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0PHILOLOGICAL SCIENCES
AN ANALYSIS OF THE STRUCTURAL TYPES OF FRENCH TOPONYMS
Boichuk I. V.
Dr, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Foreign Languages and Professional Communication,
Belgorod National Research University (Russia)
Turner I.P.
MA, Research Fellow, Centre for Foreign Languages and Academic Writing,
Belgorod National Research University (Russia)
Abstract
French toponymicon (French place names taken as a whole) is one of the most important parts of the French onomasticon (French proper names as a whole, including anthroponyms, hemeronyms, zoonyms, nautonyms, etc.). French toponyms can be subdivided into a number of groups, according to their structural type. The analysis that was carried out using the bulk of French place names allowed to single out 26 such types, including many subtypes. Multi-word toponyms are usually inflectional phrases, correlating with a more or less obscure denotation. The structural type of French toponyms is of importance while adapting them into East Slavic languages and especially in Russian.
Keywords: French toponyms, oikonym (oeconym), comonym, astionym, simple toponym, complex topo-nym, onomastic.
We have carried out a detailed analysis of the French toponyms (1). Most of this toponyms are given in Quid (1995) by Dominique et Michèle Frémy (2). This analysis of modern French toponyms allows us to draw the following conclusions. As far as their structural type is concerned, all French geographical names can be divided into two large groups: simple, or singleword and compound, or multi-word. In turn, singleword toponyms are divided into:
a) Simple: Auch, Caen, Dax, Nice, Gap, Digne, etc, and
b) Complex: Albertville, Lunéville, Altkirch, Longwy, Châteauroux, Montpellier, etc.
We understand as multi-word toponyms word combinations with a coherent or subordinate connection of components: La-Grand-Combe, Villefranche-sur-Seine, St-Jean-de-Maurienne, and so on.
In order to identify the main structural types of French toponyms, we concentrated on oikonyms, which are the most numerous of them. And the focus was not on comonyms (names of rural localities), but on astionyms (names of cities and towns), which was dictated by the greater sociolinguistic significance of the latter, as well as the practical absence of a boundary between the structural types of comonyms and asti-onyms. Based on the analysis of about 4000 of the most important French oikonyms, we were able to identify the following main structural types of French oikonyms:
1) a simple toponym: Paris, Lyon, Caen, Bordeaux, Rouen, Nantes, etc. Among them are the names of the most important cities of France;
2) a complex toponym: Albertville, Montpellier, Châteauroux, etc.;
3) article (singular or plural) + topographic basis: La Broque, La Réole, Le Havre, Les Iffs, Les Ulis;
4) toponym base + article (singular, plural) + toponym (noun, adjective): Mantes-la-Jolie, Arnay-le-Duc, Nogent-le-Rotrou, Vic-le-Comte, Fort-la-Latte, Cambo-les-Bains, Brassac-les-Mines, Châlenoy-le-Royal;
5) toponym base + toponym base :
a) noun + noun: Sarre-Union, Gujan-Mestras, Corhaix-Plouguer;
b) adjective + noun: Vieux-Rompon, Grand-Champ, Bon-Encontre, Neuf-Brisach;
c) noun + adjective: Fontaine-Française;
6) toponym forming element St (Ste) + toponym base: St-Amarin, St-Etienne;
a) St (Ste) + toponym base + aux + toponym forming element: Ste-Marie-aux-Mines;
b) St (Ste) + toponym base + de + toponym forming element: St-Denis-de-Pile;
c) St (Ste) + toponym base + la (le) (les) + toponym forming element: Ste-Foy-la-Grande, St-Eloi-les- Mines;
d) St (Ste) + toponym base + toponym base + de + toponym forming element: St-Jean-Pied-de-Port;
e) St (Ste) + toponym base + sur + toponym forming element: St-Pourcain-sur-Sioule;
f) St (Ste) + toponym base + toponym base: St-Just-Malmont, St-Amand-Montrond;
g) toponym base + St + toponym base: Mazet-St-Voy, Laroch-St-Cydroine, Alise-Ste-Reine, Villeneuve-St-Benoît; (variant: article + toponym base + St + of the toponym base La Chapelle-St-Ursin);
h) St + toponym base + ès + toponym forming element: St-Alyre-ès-Montagne;
i) St + toponym base + lès + toponym forming element: St-Nicolas-lès-Citeaux, St-Germain-lès-Cor-beil;
j) St (Ste) + toponym base + en + toponym forming element: St-Amand-en-Puisaye, St-Sauveur-en-Puisaye;
k) St + toponym base + article (singular, plural) + toponym forming element: St-Pierre-le-Moutier, St-
Cast-le-Guildo, St-Honoré-les-Bains, St-Leu-la-Forêt, St -Ouen-l'Aumône;
I) St + toponym base + du (des) (de l') (de la) + toponym forming element: St-Julien-du-Sault, St-Martin-des-Champs, St-Lubin-des-Joncherets, St-Benoît- du-Sault;
m) article + toponym base + St + toponym base: La Ferté-St-Aubin, La Celle-Saint-Cloud;
n) St + toponym base + sous + toponym base: St-Brice-sous-Forêt;
o) St + toponym base + ô + toponym base; St-Ge-niez-ô-Merle;
7) toponym base + sur + (article) toponym forming element (usually the name of the river or Mer):Aire-sur- l'Adour, Martignas-sur-Jalle;
8) article + toponym base + sur + toponym forming element: La Trinité-sur-Mer;
9) toponym base + ès + toponym forming element: Riom-ès-Montagnes;
10) toponym base + en + toponym forming element: Parentis-en-Born, Bas-en-Basset, Bas-en-Chandesse;
II) toponym base + de + toponym forming element: Mont-de-Marsan;
12) article + toponym base + toponym base: Le
Relecq-Kerhuon, La Chaise-Dieu, Le Mont-Dore, Le Vieux-Marché, La Chapelle-Caro, La Garenne-Colombes;
13) article + toponym base + en + toponym forming element: Le Puy en Velay;
14) toponym base + lès + toponym forming element: Witry-lès-Reims, Collonges-lès-Bévy, Ramilly-lès- Vaudes;
15) toponym base + article contracté + toponym forming element: Louvigné-du-Désert, Argentré-du-Plessis;
16) toponym base + toponym base + toponym base: Pléneuf-Val-André;
17) toponym form + toponym base + la + toponym forming element: Cinq-Mars-la-Pile;
18) toponym base + toponym base + des + toponym forming element: Belval-Bois-des-Dames;
19) toponym base + et + toponym base: Arc-et-Senans;
20) article + toponym base + et + toponym base: La Cluse-et-Mijoux;
21) toponym base + sous + toponym base: Epinay-sous-Sénart, Rosny-sous-Bois;
22) article + toponym base + en + toponym base: La Queue-en-Brie;
23) article + toponym base + sous + toponym base: Les Clayes-sous-Bois, Les Pavillons-sous-Bois;
24) toponym base + sous + article + toponym base: Hannoville-sous-les-Côtes;
25) toponym base + devant + toponym base:
Mont-devant-Sassey;
26) toponym base + les + toponym forming element + toponym base: Druyes-les-Belles-Fontaines.
Multi-word toponyms are usually inflectional phrases, correlating with a more or less obscure denotation. This reflects, in our opinion, the following ono-mastic universal noted by A. V. Superanskaya: "In each language there are two directly opposite tendencies: towards an increase in the length of the name due to the inclusion of additional components in its composition, or towards a reduction in the length of the name by eliminating from its composition of redundant components, without which the name can continue to function as a name." (2) The balance between these processes is always established in accordance with the tendency of the language for the economy of means of expression as noted by André Martinet. "If this object is mentioned quite often, it is more economical to give it a short designation, even if it is an additional load for memory; if, on the contrary, this object is mentioned rarely, then it is more economical, without burdening the memory, to retain a long name "(A. Martinet, Fundamentals of General Linguistics, New in Linguistics, issue III, Moscow, 1963, p.534) (4).
Note that when adapting foreign language lexicon, the structural development of foreign-language proper names, in contrast to a mandatory morphological development, is optional and relates to the level of word-formation. At the same time, the process of structural adaptation of foreign-language toponymic vocabulary is longer and more complex than its phonographic and morphological adaptation processes (5).
References
1. Boichuk I.V. Adaptation of French Onyms in East Slavic Languages (with Reference to Russian and Ukrainian). Monograph. [Adaptatsiya frantsuzskikh onimov v vostochoslavyanskikh yazykakh (na material rrusskogo I ukrainskogo yazykov). Monografiya]. -Belgorod, 2015.- 259 p. (in Russian)
2. Frémy Dominique et Michèle. Quid. - P .: Robert Laffont, 1995. - 2078 p.
3. Superanskaya A.V. Onomastic universals // East Slavic onomastics. - M., 1972. - P. 346-356.
4. Martinet A. Fundamentals of General Linguistics. "New in Linguistics", vol. III, Moscow, 1963, p.534
5. O. Pichugina. The processes of assimilating toponymic gallicisms in the Russian language of the XVIII century. - Diss. ... cand. philol. sciences. [Protsessy osvoyeniyatoponimicheskikh gallitsizmov v russkom yazyke XVIII veka. Diss. ... kand. filol. nauk.] - Donetsk, 1990. - 234 p. (in Russian)
