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Since February 2022, a war has erupted in the middle of Europe, in Ukraine, with serious consequences for all Europeans and, from a global perspective, shaking an existing world order. In reporting on this war, numerous phraseological units are emerging, including many proverbs that refer to the concept of WAR and are highly interesting for linguists because they demonstrate how expressive and emotional language users react to societal and political challenges and how they attempt to represent war narratives in language.
This study delves into the intricate world of phraseology used in German and Ukrainian press texts to refer to the concept of WAR during the Russia-Ukraine war, seeking to unravel the rich tapestry of expressions that encapsulate the multifaceted nature of armed conflicts. Through an examination of linguistic nuances, historical contexts, and cultural influences, this corpus-based research aims to shed light on the unique lexical landscapes that have evolved around the theme of war in these two distinct linguistic traditions.
Methodologically, the empirically supported study combines analyses on various levels: cognitive-linguistic analyses of imagery, word formation analyses (constituent analyses), analyses of contextual embedding, and contrastive analyses considering translations. Where possible, the data is also quantitatively evaluated. The Ukrainian corpus is sourced from Slovnyk Ukrainskoi Movy, Myslovo, the online newspapers Ukrainska Pravda, Unian, and the online media Deutsche Welle (Ukrainian). The German corpus is derived from Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, das Kleine Lexikon: Krieg und Sprache, the online newspapers Zeit Online, Welt.de, and the the online media Deutsche Welle (German). In total, the corpus contains 95 Ukrainian and 58 German phraseologisms. The analysis is based on a comparative corpus consisting of 525 German and 525 Ukrainian press reports each.
Phraseologisms are defined in this research paper as fixed word complexes of various syntactic structure types with singular linkage of components, whose meaning arises as a result of complete or partial semantic reinterpretation or transformation of the component elements. They are mainly characterized by polylexicality, reproducibility, and (optionally) idiomatization (Burger, 2015, pp. 11–32).
The research begins with a comprehensive exploration of Ukrainian phraseology used in media from 24th February 2022 to 31st March 2024 in mass media, drawing from historical events, folklore, and contemporary narratives. The Ukrainian language, deeply rooted in a history marked by conflicts and struggles for independence, boasts a lexicon that reflects the resilience and courage of its people. From proverbs (Хочеш миру – готуйся до війни; Буде тобі враже, як Залужний скаже) to phraseological units (роздмухувати вогонь, стояти на смерть, зайти у глухий кут, перетнути червону лінію), the study uncovers linguistic expressions that provide insights into the Ukrainian psyche, shaping a narrative that goes beyond mere words to embody the collective experiences of a nation.
In parallel, the research extends its focus to the German language, a linguistic realm that has been shaped by the turbulence of Europe’s history. Traversing through phraseologisms (jmd freie Hand lassen, etwas im Schilde führen, im Visier stehen) deeply embedded in German culture, the study explores how phrases related to war have evolved over time, intertwining with the nation’s complex relationship with its militaristic past. Drawing from mass media and dictionaries, the analysis aims to illuminate the nuanced ways in which the German lexicon reflects a society’s grappling with the repercussions of war and the pursuit of peace. A comparative analysis follows, juxtaposing Ukrainian and German phraseologies to identify similarities, differences, and cross-cultural influences. In the result of the contrastive analysis of the corpora, it can be observed that the Ukrainian corpus is richer, more vivid, and more diverse compared to the German one. Unlike German, the corpus contains many phraseological neologisms (приміряти чорні пакети, придбати квиток на концерт до Кобзона).
Remarkable is the fact that both in Ukrainian and German, the color terms black, green, and red appear in phraseological expressions (дати зелене світло/grünes Licht geben, перетнути червону лінію/eine rote Linie überschritten, чорний, як сама смерть/schwarz wie der Tod). The comparison of phraseological pairs reveals two main types of equivalence, which demonstrated in Table 1.
The conclusion synthesizes the findings, emphasizing the dynamic nature of linguistic expressions related to war in Ukrainian and German. The lexicons of these languages are not static; rather, they evolve in response to societal shifts, historical reflections, and geopolitical developments. By unraveling the phraseologies surrounding war in these languages, this research not only provides valuable insights into linguistic structures but also contributes to a deeper understanding of the complex interplay between language, culture, and conflict.
