Milli mála - 2023, Page 47
MILLI MÁLA
Milli mála 15/2/2023 47
Abstract
Culture, tradition and history reflected
in fixed phrases in Icelandic,
Spanish and German
This article deals with fixed phraseological units in Icelandic, Spanish
and German. The focus is on how culture, traditions and history are
reflected in the fixed expressions of the three selected languages.
Fixed phrases can be divided into two categories depending on
whether they are global or universal, i.e. found in many languages of
the world, or specific or area bound, i.e. occur only in a specific
language or language area. The article also discusses Dobrovol’skij’s
and Piirainen’s classification of cultural phenomena that underlie
cultural expressions into five categories: (1) social elements, (2) mate-
rial elements, (3) texts and quotations, (4) elements that fall under the
supernatural phenomena and (5) elements pertaining to various cul-
tural symbols. In the article we will follow these main classifications
and give examples of universal fixed phrases in the three languages.
Finally, specific fixed expressions in the three languages are discussed
and how their origin is related to the history, customs and culture of
each language area.
Keywords: phraseology, comparative linguistics, fixed phrases, univer-
sal phrases, specific phrases, Icelandic, Spanish, German.
ERLA ERLENDSDÓTTIR OG ODDNÝ G. SVERRISDÓTTIR