European Journal of Interdisciplinary StudiesVol. 7 No. 3 (2022)

European Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies

Volume 7, Issue 3, 2022 · ISSN 2411-958X (Print) · ISSN 2411-4138 (Online)

The Use of Terminological Lexicon in Making Phraseological Units

Edita Stojani1*, Fatmir Wrapi1

1Faculty of Mathematical Engineering and Physical Engineering, Polytechnic University of Tirana

*frasherie@mail.com

Submitted: 2022-05-28 · Accepted after Revision: 2022-08-28 · Published: 2022-09-28

Research ArticleDOI: 10.26417/ejms.v5i1.p432-436

Abstract

Terminological lexicon can be found in everyday life, depending on the situation and the speakers. The question that arises is: How can we use technical and scientific terms when the terminological lexicon belongs to a certain language for specific purposes and the specialists of specific fields can use to communicate among themselves by using this lexicon. The use of terms in this form of communication can have various specific lawyers, thus conceptual difficulty. Based on this conclusion we must take into consideration that terminological lexicon is an integral and inseparable part of general lexicon because composites are made from this lexicon, borrowing are taken and structural and semantic calques are made, despite being one-word or multi-word raising them to the level of term and giving them the accuracy and monosemy. Technical and scientific terms depending on the development of the various fields of study, are not used only in communication among specialists but in other fields. This ‘cooperation’ is present in almost all information, data, textbooks and extracurricular books, written press, conversations etc.

Keywords: terms, lexicon, communication, language

Introduction

General Issues

The lexicon of mechanics is encountered in our everyday life dependent on the situations and the speakers. The question that arises is: how can we use technical-scientific terms when the terminological lexicon belong to language for specific purposes and the professionals of specific fields can use it and communicate among themselves by means of this language. In such kind of communication, the use of terms has peculiar various degrees, thus conceptual difficulties. From this definition we must take into consideration that the terminological lexicon is an integral and inseparable part of general lexicon because from this lexicon composites have derived, loan words have been borrowed, structural and semantic calques have been formed despite the fact of being mono-words or multi-words taking them to the degree of the term and giving them the accuracy and monosemy. Scelfo1 treats the use of the terms in general language as metaphorical images.

At this point, we will treat the phraseological units as a good contribution for the ‘banalisation’ of the terms. For this purpose, we have used a certain corpus of idioms formed by the terms from the lexicon of mechanics (taken from the dictionary of phraseology and other various sources that are not actually reflected in the phraseological dictionary but are widely used not only by the professionals but non-professionals as well).

Coseriu2 refers to two kinds of compounds: free combination and fixed combination. Many other linguists3 (Navarro 2002, Trista Perez 1998) have wider concepts on phraseology including proverbs, sayings, and citations.

Just like any other language, Albanian language has figurative language, enriched in various expressions. Because of their pragmatic and semantic complexity, it is often difficult to find the counterpart expression in other languages. The figurative language because of the use of the metaphors and idioms it is considered as a derivative of spoken language.

Idiomatic locutions give ‘color’ to language and strike the users and listeners fantasy. So they help to de-dramatize, entertain or give another meaning to the sentence. These belong to the everyday language and constitute a linguistic wealth to each speaker either for the formal or informal language. The purpose of using idiomatic locutions is to enrich the discourse with words that cannot convey the same emotion. Their expressive nature, as result of imagination that is linked to a definition, makes them appear in many communication forms expressing amazement, entertainment, consent etc. A large number of idioms are found in the following styles: journalism, political- social4, technical-scientific style etc.

Technical-scientific terms, depending on the development of the various fields of knowledge, are dedicated not only to communication among professionals but beyond this field. This “cooperation” is present in almost all information, data, school books and extracurricular books, written press, conversations.

According to L. Hoffman, the terminological lexicon is connected to general lexicon because the basis consists of general language. Based on this definition we might say that the language for specific purposes entails many opportunities of expression, by using the terms in constructing phraseological unities after having modified the meaning for example in Italian Architettare un inganno; fare di ogni erba un fascio.. This occurs because science and technology are more present in everyday life for example in the consumption of electronic products, in the expansion of mass media, in scientific and technological knowledge people have attained.

The concept of linguistic ‘banalisation’ phenomenon, has been studied by Robert Galisson5 (1978) thus constituting an important viewpoint for terminological studies. He allows distinction of two types of terminologies in various fields of knowledge: 1) specialized lexicon, used by professionals and that are encountered in school books; 2) ‘banalised’ lexicon, serving to a broader audience that can be encountered in conversations, various manuals of use, written press etc. He places ‘banalised’ language between the specialist jargon and general language and has studied the lexical connection among the three languages. In order to define the concept of ‘banalised’ terminology we will use the concept provided by Robert Galisson, who treats banalised terminology as a branch of terminological lexicon, in a way that it is widespread not only in the field it belong to but to a broader audience6.

The distinction between banalized terminology of mechanics and technical terminology constitutes the basis of this study thus dealing with the professional jargon and the idiomatic units that can be created by means of banalization of terminology.

Some of the terms from the lexicon of mechanics have created new semantic connections with the general lexicon since they are encountered in everyday use and thus they can be considered a wealth and enrichment of the phraseological fund of the Albanian language.

Because of the numerous types of phraseologies and their various functions, the definition of the word, can be done by taking into consideration some of the principles not just one of them. The main principles are7: 1) principle of illustration, 2) semantic principle, 3) principle of the word that grammatically is the main leader, 4) the principle of the first word of the expression (the marker word, independent meaning).

Short Introduction to Phraseological Units Deriving from Terminological Lexicon

The term ‘phraseology’ derives from the Greek language “phrasis”8 and its meaning is linked to the ability to express and it includes all phraseological units. In some cases, these units are called phraseological units, idioms, idiomatic expressions, locutions. All these nomenclatures tell us of a group of words in which the structure elements are irreplaceable because in cases when one of the units is removed or substituted the phraseological unit loses its meaning.

Based on the principle of the scholar Ch. Bally9 that considered phraseology as a unique discipline, but included it within the structure of the science of lexicology, we might derive that phraseology is closely connected to the other linguistic disciplines.

Since the nature of word polysemy is characteristic of the Albanian language, the figurative use of words should be considered as a common phenomenon. This is mainly encountered at the phraseological units, thus the phraseological unit must be considered as an indirect marker not a direct one to the objects, features or circumstances. Thus the formation of phraseological units implies the formation of various word groups as well as the lexical-syntactic attachment of the words conditioned by internal or external linguistic factors.

The main source of the derivation of phraseological units is the one coming from the folk, spoken dialects, and borrowings. The scholar A.Jashari has emphasized the fact that within the passing of the years Albanian language has not seized the process of borrowing calques, phraseological loans, sayings, and proverbs. Thus in various speeches, we find ‘loan expressions that should not be taken as growth in the Albanian language, but as part of it, as language of culture, as a sign of mutual relation in the cultures of various people and as a sign of cultural rise of Albanian people’10.

The phraseological units have a fixed structure and can form a semantic nest. There should be at least two words each attaining an independent meaning to form a phraseological unit so that opportunities are given to adhere to the context. So they depend on the context and have an unchanged structure because of the frequent use. J. Thomai gives special importance to the phraseological units because they are gaining new semantic and stylistic characteristics along the development of Albanian Literary language. He classifies them according to the structure, lexical and grammatical importance and degree of motivation11.

The enrichment of the Albanian standard language lexicon does not only indicate the entrance of ‘big words’ belonging to special scientific fields and definitions known only by educated people but the use of words or phraseological units with clear definitions so as to make possible the derivation of semantic ambiguity. This considerably increases the lexical-phraseological competence of our native speaker users and considerably helps expression as well orient the speaker towards choice, agility, laconism or synonymy of expression12.

Idiomatic expressions do not constitute a homogenize category within the figurative speech of a language, there are locutions present among them that are distinguished from their origin, syntactic, semantic and pragmatic characteristics. Despite this, they meet together from the semantic aspect point of view. Idiomatic expressions are integrated into the written and spoken language as well and their study cannot be bypassed by the scholars. Langlotz (Langlotz 2006:3-5) treats the idiomatic expressions as a means of depicting a common situation for all speakers and are linked to the images that bring to mind familiar circumstances or concrete objects. These expressions consist of at least two lexical elements.

A large corpus has been gathered in the field of phraseology from the work and research of the Albanian language scholars such as Aleksandër Xhuvani, Jani Thomaj, Mehmet Gjevori, Ali Jashari etc. All this corpus is perfectly reflected in the various monographs and the publication of phraseological dictionaries. A.Xhuvani13 uses the term ‘locution’ to refer to the phraseological compound words and classifies them by their meaning and usage because it is very difficult for these words to be translated from one language to another since it is the meaning of these compounds that is translated and not the words as independent units. Casadei14 states that:”…Con espressioni idiomatiche s’intendono espressioni polirematiche, a significante fisso, e soprattutto […] il cui significato non e’ composizionale, cioe’ non e’ funzione dei significati dei componenti…”, so this intralinguistic definition clearly states the difficulty of translation into another language. Another scholars such as N. Bulka defines the phraseological units as metaphorical expressions which if translated word by word into another language, they lose their meaning’. Other scholars use various terminologies, naming them adverbial expressions, periphrases, locutions, fixed phraseological word groups, phraseological units, phraseologisms etc. The phraseological units are present in the card index of the Albanian lexicon, being considered as means of enriching language with semantic units and means of expressions. Jani Thomai15 in his monograph has drafted some criteria and set some characteristics of phraseology and has grouped and classified the phraseological units giving an opportunity to the other scholars to further study and develop this discipline. As mentioned above the drafting and publication of the phraseological dictionaries such as “Dictionary of Albanian language phraseology”16 with about 11000 entries with explanations and illustrations for use in spoken and written language, or the edited publication of 2010, are proof of the Albanian phraseology enrichment.

References

[1] Jashari, 2007 Fjalor me shprehje të huazuara në gjuhën shqipe, Korçë

[2] Bally Ch., 1909, Traite de stilistique francaise, Paris: Klincksieck, third edition

[3] Beccaria G.L. 2004, Dizionari di linguistica e di filologia, metrica, retorica. Torino G.Einaudi

[4] Bouveret M., 1998, Approche de la denomination en langue specialisee, On-line: http://www.erudit.org/erudit/meta,

[5] Casadei F., 1995, Flessibilita’ delle espressioni idiomatiche, në L’italiano che parliamo, FARA, Santarcangelo di Romagna

[6] Coseriu, E., 1977, Principos de semantic estructural, Madrid, Gredos

[7] Dardano M., 1999, Lessico e semantica, në A.Sobrero Introduzione all’italiano contemporaneo: le strutture. Roma-Bari: Editori Laterza

[8] Galisson R., 1978, La banalisation lexical, Paris

[9] Gaussier E., 1999, Traitement automatique del langues au service de la terminologie, në Actes de la conference sur la cooperation dans le domain de la terminologie en Europe, Paris – Palais des Congres 17 – 19 Maj, Union Latine, Paris

[10] Grandi N., 2012, La tipologia e il mutamento linguistic, nga faqja www. grandionline. net

[11] Kostallari A., 1972 Parimet themelore për hartimin e fjalorit të gjuhës së sotme shqipe, Studime filologjike

[12] Langage banalise est un langage second, greffe sur un langage technique (ou scientifique, professionnel, specialize), pour assurer une diffusion plus large aux informations relevant de domaine d’experience couvert par la langage technique en question” Galisson R., 1987, Recherche de lexicologie descriptive, la banalisation lexicale : Le vocabulaire du football dans la presse écrite. Paris : Nathan, p 9

[13] Lapucci C., 1993, Modi di dire della lingua italiana, Garzanti, Milano

[14] Navarro C., 2002, “La fraseologia en el discurso poltico y economico de los medias de comunicacion”, in Testi specialistici e nuovi saperi nelle lingue iberiche. Atti del XX convegno dell’AISPI (Firenze, 15-17 marzo), Messina Andrea Lippolis Editore; Trista Perez, Antonia Maria, 1998, “La fraseologia y la fraseografia”, in Wotjak, Gerd, ed EStudios

[15] Scelfo, M. Grazia, 2002, “Slancio dell’immigrazione e concetti pragmatici nel linguaggio economico: la metafora”, in Testi specialistici e nuovi saperi nelle lingue iberiche. Atti del XX convegno dell’AISPI (Firenze, 15-17 marzo), Messina Andrea Lippolis Editore

[16] Thomai J., 1981, Çështje të frazeologjisë së gjuhës shqipe, Akademia e Shkencave e Rep. të Shqipërisë, Instituti i Gjuhësisë dhe i Letërsisë, Tiranë,

[17] Thomaj J., 1999, Fjalori frazeologjik i gjuhës shqipe, Tiranë

[18] V. Memisha, Rreth intelektualizimit të leksikut të shqipes, në Seminari II Ndërkombëtar i Albanologjisë, Tetovë, 2008

[19] V. Zingarelli N.M. , 2003, Vocabolario della lingua italiana, ZAnichelli, Bologna

[20] Vietri S., 1990, Lessico e sintassi delle espressioni idiomatiche, Liguori, Napoli

[21] Xhuvani A., 1956, Studime Gjuhësore,

Notes

  1. Scelfo, M. Grazia, 2002, “Slancio dell’immigrazione e concetti pragmatici nel linguaggio economico: la metafora”, in Testi specialistici e nuovi saperi nelle lingue iberiche. Atti del XX convegno dell’AISPI (Firenze, 15-17 marzo), Messina Andrea Lippolis Editore ↩
  2. Coseriu, E., 1977, Principos de semantic estructural, Madrid, Gredos, p. 113 ↩
  3. Navarro C., 2002, “La fraseologia en el discourse poltico y economico de los medias de comunicacion”, in Testi specialistici e nuovi saperi nelle lingue iberiche. Atti del XX convegno dell’AISPI (Firenze, 15-17 marzo), Messina Andrea Lippolis Editore; Trista Perez, Antonia Maria, 1998, “La fraseologia y la fraseografia”, in Wotjak, Gerd, ed EStudios ↩
  4. Thomai J., 1981, Çështje të frazeologjisë së gjuhës shqipe, Akademia e Shkencave e Rep. të Shqipërisë, Instituti i Gjuhësisë dhe i Letërsisë, Tiranë, p 1 ↩
  5. Galisson R., 1978, La banalisation lexical, Paris ↩
  6. Langage banalise est un langage second, greffe sur un langage technique (ou scientifique, professionnel, specialize), pour assurer une diffusion plus large aux informations relevant de domaine d’experience couvert par la langage technique en question” Galisson R., 1987, Recherche de lexicologie descriptive, la banalisation lexicale : Le vocabulaire du football dans la presse écrite. Paris : Nathan, p 9 ↩
  7. Kostallari A., 1972 Parimet themelore për hartimin e fjalorit të gjuhës së sotme shqipe, Studime filologjike II, p 42 ↩
  8. V. Zingarelli N.M. , 2003, Vocabolario della lingua italiana, ZAnichelli, Bologna, p 738 ↩
  9. Bally Ch., 1909, Traite de stilistique francaise, Paris: Klincksieck, third edition, pg 17 ↩
  10. A. Jashari, 2007 Fjalor me shprehje të huazuara në gjuhën shqipe, Korçë ↩
  11. Thomaj J., 1981, Çështje të frazeologjisë së gjuhës shqipe, Akademia e Shkencave e Rep. të Shqpërisë, Instituti i Gjuhësisë dhe i Letërsisë, Tiranë, p71 ↩
  12. V. Memisha, Rreth intelektualizimit të leksikut të shqipes, në Seminari II Ndërkombëtar i Albanologjisë, Tetovë, 2008, p 195 ↩
  13. Xhuvani A., 1956, Studime Gjuhësore, p 11 ↩
  14. Casadei F., 1995, Flessibilita’ delle espressioni idiomatiche, në L’italiano che parliamo, FARA, Santarcangelo di Romagna, fq 28 ↩
  15. Thomaj J., 1981, Çështje të frazeologjisë së gjuhës shqipe, Akademia e Shkencave e Rep. të Shqipërisë, Tiranë ↩
  16. Thomaj J., 1999, Fjalori frazeologjik i gjuhës shqipe, Tiranë ↩

© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Mentisia under the CC BY 4.0 license (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0).