SEMIOTIC CODES AND SYMBOLS IN ANIMAL-RELATED PROVERBS

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Abstract

The article analyzes the linguo-semiotic nature of proverbs from a linguistic perspective, focusing on their philosophical, logical, and semantic foundations, as well as their ontological and epistemological essence. The place and status of antonyms in proverbs—as pairs of words with a special semantic relationship—are identified, along with their role in semantics. The pragmatics of lexical units with antonymic relations, their function as artistic devices, the expression of contradictions in proverbs, and their paradigmatic relationships are also examined.  The study also explores the semiotic properties of signs in proverbs. The semiotic sign, which gives proverbs a different orientation and quality, is reconsidered in a new way. Kyrgyz proverbs, in particular, reveal the full semiotic potential of language. At the lexical level, words function as signs that convey symbolic meaning, while at the syntactic level, proverbs reinforce social codes through sentence structure, parallelism, antithesis, and symbolic systems. Animal images have a connotative meaning in a historical, cultural, and linguosemiotic context.are. For example, the fox is perceived as a semiotic marker symbolizing cunning, and the eagle — elevation and freedom. Proverbs convey hidden symbolic meanings in simple language to the public consciousness. As a result, signs and symbols transmitted through animal images serve to transmit the national experience, values and worldview of the people as a semiotic system from generation to generation. Therefore, the article describes proverbs and sayings related to animals not just as linguistic means, but as semiotic signs and symbols that preserve the historical and cultural memory of the Kyrgyz people