kartuli etnok’ult’uruli realiebi kartul-germanul leksikonebshi /ქართული ეთნოკულტურული რეალიები ქართულ-გერმანულ ლექსიკონებში [Georgian Ethno-Cultural Realities as seen in the Georgian-German Dictionaries]
Authors: Zekalashvili Rusudan 
Published: January 2022

Names of ethnocultural realities occur in every language. They pose quite serious challenges to lexicographers in the process of compiling translation dictionaries. The reason for that is often the untranslatability of such words and the absence of their precise equivalents in other languages. This is a serious problem when compiling any translation dictionary but at the same time, the entirety of such lexical units create the national and linguistic image of the Universe.
There is not a single uniform opinon about the classification of the ethnocultural lexis among the linguists. Some of them consider that such lexis includes idioms, phraseologisms, proverbs, and even proper names.
When incorporating the names of ethnocultural realities in the dictionary, it is essential to select such words beforehand and divide them into thematic groups, on the one hand, and to explore and discover the relevant translation tools, on the other hand. One of the functions of the translation dictionaries is to deliver the culturological data by means of the words of ethnocultural content.
We have analyzed some of the Georgian-German dictionaries (i.e. K. Tschenkéli, 1965-1974; R. Zekalashvili, 2009) from the above-mentioned perspective. Some thematic groups were selected from the available words of ethnocultural content (it should be noted that a certain part of these lexical units was not of Georgian origin), namely:Traditional festive days, such as: xaṭoba − Chatoba (Heiligenfest, Kirchweih, Kirmes) ‘Festival of pagan shrine’, ‘Saint’s day’; bzoba − Palmsonntag ‘Palm Sunday’; mariamoba − Mariä Himmelfahrt ‘Dormition of the Virgin’; giorgoba − Tag des heiligen Georg ‘St George’s Day’.Customs and traditions: kadagi − Prediger, Propezeiher ‘shaman, seer’; tamada − Tafelleiter, Tischvorsitzender ‘chairman of feast’, ‘toast-saying master’; sadγegrӡelo − Toast, Trinkspruch ‘toast’; q̇anc̣i − Trinkhorn, Weinhorn ‘drinking horn’.Terms referring to work activities such as tone − Bäckerei, Tongefäss ‘cylindrical clay oven for flat bread’; kvevri − Weinkrug (in der Erde vergraben) ‘wine-jar (set into ground)’; sac̣naxeli − Trotte, Weinkelter ‘pressing device to press juice of grapes for wine’.
Names of dishes and sweets: xinḳali − Chinkali (Art Ravioli) ‘ravioli’
(chopped meat boiled in pastry sache); xačạ ṗuri − Käsekuchen ‘pastry with cheese/
curds filling’; sacivi − Sazivi (Puten- oder Geflügelbrühe mit gewürzter Walnusssoße)
‘chicken/turkey in cold walnut sauce’; sulguni − Sulguni (eine Art Käse) ‘variety of
hard cheese’; gozinaq̇i − Gosinaki (Näscherei aus Nüssen und Honig zum Neujahr)
‘chopped nuts boiled in honey’; čurčxela − Tschurtschela (aufgefädelte Nüsse, die im
Most getunkt und gedörrt sind) ‘string of walnuts/hazel-nuts/raisins etc. dipped into
thickened boiled grape-juice’.
Clothes and shoes: čoxa-axaluxi − kaukasische männliche Tracht, Halbrock
‘Caucasian tunic and coat’, ‘man’s national dress’; kalamani − Bastschuh, Ledersandale
‘laced sandal’; nabadi − Filzmantel, kaukasischer Filzüberwurf ‘felt jacket(s) and
cloak(s)’.
Musical instruments: panduri − Fanduri (dreisaitiges Zupfinstrument)
‘3-stringed lute’; čonguri − Tschonguri (viersaitiges Musikinstrument) ‘four-stringed
lute’; čịanuri − Tschianuri (georgisches Streichinstrument) ‘3/4-stringed Georgian
viol’; gudasṭviri − Dudelsack, Sackpfeife ‘bagpipes’.
Dances and songs: samaia − ‘women’s round-dance’; iavnana − child’s lullaby’.
Plays and other means of entertainment: q̇eenoba − Kheenoba (Maskenspiel
am ersten Montag des Fastens) ‘fertility festival, carnival’; beriḳaoba − Berikaoba
(Volksmaskenspiel) ‘summer carnival (dressed as wild animal)’; laxṭaoba − Gürtelspiel
der Jungen ‘boy’s belt game’; ḳuḳudamalobana − Fangspiel, Versteckspiel ‘children’s
game hide-and-seek’; daxučọ bana − Blindekuh ‘hide-and-seek’.
Fairy-tale characters and magic things: nacarkekia − Aschenbrödel, Faulenzer,
Müßiggänger ‘lazy but sly fairytale hero’; ḳudiani dedaberi − Hexe, Alraune ‘a witch’,
‘evil demon’; učinmačinis kudi − Tarnkappe ‘magic cap of invisibility’; naṭvris tvali −
Wunschstein ‘magic stone, magic jewel’.
Terms of endearment: šeni čịrime − mein Liebes, du meine Güte! (dein Ungemach
auf mich, deine Not mir) ‘my darling, please’ (lit. (give your) trouble to me);
šen genacvale − mein Liebes!; tu mir die Liebe! (ich will dich in der Not ersetzen, ich
will für dich durchs Feuer gehen) ‘my dear!’ (let me take your place, if something bad
happens).
In the above-mentioned Georgian-German dictionaries several means are used
to express Georgian ethnocultural realities: a) definitions of words are transliterated;
b) detailed explanations of the content and meaning of the realities without transliterations
(or loan translation); c) selecting proper lexical units of similar content available
in German.
საკვანძო სიტყვები: ეთნოკულტურული ლექსიკა, ორენოვანი ლექსიკონები,
გერმანულ-ქართული ლექსიკონი, თარგმნითი ეკვივალენტი.
Keywords: Ethno-cultural Vocabulary, Bilingual Dictionaries, German-Georgian
Dictionary, Translation equivalent.