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The classification of somatic vocabulary in Evenki nimnakan

https://doi.org/10.25587/2782-4861-2026-2-137-151

Abstract

The study of the Evenk language has not yet paid sufficient attention to the issues of studying somatic vocabulary in Evenk folklore. The Evenk nimnakans are a source for learning the language, culture and worldview of the Evenks. This work is aimed at studying the somatic vocabulary of the Evenki epic. For the first time, a classification of the somatic vocabulary of the nimnakan was developed, including four groups. The first group includes the names of the head and its parts. The names of the torso and their parts are assigned to the second group. Somatisms denoting internal organs are proposed for the third group. The fourth group includes somatisms denoting skin and body covering. The main purpose of the study is to review and classify somatic vocabulary in the texts of the nimnakans. The objectives are to analyze somatisms that play a significant role in creating an artistic image of the epic hero, negative characters, monsters and the heroic deer; to describe the specifics and identify the semantics of somatisms in the epic text. The analysis of somatisms in nimnakans will reveal the peculiarities of mythology and imagery of thinking. The research materials were the texts “So be Sodani – mata” (“Brave Sodani – bogatyr”) and “Vardan – deverden tatylken dagilter sonku Davelchen” (“All–powerful bogatyr Davelchen in embroidered and decorated clothes”). The analysis uses linguistic analysis of the structure of somatism; semantic analysis of somatic expression in general; contextual analysis of the use of somatism to characterize a character; identification of stable expressions and phraseological units with somatisms. The analysis of somatisms has shown that they are an integral part of the figurative vocabulary of the Evenks. Specific examples from the nimnakans demonstrate how somatisms are used to characterize external signs and internal qualities, as well as the social roles of the characters in the tales. A classification of the somatic vocabulary of the Evenk nimnakan (4 groups) has been developed: 1) the names of the head and its parts (dere – face, esa – eyes, omkocho – forehead, sen – ear, anchan – cheek); 2) the names of the trunk and its parts (dyalan – joints, muni – muscles, halgan – leg, yawale – arm); 3) names of internal organs (mevan – heart, sekse – blood, irge – brain); 4) somatisms expressing the skin (nanna). One of the promising directions is the study of the figurative system of the Evenki epic based on the analysis of the somatic vocabulary of individual heroes (heroes, monsters, beautiful girls, etc.) Keywords: folklore, somatism, naming of body parts, nimbakan, composition, stable expressions, phrases, phraseological units, heroic epic, Evenki, vocabulary.

About the Authors

N. P. Nikolaeva
M. K. Ammosov North-Eastern Federal University
Russian Federation

Nadezhda P. Nikolaeva, senior lecturer at the Department of Northern Philology of the Institute of Languages and Culture of the Peoples of the North-Eastern of Russian Federation  

Yakutsk



L. S. Efimova
M. K. Ammosov North-Eastern Federal University
Russian Federation

Lyudmila S. Efimova, Dr. Sci. (Philology), Associate Professor, Head of the Department of Cultural Studies, Institute of the Languages of the North-Eastern of Russian Federation  

Yakutsk



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Review

For citations:


Nikolaeva N.P., Efimova L.S. The classification of somatic vocabulary in Evenki nimnakan. Epic Studies. 2026;(2):137-151. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.25587/2782-4861-2026-2-137-151

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