THE CONCEPT OF «HOME» IN THE PHRASEOLOGY OF THE ENGLISH AND GERMAN LANGUAGES

Abstract

The article studies the concept of «HOME» in the English and German languages through the prism of phraseological units as well as paremiology. For this purpose, a distinction is made between the notions of paremias and phraseological units. It has been established that the concept of «HOME» is one of the fundamental and universal concepts, as it accompanies an individual throughout life and shapes their key perceptions and values. In both English-speaking and German-speaking cultures, home is not only a physical space for living but also a symbol of morality, spirituality, unity, and tradition. It is determined that in English the concept of «HOME» is predominantly represented by the lexemes home and house, while in German it is represented by the lexemes Haus and Heim. The lexical units home and Heim have a distinct emotional connotation and are associated with feelings of security, comfort, safety, and belonging. In contrast, the lexemes house and Haus denote a physical object, namely a building intended for habitation. The study reveals that in the English phraseology the concept of «HOME» is emotionally charged, it symbolizes the starting point for the formation of human values, and is closely connected with an individual’s inner world. By contrast, German phraseological units containing the concept of «HOME», in addition to conveying the idea of psychological comfort, often conceptualize home as a space of discipline and responsibility, focusing on stability, orderliness, and the value of private property. It has been generalized that the emotional-evaluative component of the concept «HOME» dominates in English phraseology, whereas in the German linguistic tradition this concept is characterized by a stronger orientation toward rationality. It has been found out that nationally specific features of the linguistic worldview are manifested in the above differences. The English and German paremias and phraseological units analyzed in the course of the study demonstrate the presence of both full semantic equivalents and partial or functional equivalents with varying degrees of phraseologization.