The Study of the Image of Russian Color Term Grey in the Consciousness of Russian Culture Bearers

   The paper presents the results of an empirical study of the image of color term gray in the minds of modern Russian culture bearers. The study was based on the psycholinguistic theory of the word created by A.A. Zalevskaya,
works by O. V. Safuanova and E. I. Goroshko devoted to the study of verbal associations for colors, the theory of cultural knowledge of F. Sharifian, as well as on works devoted to the study of phraseological units with a gray component in various languages. Nowadays there is a very low level of knowledge of the CO gray in comparison with most color adjectives.

   This is exactly what defines relevance.

   The methods of psycholinguistic research (Ch. Osgood's method of semantic differential and free association experiment), linguistic methods proper (analysis of lexicographic sources and definitional analysis) and methods of statistical processing of the obtained empirical data (factor analysis) were used. All the data obtained were analyzed from various angles, from the point of view of gender comparison of the data obtained, from the point of view of synchrony and diachrony. This made it possible to investigate not only the current image of the color term gray in the minds of the representatives of modern Russian culture, but also to determine the possible transformation of its image. To carry out a comparison in the diachronic aspect, we used the data of the Russian Associative Dictionary, as well as the results of two free association experiments conducted in 2009 and in 2020. The features of the individual and cultural knowledge of color term gray are shown. The proposed methodology can be successfully applied to the study of the images of various concepts in the linguistic consciousness of speakers of different languages. The article concludes about the dynamism of the gray color term image and shows the ways of its transformation.

1. Tanygina E. A. Obraz cveta v soznanii nositelya yazyka. Diss. kand. filol. nauk [The image of color in the mind of a native speaker. Cand. philol. sci. diss.]. Kursk, KGU Publ., 2012, pp. 11-43.

2. Gibson, E., Futrell, R. Color naming across languages reflects color use. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2017, vol. 114, is. 40, no. 3, pp. 10785-10790. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1619666114.

3. Kul'pina V. G. Programma speckursa «Aktual'nye problemy lingvistiki cveta kak nauchnogo napravleniya sopostavitel'nogo yazykoznaniya» [The program of the special course "Actual problems of linguistics of color as a scientific direction of comparative linguistics]. Vestnik MGU. Ser. 19. Lingvistika i mezhkul'turnaya kommunikaciya = Bulletin of Moscow State University. Ser. 19. Linguistics and Intercultural Communication, 2008, no. 2, pp. 79.

4. Zalevskaya A. A. Psiholingvisticheskie issledovaniya: Slovo. Tekst: Izbrannye Trudy [Psycholinguistic research: The Word. Text: Selected works]. Moscow, Gnozis Publ., 2005.

5. Safuanova O. V. Formy reprezentacii cveta v sub"ektivnom opyte. Diss. kand. psihol. nauk [Forms of color representation in subjective experience. Cand. philol. sci. diss.]. Moscow, 1994.

6. Goroshko E. I. Izuchenie verbal'nyh associacij na cveta [The study of verbal associations on colors]. Yazykovoe soznanie i obraz mira. Sbornik statej [Linguistic consciousness and the image of the world. Collection of articles]; ed by N. V. Ufimceva. Moscow, Institut yazykoznaniya RAN Publ., 2000. (In Russ.). Available at: https://iling-ran.ru/library/psylingva/sborniki/Book2000/html_204/4-9.html (accessed 09. 01. 2022).

7. Sharifian F. Distributed, emergent cultural cognition, conceptualisation, and language. In R. M. Frank, R. Dirven, T. Ziemke, & E. Bernandez (eds.) Body, Language, and Mind (Vol. 2): Sociocultural Situatedness. Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter, 2008, pp. 109–136.

8. Vinichenko L. G. Issledovanie semantiki cvetooboznacheniya "Grau/seryj" v nemeckom i russkom yazykah [Research of semantics of color designation "Grau/gray" in German and Russian languages]. Gumanitarnye i social'nye nauki = Humanities and Social Sciences, 2020, no. 4, pp. 81-91. DOI 10.18522/2070-1403-2020-81-4-81-91.

9. Tanygina E. A. Vnutrennij obraz cvetooboznacheniya krasnyj v soznanii nositelya russkoj kul'tury [The inner image of the color designation red in the consciousness of the bearer of Russian culture]. Voprosy psiholingvistiki = Questions of psycholinguistics, 2011, no. 1 (13), pp. 166–173.

10. Tanygina E. A. Obraz cvetooboznacheniya zheltyj v soznanii nositelej russkoj kul'tury (eksperimental'noe issledovanie) [The image of the color designation yellow in the minds of the bearers of Russian culture (experimental study)]. Izvestiya Yugo-Zapadnogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: Lingvistika i pedagogika = Proceedings of the Southwest State University. Series: Linguistics and Pedagogics, 2019, vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 99–113.

11. Tanygina E. A., Nikitenkova T. S. Obraz universiteta, stoyashchij za slovami obrazovanie, VUZ, universitet v soznanii sovremennyh studentov [The image of the university behind the words education, university, university in the minds of modern students]. Vestnik Tverskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Ser. «Filologiya» = Bulletin of Tver State University. Ser. "Philology", 2020, no. 4 (67), pp. 87–97.

12. Tanygina E. A., Nefedov N. G., Rubcov N. Yu. [The image of a modern school in the minds of Russian-speaking students]. Yazyk dlya special'nyh celej: sistema, funkcii, sreda. Sb. nauch. statej VIII Mezhdun. nauchno-prakt. konf. [Language for special purposes: system, functions, environment: collection of scientific. articles of the VIII International Scientific and Practical Conference]. Kursk, 2020, pp. 412–416 (In Russ.).

13. Zagidulina A. F., Gilazetdinova G. K., Islamova E. A. Associative fields of lexemes "Homeland" and "Vatan" in Russian and Tatar linguistic consciousness. Journal of Language and Literature, 2016, vol. 7, no 2, pp. 289-292. URL: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311927518_Associative_fields_of_lexemes_Homeland_and_Vatan_in_Russian_and_Tatar_linguistic_consciousness.

14. Annenkova A. V. Osobennosti vospriyatiya obraznoj sostavlyayushchej imidzhevoj reklamy (nekotorye rezul'taty associativnogo eksperimenta) [Features of perception of the image component of image advertising (some results of the associative experiment)]. Izvestiya Yugo-Zapadnogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: Lingvistika i pedagogika = Proceedings of the Southwest State University. Series: Linguistics and Pedagogics, 2017, no. 3 (24), pp. 58–66.

15. Bolotnova N. S. Associativnoe pole poeticheskogo teksta kak otrazhenie kognitivnoj deyatel'nosti chitatelya [The associative field of a poetic text as a reflection of the reader's cognitive activity]. Vestnik Tomskogo gosudarstvennogo pedagogicheskogo universiteta = Bulletin of Tomsk State Pedagogical University, 2019, no. 2 (199), pp. 41-48. DOI: 10.23951/1609-624X-2019-2-41-48.

16. Kasatkina T. Yu. Analiz struktury associativnogo polya cveta (na materiale udmurtskogo i russkogo yazykov) [Analysis of the structure of the associative field of color (based on the material of the Udmurt and Russian languages)]. Mnogoyazychie v obrazovatel'nom prostranstve = Multilingualism in the Educational Space, 2016, no. 8, pp. 62-69.

17. Stepykin N. I. Associativnoe pole: produkt associativnogo eksperimenta i instrument analiza znacheniya slova [Associative field: a product of an associative experiment and a tool for analyzing the meaning of a word]. Izvestiya Yugo-Zapadnogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: Lingvistika i pedagogika = Proceedings of the Southwest State University. Series: Linguistics and Pedagogics, 2016, no. 3 (20), pp. 110-114.

18. Arhipova S. V. Associativnyj eksperiment v psiholingvistike [Associative experiment in psycholinguistics]. Vestnik Buryatskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta = Bulletin of the Buryat State University, 2011, no. 11, pp. 6-9.

19. Borisova Yu. A. Associativnyj eksperiment v sovremennyh psiholingvisticheskih issledovaniyah [Associative experiment in modern psycholinguistic research]. Psihologiya. Istoriko-kriticheskie obzory i sovremennye issledovaniya = Psychology. Historical and Critical Reviews and Modern Research, 2019, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 265-275.

20. Pavlova A. V. [The image of a request in the minds of native speakers]. Yazyk dlya special'nyh celej: sistema, funkcii, sreda. Sb. nauch. st. VII mezhdunarodnoj nauch.-prakt. konf. [Language for special purposes: system, functions, environment. Collection of scientific articles of the VII International Scientific and Practical Conference]. Kursk, 2018, pp. 252-257 (In Russ.).

21. Popadinec R. V. Nravstvennye i cennostnye idealy predstavitelej sovremennogo pokoleniya (opyt psiholingvisticheskogo eksperimenta) [Moral and value ideals of representatives of the modern generation (experience of psycholinguistic experiment)]. Izvestiya Yugo-Zapadnogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: Lingvistika i pedagogika = Proceedings of the Southwest State University. Series: Linguistics and Pedagogics, 2015, no. 4 (17), pp. 59-64.

22. Tanygina E. A. Vnutrennij obraz cvetooboznacheniya fioletovyj v soznanii nositelya russkoj kul'tury [The inner image of the color designation purple in the consciousness of the bearer of Russian culture]. Vestnik Tverskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Ser. «Filologiya», 2011, no. 4, is. 2 = Bulletin of Tver State University. Ser. "Philology". 2011. No. 4. Issue 2 "Linguistics and intercultural communication, 2011, pp. 218–226.

23. Tanygina E. A. [Features of perception of color meanings of the Russian language (based on the results of an associative experiment)]. Koncept i kul'tura: sbornik nauchnyh statej (4-aya Mezhdunarodnaya nauchnaya konferenciya) [Concept and culture: collection of scientific articles]. Kemerovo, INT Publ., 2010, pp. 543–548 (In Russ.).

24. Tanygina E. A. Problema sootnosheniya znaniya i naimenovaniya (na primere cvetooboznacheniya chernyj) [The problem of the correlation of knowledge and naming (on the example of the color designation black)]. Uchenye zapiski Orlovskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya «Gumanitarnye i social'nye nauki» = Scientific notes of the Orel State University. Series "Humanities and Social Sciences", 2011, no. 2 (40), pp. 154 – 159.

25. Tanygina E. The Inner Image of Russian Color Term chern'Ӏj (Black) (Experimental Study). Proceedings of the International Scientific and Practical Conference “Current Issues of Linguistics and Didactics: The Interdisciplinary Approach in Humanities and Social Sciences” (CILDIAH 2019), 2019, vol. 69. Available at: doi: 10.1051/shsconf/20196900117

26. Efremova T. F. Sovremennyj tolkovyj slovar' russkogo yazyka [Modern explanatory dictionary of the Russian language]. Vol. 1. A – L. Moscow, AST: Astrel' Publ., 2006. 1168 p.

27. Ozhegov S. I., Shvedova N. Yu. Tolkovyj slovar' russkogo yazyka: 80 tysyach slov i frazeologicheskih vyrazhenij [Explanatory dictionary of the Russian language: 80 thousand words and phraseological expressions]. Moscow, ITI Tekhnologii Publ., 2007. 944 p.

28. Bol'shoj tolkovyj slovar' russkogo yazyka [Large explanatory dictionary of the Russian language]; gl. red. S. A. Kuznecov. St. Petersburg: No-rint, 1998. 1536 p. Available at: http://gramota.ru/slovari/info/bts/ (accessed 11. 05. 2021).

29. Annenkova A. V. Some Results of Psycholinguistic Research of Polycode Advertising Texts: Gender Factor Influence. Proceedings of the International Scientific and Practical Conference “Current Issues of Linguistics and Didactics: The Interdisciplinary Approach in Humanities and Social Sciences” (CILDIAH 2019), 2019, vol. 69. Available at: doi: 10.1051/shsconf/20196900004 (accessed 19. 12. 2021)

30. Egorova V. I. Gendernye osobennosti virtual'noj kommunikacii [Gender features of virtual communication]. Izvestiya Yugo-Zapadnogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta = Proceedings of the Southwest State University, 2016, no. 4 (21), pp. 99-106.

31. Gorlacheva V. V. Gendernye osobennosti cvetooboznachenij v sovremennom russkoyazychnom reklamnom diskurse [Gender features of color designations in the modern Russian-language advertising discourse]. Bіsnik zaporіz'kogo nacіonal'nogo unіversitetu. Fіlologіchnі nauki = Bulletin of Zaporozhye National University. Philological Sciences, 2009, no. 1, pp. 22-28.

32. Grishkova V. I. [The specifics of the speech behavior of men and women in linguistic research]. Yazyk dlya special'nyh celej. Sistema. Funkcii. Sreda. Sbornik nauchnyh statej [A language for special purposes. System. Functions. Wednesday. Collection of scientific articles]. Kursk, 2004, pp. 36-38 (In Russ.).

33. Kuznecova O. A., Chelidze A. D., Demchuk D. S. Gendernye osobennosti vospriyatiya cveta v reklame [Gender features of color perception in advertising]. Evrazijskij soyuz uchenyh = Eurasian Union of Scientists, 2015, no. 5 (14), pp. 121-123.

34. Habibulina E. A. Vliyanie gendernyh stereotipov na funkcionirovanie cvetooboznachenij v oblasti mody [The influence of gender stereotypes on the functioning of color designations in the field of fashion]. Vestnik Chelyabinskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta = Bulletin of Chelyabinsk State University, 2011, no. 28 (243), pp. 116-120.

35. Russkij associativnyj slovar' [Russian associative dictionary]. Available at: http://tesaurus.ru/dict/ (accessed 21. 12. 2021).

36. Kim M. K., Muller H. M., Weiss S. What you "mean'' is not what I "mean'': Categorization of verbs by Germans and Koreans using the semantic differential. LINGUA, 2021, Vol. 252. DOI: 10.1016/j.lingua.2020.103012

37. Konishi T. The connotations of gender: A semantic differential study of German and Spanish. Word, 1994, vol. 45, no. 3, pp. 317–327.

38. Golubeva E. V. [The study of the concept of "money" by the method of semantic differential]. Yazykovaya lichnost'. Rechevye zhanry. Tekst. Sbornik nauchnyh trudov [Collection of scientific papers "Linguistic personality. Speech genres"]. Moscow, 2008. (In Russ.). Available at: http://golubevaelenav.narod.ru/ science_L/gol_15.htm. (accessed 01. 12. 2021).

39. Annenkova A. V. Verbal'nye i vizual'nye kody social'noj reklamy: opyt eksperimental'nogo issledovaniya [Verbal and visual codes of social advertising: experimental research experience]. Uchenye zapiski: elektronnyj nauchnyj zhurnal Kurskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta = Scientific notes: electronic scientific journal of Kursk State University, 2014, no. 2 (30), pp. 117-122. Available at: https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/verbalnye-i-vizualnye-kody-sotsialnoy-reklamy-opyt-eksperimentalnogo-issledovaniya (accessed 01. 02. 2021).

40. Rezanova Z. I. Vliyanie grammaticheskogo roda na konceptualizaciyu ob"ektov (eksperimental'noe issledovanie) [The influence of grammatical gender on the conceptualization of objects (experimental study)]. Vestnik Tomskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Filologiya = Bulletin of Tomsk State University. Philology, 2017, no. 50, pp. 104-124. DOI: 10.17223/19986645/50/7.

41. Solomin I. L. Psihosemanticheskaya diagnostika trudovoj motivacii v upravlenii personalom [Psychosemantic diagnostics of labor motivation in personnel management]. Mir avioniki = The World of Avionics, 2006, no. 4, pp. 34-40.

42. Tanygina E. A. Issledovanie vnutrennego obraza slovcvetooboznachenij russkogo yazyka s ispol'zovaniem metodiki semanticheskogo differenciala [The study of the internal image of the words-color meanings of the Russian language using the methodology of semantic differential]. Vestnik Vyatskogo gosudarstvennogo gumanitarnogo universiteta. Filologiya i iskusstvovedenie = Bulletin of the Vyatka State University for the Humanities. Philology and Art history, 2011, no. 1 (2), pp. 35–41.

43. Osgood Ch. E., Suci G., Tannenbaum P. The Measurement of Meaning. University of Illinois Press, 1957. 346 p.