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6Ученые записки Крымского федерального университета имени В. И. Вернадского Филологические науки. Том 1 (67). № 4. 2015 г. С. 130-135.
УДК 811.111'373.2
THE SPECIFICS OF FIRMONYM FUNCTIONING IN FINANCIAL AND
ECONOMIC TEXTS Fialkovskaya V.O., Vovk N.A., Shevchenko N.V.
V.I. Vernadsky Crimean Federal University, Simferopol, Crimea, Russian Federation E-mail: www.fiallerka@mail.ru,nick.wolf@mail.ru
The subject of the present article is the specifics of the functioning of firmonyms in the financial and economic texts. The given category of the onyms performs various functions in financial and economic texts, which are as follows: nominative, text-forming, informative and persuasive. To illustrate this English factual material is used.
Keywords: firmonym, proper names, functioning, financial and economic texts.
The relevance of the present research is grounded on the controversy concerning the proper names from the point of view of linguistics. The dispute concerns both theoretical preconditions and practical analysis of the concrete types of proper names. The latter deals with the necessity of singling out into a separate class the names of the commercial organizations which represent in themselves a numerous class of proper names. Firstly, there is no unanimity as to the terminology of this group of onyms. The present research suggests application of the term "firmonyms". Secondly, the functional aspect has not been thoroughly analyzed in the financial and economic texts.
The objective of the research is to examine the peculiarities of firmonyms' functioning in financial and economic texts.
The firmonyms from several issues of the periodical The Financial Times serve as the practical material of the research.
The examination of the relevant proper names has defined the theoretical value of the present research.
In the Modern English there exists a peculiar world of words, performing a function of emphasis and individualization, which consists in the great variety of names - proper names. According to Ermolovich D.I., proper names are defined as words or word combinations, which serve as a means of peculiar, individualized denotation of an object regardless the situation described and without specifying definitions.
In linguistics there exists a peculiar field in which the lead is given to linguistic research concerning names and denotations - onomastics. Onomastics has a number of domains, which are traditionally defined in compliance with the categories of proper names and the character of the objects denoted. One of the word classes, included in the field of onomastics, is fyrmonyms - proper names of commercial enterprises.
The present article suggests application of the term "firmonym" in order to refer to the names of enterprises. On the basis of the analysis of the term "firm", firmonyms were defined as follows: the category of the onyms, the proper name of the commercial enterprise, including an industrial or trade one, who has the rights of the legal entity. This category of the onyms is often used with the hyperonym word. Among the hyperonyms we
can mention the word "firm" itself, and also types of the commercial enterprises, such as "company", "trust", "incorporated enterprise", "leasing enterprise", "holding", "concern", etc. As an examples, the following firmonyms with hyperonyms from the periodical The Financial Times can be given: Bertelsmann Music Group, Tata Consultancy Services, Alfa Bank, Hays Chemical Distribution, Delta Air Lines, Electronic Data Systems, General Motors, Macquarie Office Trust, Golden Harvest Entertainment, Stelmar Shipping, Banco Comercial Portugues, Hang Lung Properties, Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing, Siam Commercial Bank, Bank of Ayudyha, Commerzbank [4, p. 15-31].
The functions performed by firmonyms in financial and economic texts are rather diverse.
In our research, we single out the following functions:
1. Nominative;
2. Text-forming;
3. Informative;
4. Persuasive.
Nominative function is based on designation of one or another commercial enterprise:
Stelios Haji-Ioannou ..., the entrepreneur most famous for founding EasyJet, the low-cost airline, resumed his battle with the board of Stelmar Shipping, the first company he founded, by publishing details of an alleged takeover approach and recommending the sacking of the board [4, p. 15].
As we can see from the examples above, the firmonyms "EasyJet" and "Stelmar Shipping" designate the corresponding companies. In the next example, to perform this function the firmonym "Ahold" is applied:
Ahold unveiled a fresh deal to restructure its ICA Scandinavian joint venture in a move expected to contribute hundreds of millions of euros towards the Dutch grocery group's debt reduction plan [5, p. 15].
Text-forming function is also peculiar to firmonyms. It can be clearly seen in the following sentences placed in Table 1.
Table 1
Text-Forming Functions of Firmonyms
Firmonym Constituent of the structure of the article Example from the text
UCB title UCB sells films unit for G320t [4, p. 16]
first paragraph UCB, the Belgian pharmaceuticals and chemicals company, yesterday announced the sale of its films division for €320m ($398m) in cash, a first step towards streamlining its portfolio following its €2.25bn agreed takeover of Celltech, the UK biotech company [4, p. 16].
second paragraph UCB agreed to sell the films division to a consortium led by Dennis Matthewman, former managing
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Firmonym Constituent of the structure of the article Example from the text
director of Hays Chemical Distribution, and Cando-ver, the UK buy-out firm [4, p. 16].
third paragraph Buying Celltech has turned UCB into one of Europe's leading biotech companies and it is expected by most analysts to divest its remaining chemicals businesses in the near future [4, p. 16].
forth paragraph Georges Jacobs, chief executive, said in an interview that there was "no hurry" to dispose of other chemicals assets, even though UCB was busy "exploring and studying what could be done" [4, p. 16].
fifth paragraph "This sale is in line with UCB's strategy highlighted recently by the acquisition of Celltech." [4, p. 16]
seventh paragraph He added that timing was welcome, as well as the fact that it was a cash deal. "The Celltech operation has tightened up a bit the balance sheet of UCB, to say the least." [4, p. 16]
tenth paragraph Prior to its Celltech offer in May, UCB's only other sizeable acquisition was its purchase of the speciality chemicals business of US-based Solutia in December 2002 for $500m, a move that split the Belgian group's C3bn revenes evenly between pharmaceuticals and chemicals [4, p. 16].
Delta title Delta reports $312m loss as fuel costs soar
first paragraph Delta Air Lines underlined its precarious financial position as it reported a net loss of $312m for the second quarter - almost a third higher than its net losses a year ago - in spite of a 13 per cent rebound in revenues [5, p. 17].
third paragraph Delta's problems were evident in the 10.5 per cent rise in operating expenses during the quarter, after taking out one-off events such as government reimbursements [5, p. 17].
forth paragraph Delta's loss per share of $2.55, excluding the noncash charge, compared with consensus forecasts of losses of $2.46 [5, p. 17].
fifth paragraph The competitiveness of the North American market was borne out by Delta's yields, which fell 2.7 per cent, the largest decline of any region Delta serves. Delta, which has been adding back capacity removed during the Iraq war, faces tough competition at its Atlanta hub from AirTran, and from JetBlue on its Florida routes [5, p. 17].
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Firmonym Constituent of the structure of the article Example from the text
sixth paragraph On Delta's Atlantic routes, yields rose 0.7 per cent, in spite of a 40 per cent rise incapacity [5, p. 17].
seventh paragraph Michael Palumbo, Delta's new finance director, said the company had made progress on costs but said: "It is abundantly clear that these costs savings must be combined with a competitive employment cost structure, reduced debt and additional cost reductions." [5, p. 17]
eighth paragraph Although Delta has warned it could be forced to file for bankruptcy if it cannot achieve cost cuts, its cash position remained strong, closing the quarter with $2bn of unrestricted cash [5, p. 17].
We can single out the use of the UCB-firmonym in seven of ten paragraphs of the article on the UCB Company. Furthermore, it is used in the title. As for the article on the Delta Company, seven of eight paragraphs mention the name of the company, not considering the title. The firmonyms mentioned above give the information concerning one or another aspect of functioning of the enterprise.
One of the conspicuous features of firmonyms is the formation of this or that information around itself, which is considered to be an informative function of firmonyms. For example, in the following extract the information concerning share prices of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. is given:
Investor booked profits in Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, sending the shares down 6.4per cent to $11.06. The stock soared 36.7 per cent on Friday after its founder received a lighter-than-expected sentence for lying to federal prosecutors [6, p. 19].
From the sentence above we can find out that the price for one share fell 6.4 per cent to $11.06. The next extract acquaints us with the information concerning a forecast of the reduction in profits made by strategic management analysts:
The problem with numbers games is that, as with all games, they must come to an end at some point. Richard Bernstein, quantitative strategist at Merrill Lynch, thinks the earnings woes of recent weeks may signal the beginning of the endgame [6, p. 20].
Information supplied by numerical data appears to be more definite and authentic: UCB, Belgian Pharmaceuticals and chemicals company, sold its films division for C320m cash, a first step towards streamlining its portfolio [5, p. 17].
The persuasive function is actualized implicitly by means of facts or verbs. The texts do not represent appeals to urgently transfer money from one business to another. Furthermore, analytical information, understood by the reader in his own way, is given. In this regard, information concerning the Yukos-firmonym is significant. In Table 2 we can see an example of those parts which form recipient's negative perception of the information.
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Table 2
"Negative" Components in the Text in the Process of Yukos-Firmonym Characterization
Context "Negative" components
Yukos yesterday lost its latest bid to stall payment of a $3.4bn tax bill that the Russian oil group has warned could push it into bankruptcy [6, p. 16] [Yukos] lost its latest bid to stall payment
A Moscow court set September 6 for Yukos to appeal against an earlier ruling that it had to pay the bill. But it also said that until the hearing Yukos would have to comply with the order for immediate payment [6, p. 16]. [Yukos] would have to comply with the order for immediate payment
The September Hearing will be Yukos's second appeal against a court order to pay R99bn ($3.4bn) in taxes and fines for the 2000 financial year [6, p. 16]. a court order to pay R99bn ($3.4bn) in taxes and fines for the 2000 financial year for [Yukos]
A separate attempt by Yukos to appeal against the tax ministry's claim of back taxes also failed when proceedings were suspected in the same court because the judge stepped down [6, p. 16]. A separate attempt by Yukos to appeal against the tax ministry's claim of back taxes also failed
The arbitration court ruling came as Yukos's former chief executive, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, prepared for another day in court today on charges of fraud and tax evasion [6, p. 16]. [Yukos's former chief executive] prepared for another day in court today on charges of fraud and tax evasion
Apart from $3.4bn bill for 2000, tax authorities are also demanding that Yukos pay a similar sum for 2001 [6, p. 16]. tax authorities are also demanding that Yukos pay a similar sum for 2001
According to the analysis, the elements with negative components are used for the representation of the information: Yukos lost the last bid to stall payment; there is a court order for Yukos to pay 99 billion rubles (3,4 billion dollars) in taxes and fines; the Yu-kos's attempt failed; charges of fraud and tax evasion were brought against the Yukos's former chief executive; tax authorities demand Yukos to pay some other sum of money too. Such facts create a negative picture regarding this company. Consequently, those related to this company realize that it is going through a period of difficulties and needs noticeable changes in the attitude towards it.
Thus, firmonym appears to be the proper name of the commercial enterprise, including a trade or industrial one, who has the rights of the legal entity. Executed analysis of the firmonyms from several issues of the periodical The Financial Times clearly illustrates the specificity of functioning of firmonyms in financial and economic texts. The given category of the onyms performs various functions in financial and economic texts, which are as follows: nominative, text-forming, informative and persuasive.
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References
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2. Великобритания: Лингвострановедческий словарь. 9500 единиц / А.Р.У. Рум, Л.В. Колесников, Г.А. Пасечник и др. - М.: Рус.яз., 1980. - 480 с.
3. Подольская Н.В. Словарь русской ономастической терминологии. - М.: Наука, 1988. - 192 с.
4. The Financial Times. - Tuesday, July 20, 2004. - P. 15-31.
5. The Financial Times. - Thursday, July 22, 2004. - P. 16-32.
6. The Financial Times. - Tuesday, July 28, 2004. - P. 15-31.
СПЕЦИФИКА ФУНКЦИОНИРОВАНИЯ ФИРМОНИМОВ В ТЕКСТАХ ФИНАНСОВО-ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКОЙ ТЕМАТИКИ
Фиалковская В. О., Вовк Н.А., Шевченко Н.В.
Данная статья посвящена специфике функционирования фирмонимов в текстах финансово-экономической тематики. Данная категория онимов выполняет различные функции в текстах финансово-экономической тематики, а именно: номинативную, текстообразующую, информативную и функцию убеждения. Для иллюстрации используется англоязычный фактический материал.
Ключевые слова: фирмоним, имена собственные, функционирование, тексты финансово-экономической тематики.
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