Thematic groups of invective borrowings from the Russian language in the Tatar fiction of the 20th century

The article aims to identify invective borrowings from the Russian language in Tatar fiction, to form and analyze thematic groups of invective borrowings. The material base of the study was the works of Tatar writers of the 20th century. The study was conducted using a comparative, interpretative and contextual analyses, and other methods. As a result, more than 160 cases of using invective vocabulary borrowed from the Russian language in the Tatar literary text were identified. This number is explained by the fact of close interaction of the two languages on the territory of the Republic of Tatarstan. The following thematic groups of invective borrowings from the Russian language were formed (in order of their frequency of use in the text): (1) general invective borrowings; (2) negative traits of character and behavior; (3) socially disadvantaged groups; (4) age characteristics; (5) social status, origin; (6) sending somebody to the devil/hell, etc. (7) nationality. The results of the analysis indicate that literary characters most often use invective borrowings from the Russian language primarily to express a negative attitude towards another person and criticize their character or behavioral traits, which is the main purpose of invectives in speech. The topic of nationality is represented least of all, which is due to the predisposition of the Tatar people to use not the borrowed vocabulary, but invective units from the vocabulary of their native language. The results of the study allowed drawing a number of conclusions. 1. In each analyzed literary work, invective borrowings from the Russian language are presented in various amounts. The results of the comparative analysis show that the number of borrowings used in Tatar literature has not changed over the course of the century. 2. The analyzed invective borrowings are distinguished by a wide range of functions. 3. It is important to emphasize the special role of the context, due to which any word can acquire a negative connotation and be used in an invective function. In conclusion, it should be noted that statements containing invective borrowings make the speech of the characters more emotional and contribute to a more accurate and understandable expression of feelings for the reader. The author declares no conflicts of interests.

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