow", says that the person in respect of whom this expression is used feels sadness from sadness or love. Close to Russian (2): lose yourself.

Half of my face turned pale from helplessness || The grief of the poor causes sadness on my face.

 (Saadi)

|| .

()

To fail to meet expectations or to find yourself in a stupid position – these states are characterized by the Persian phraseology that zard d?ravord?n (Russian:literally meaning "you brought yellow"), which corresponds to Russian: to sit in a galoshes ^{[25, p. 301]}. The phraseological unit zard?nbu (), literally translated as "yellow", has two meanings: 1) pale (about the complexion); 2) frail, weak ^{[17, p.759]}. The expression r?ng z?rdi keshid?n ( ? ? ) ^{[11, p. 598]} means to experience embarrassment, embarrassment (letters. "to paint with yellow paint") and corresponds to the Russian: blush.

- assessment. The Persian proverb n?h?r an chiz ke u z?rd bud?n, bash?d z?r ( ), literally translated as  "not everything that is yellow will be gold," reminds us that it is necessary to evaluate someone or something by internal content, and not by external signs ^{[24, p. 170]}. This phraseology is similar to Russian: not all that glitters is gold.

- appeal to the fire. The Persian expression z?rdi-e m?n az to, sorkhi to az m?n ( ? ? ? ? ), literally translated as "my yellowness is from you, your redness is from me," Iranians say, jumping through the fire on the Charshambe Suri holiday, which takes place on the last Wednesday of the year, in the hope that only good things will come from the fire, and all the bad things - diseases, adversities and pain - will go into the fire.

Based on the results of the work carried out, 12 FE in Russian and 26 FE in Persian with the color component "yellow" were analyzed.  it can be concluded that phraseological units with the colorative "yellow" can be represented in the form of the following semantic groups:

- the colorative "yellow" is part of phraseological units that have the following positive meanings

- the colorative "yellow" is part of phraseological units that have the following negative meanings

 The phraseologism yellow house can have both negative and positive connotations, depending on the context in which it is used.

The FE of the Russian and Persian languages, which have the meaning of the name of the Mongoloid race or representatives of the Mongoloid race (1 FE each), the medical term (1 FE each) and the names of diseases (2 FE in Russian), can be classified as neutral, since they do not reflect either positive or negative connotations.

Based on the analysis described above, it can be concluded that the colorative "yellow" in both Russian and Persian expresses, overwhelmingly, a negative value (75% and 95.5%, respectively). We have identified,  that the negative connotation of the color designation "yellow" in the Russian language is observed in words borrowed from other languages (English, French) or formed by comparison (yellow-mouthed chick) or as a result of metonymy (yellow house). Also, during the analysis of the FE of the Persian language containing the colorative "yellow", it was found that their number is quite numerous, and the FE characterizing the external and internal state of a person, his character traits, serve as a reminder of patience and appeal to higher powers have a negative connotation. From all the above, it can be concluded that in the semantics of the FE, which are part of the linguistic culture of both Russian and Persian languages and have the colorative "yellow" in their composition, there is mainly a negative connotative meaning. But it is worth noting that Persian phraseological units with the color designation "yellow" in most cases characterize in negative meanings the traits of a person's character, his condition and attitude to the surrounding reality.