ĐẶC ĐIỂM NGỮ NGHĨA CÁC TỪ NGỮ CHỈ NƠI Ở CỦA ĐỘNG VẬT TRONG TIẾNG HÁN HIỆN ĐẠI

Abstract

Words denoting animal dwellings in Chinese constitute a relatively specialized lexical subfield with profound cultural and cognitive significance. Based on a survey of 43 lexical items referring to animal living spaces, this study classifies them into two major categories: natural spaces and artificial spaces, in which natural spaces are further divided into terrestrial and aquatic environments. On this basis, the paper clarifies the internal semantic structure of this lexical field through analyses of Chinese character structures, semantic relations, and conceptual oppositions such as natural/artificial, shelter/control, static/dynamic, and small/large. The findings reveal that words denoting animal dwellings do not exist in isolation but are organized into a hierarchically structured semantic system reflecting how Chinese speakers cognitively perceive and categorize living spaces according to ecological characteristics and the degree of human intervention. In addition to their literal meanings related to biological designation, many lexical items have developed extended meanings through the mechanism of conceptual metaphor, in which “dwelling space” functions as a source domain for conceptualizing social spheres, organizations, and states of existence. This demonstrates the close relationship between ecological experience and social cognition embedded in the Chinese lexical system. The study contributes to clarifying the semantic characteristics of a specific lexical subfield while also providing additional materials for the teaching, research, and Sino-Vietnamese comparative studies of vocabulary and culture.