On the Question of changing the Chinese Language Picture of the World on the example of the functioning of the lexemes jia/ jiating ‘family, home’

Abstract

The subject of the study is the linguistic and cultural changes in the Chinese language picture of the world on the example of the functioning of the key lexemes for the mentality of the Celestial Empire 家 jia/ 家 庭 jiatin ‘family, home'. The material for the work was lexicographic sources of the last 40 years, as well as two constantly updated online buildings (the Chinese Language Building of the University of Leeds and the Balanced Modern Chinese Language Building). The data obtained in the course of the study are systematized and grouped according to the principle of their lexical compatibility with other units. A special contribution of the author to the chosen topic is the presented table of the most frequent collocations. In addition, attempts have been made to describe the semantic field of the concept "jia"/ "family, home", noting modern language trends, as well as to trace the Chinese attitude to family values in retrospect. The novelty of the work consists in a comprehensive linguoculturological approach to the consideration of the lexemes 家 jia/ 家庭 jiatin ‘family, home'. The study showed that, due to the influence of Western liberal democratic values on modern Chinese society over the past thirty years, in particular, on intra-family relations, relations between parents and children, there has been a noticeable shift in the assessment and interpretation of the concept of "family" in the Chinese language. On the one hand, under the influence of the historical events of the XX century, some designations of family groups and clans went out of use, the situation of women and the economic situation in the country as a whole changed, which also led to the emergence of numerous new neologisms fixing these extralinguistic transformations. On the other hand, the older generation and the leadership of the CPC continue to promote the traditional approach to family values, which also illustrates the language material of the corpora.