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NATIONAL MENTALITY REFLECTED IN LEXICAL CONNOTATION: A
CULTURAL-SEMANTIC STUDY OF UZBEK VALUE CONCEPTS
Yuldoshaliyeva Zulayho
2nd year student of the Faculty of History and Philology Tashkent
University of Applied Sciences, Gavhar Str. 1, Tashkent 100149, Uzbekistan
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15717933
Abstract
This article investigates the cultural and semantic aspects of lexical connotation in the
Uzbek language, with an emphasis on how national mentality is encoded in everyday
vocabulary. Unlike denotative meaning, which refers to objective reference, connotation evokes
cultural assumptions, emotional responses, and moral evaluations deeply rooted in a speech
community’s collective worldview. The study identifies a range of Uzbek lexical items—such as
ko‘ngil
,
or
,
sabr
, and
dasturxon
—whose meanings extend far beyond their literal content,
emdiving ethical, emotional, and social values. The analysis reveals how these words reflect
cultural priorities in Uzbek society, such as respect, patience, shame-consciousness, and
hospitality, and demonstrates the central role of connotation in maintaining the community’s
moral and symbolic order.
Keywords:
Uzbek language, national mentality, lexical connotation, cultural semantics,
value-laden lexicon, linguistic worldview, ethical meaning.
1. Introduction
In every language, words do more than simply name things—they also carry traces of how
a society thinks, feels, and judges the world. Connotative meaning is the layer of semantic
content that encompasses emotional coloring, social associations, ethical evaluations, and
symbolic resonances. It reflects the national mentality of a culture: the internalized system of
values, norms, and moral expectations shared by members of a linguistic community.
Uzbek culture, shaped by centuries of Islamic tradition, oral folklore, and strong
communal values, offers a rich field for exploring how such a mentality is encoded at the lexical
level. This paper focuses on identifying value-laden Uzbek words whose connotations serve as
semantic crystallizations of collective cultural models.
2. Theoretical Background
Connotative meaning, as distinct from denotation, has been explored in semantic theory
since Charles Bally’s foundational work on expressive meaning. In later developments, Leech
(1974) identified various types of connotation, including affective, social, and collocative; Lyons
(1995) emphasized its dependency on context and speaker intention; and Goddard and
Wierzbicka (2007) incorporated it into the NSM (Natural Semantic Metalanguage) approach to
uncover culture-specific meaning components.
In the field of cultural linguistics, Palmer (1996) and Sharifian (2017) argue that linguistic
forms emdiv cultural conceptualizations. Uzbek linguistic scholarship—including the works
of G‘. Rahmonov, I.A. Siddikova, and F. Jumayeva—has pointed to the deep semantic integration
between word meaning and culturally dominant values such as izzat (honor), sabrlik
(patience), and hurmat (respect).
3. Methodology
The study employs qualitative semantic analysis, with special attention to words that:
are used widely in culturally loaded contexts,
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appear frequently in proverbs, poetry, or religious discourse, and
exhibit emotionally and ethically charged connotations in usage.
Examples are drawn from Uzbek folk expressions, literary texts, Islamic moral teachings,
and everyday speech. Each lexical unit is examined for its primary denotative meaning and
secondary cultural connotations, mapped to cultural values.
4. Semantic-Cultural Analysis of Selected Lexical Items
Uzbek lexical items often carry rich connotative meanings that reflect deep-rooted
cultural values, emotional expectations, and shared ethical scripts. One such term is
ko‘ngil
,
which, though frequently translated as “heart” or “feeling,” denotes a much broader internal
state. It encompasses empathy, emotional balance, sincerity, moral intention, and social tact.
Expressions such as
ko‘nglini olish
(to soothe or emotionally please someone) reflect the Uzbek
cultural emphasis on relational harmony and subtle interpersonal navigation. The value of
ko‘ngil
is evident in both speech etiquette and conflict resolution practices, where avoiding
offense and maintaining emotional equilibrium are paramount.
Another significant set of lexical items includes
or
and
iffat
, both of which index moral
self-awareness and culturally internalized norms regarding dignity, modesty, and self-restraint.
Or
encapsulates a culturally constructed sense of shame and honor that functions as an internal
regulator of behavior, particularly in community and family contexts. Similarly,
iffat
—
frequently rendered as chastity or virtue—pertains to both ethical integrity and the
preservation of familial or communal reputation, often with gendered implications. These
terms encode not only individual morality but also collective expectations, with no full
equivalents in English; while “honor” or “dignity” may approximate them, they lack the
culturally embedded force and social weight that
or
and
iffat
carry in Uzbek.
The word
dasturxon
, literally meaning “tablecloth,” serves as a powerful cultural symbol
of hospitality. In Uzbek culture, to “open one’s dasturxon” implies more than simply offering
food—it is an act of moral inclusion and respect. The
dasturxon
embodies generosity, relational
warmth, and the sacred obligation to honor guests. It transforms the domestic space into a
semi-sacred arena of social trust, emotional generosity, and symbolic nourishment. This term
exemplifies how material objects acquire profound moral resonance through cultural practice.
Equally central to the Uzbek value system is
sabr
, a term that goes well beyond the basic
translation of “patience.”
Sabr
signifies moral fortitude, emotional self-control, and often
religiously framed endurance in the face of adversity. Rooted in both Islamic theology and
cultural ethics,
sabr
functions as a script for appropriate emotional response to hardship. It is
evoked in everyday speech through expressions such as
sabr qilsa, yetar
(“with patience, one
attains”), reinforcing the belief that endurance is not passive waiting but a morally
praiseworthy state of spiritual strength and trust in eventual justice or reward.
Taken together, these lexical items—
ko‘ngil
,
or
,
iffat
,
dasturxon
, and
sabr
—are not only
elements of the Uzbek vocabulary but also repositories of the national mentality. Their
connotations preserve and transmit collective ideals of morality, emotional intelligence, and
social responsibility. As such, they are central to understanding how the Uzbek language
encodes cultural values at the level of everyday expression.
5. Discussion
Each of these lexical items functions as a cultural keyword in the Wierzbickian sense—an
element of language that cannot be fully translated without loss of cultural meaning. Their
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connotative richness reflects and reinforces the moral worldview of Uzbek society, where
personal identity is relational, and value is often measured in terms of emotional propriety, self-
restraint, and communal duty.
Moreover, these words are not just passive reflections of culture but active vehicles of
social control and ethical instruction. They are deployed strategically in parental speech,
religious sermons, and artistic discourse to shape desirable behaviors and reinforce moral
norms.
6. Conclusion
Lexical connotation in the Uzbek language serves as a mirror to the nation’s collective
mentality, revealing deeply embedded moral, emotional, and spiritual codes. The words
analyzed here are more than linguistic units; they are cultural signposts, guiding social
interaction and shaping the affective life of the community. Any attempt to understand Uzbek
identity, communication style, or intergenerational discourse must begin with these culturally
dense lexical items. Connotative semantics thus offers not only a linguistic but also an
anthropological window into national character.
References:
Используемая литература:
Foydalanilgan adabiyotlar:
1.
Bally, Charles.
Traité de stylistique française
. Geneva: Georg, 1909.
2.
Goddard, Cliff, and Anna Wierzbicka.
Semantics: Primes and Universals
. Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2007.
3.
Jumayeva, F.
Til va madaniyat: lingvomadaniy tadqiqotlar
. Tashkent: Akademnashr, 2020.
4.
Lyons, John.
Linguistic Semantics: An Introduction
. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1995.
5.
Palmer, Gary B.
Toward a Theory of Cultural Linguistics
. Austin: University of Texas Press,
1996.
6.
Rahmonov, G‘.
O‘zbek tilida qadriyat ifodalovchi leksik birliklar
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Sharifian, Farzad.
Cultural Linguistics: Cultural Conceptualisations and Language
.
Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 2017.
8.
Siddikova, I.A.
Leksik birliklarda aks etgan milliy qadriyatlar
. Tashkent: Ma’naviyat, 2016.
9.
Wierzbicka, Anna.
Semantics, Culture, and Cognition: Universal Human Concepts in Culture-
Specific Configurations
. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992.
