A Comparative Study of Animal Idioms of the Chinese and Korean Zodiac

Abstract

Idioms are fixed phrases or sentences whose structure cannot be changed arbitrarily and they are gradually formed in the long-term development of language and are used by people. In terms of form, they have distinct characteristics and fixed structure. From the point of view of meaning, they contain rich cultural content, express the values and philosophy of life, or reflect the worldly wisdom and life wisdom, which are incomparable to other forms and expressions of words. China and South Korea are separated by a narrow strip of water and have a long history of cultural exchanges. The idioms of the twelve zodiacs are also widely used and circulated in the social life of the two countries. There are hundreds of idioms of zodiac animals in Chinese and Korean dictionaries. With the development of the society, China and South Korea have embarked on different development paths, and their cultures are constantly changing in their own soil. The forms and meanings of animal idioms, the image and significance, and the thinking modes and values of the people they reflect have also changed accordingly. Based on this, this paper explores the similarities and differences of idioms of Chinese and Korean zodiac animals from the comparison of their morphological and semantic correspondences, symbolic meanings and metaphorical mechanisms.