The bear is a character in fairy tales, legends, fables, as well as classic fiction. Preschoolers are happy to make a small discovery when they first believe: this glorious character is so named because he knows (knows) where to get honey. The next step is to understand that it is not so much "knowing" as "eating". And what's more, they call it that to hide the real word for a furry and big beast.
We can say that the bear opens the way not only to fairy tales, but also to a very interesting branch of linguistics that studies the history of words. A study in the etymology of the origin of the word "bear" becomes for young minds a beginning to understanding the foundations of this science of language.
In Dahl's dictionary
Vladimir Ivanovich Dal gave a lot of lines in his dictionary to the bear. At the very beginning of the article it is noted that in the south it is called "wedmed". Obviously, the roots of "honey" and "ved" just changedplaces. The origin of the words "bear" and "bear" has a common origin.
"There are two types of them in Russia," writes Dahl. Unlike the polar bear, the brown bear has been given many "abusive and honorary nicknames": the dictionary contains three dozen such folk nicknames, including "forest archimandrite", "Smorgon student", "Sergatsk gentleman", "forester", "chiropractor". There are also quite familiar to modern hearing: Mikhailo Ivanovich Toptygin, bear, potapych, clubfoot and so on.
Three breeds of the brown bear are described by Dahl in terms of their predilection for various foods - oats, raspberries, roots, meat. Not only the word "bear cub" is mentioned in the article, but also a nursery - a young bear who is a little over a year old, a cub, still with the bear.
The abundance of concepts associated with the bear (given by Dahl) is another confirmation of the cult of the bear among the people: the names of constellations, herbs, insects, tools refer us to this mighty beast.
It is worth noting that rituals, holidays, legends dedicated to the bear existed not only among the Slavic peoples. The tribes that lived in Asia, Europe, America deified him, considering him not only a guardian, a master, but also a progenitor.
Etymology
The origin of the word "bear" in Dahl's explanatory dictionary corresponds to the concept of "honey lover". In other dictionaries, a bear is "one who eats honey." It is "eats", "eats". It can be calledthe second small discovery, since "to know" and "to eat" are still different things.
The origin of the word "bear" etymological dictionaries associated with euphemisms (substitute words), which the people used in order not to pronounce the "real name" of the forest animal. In fact, many nicknames are a continuation of the established tradition.
Some experts say that the original word for it has not been preserved. Others are trying to construct a variant of the sound of the original name of this animal that corresponds to the canons of the Old Slavonic dialects. Perhaps this is discovery number three.
Etymology always follows the trail: looking for the origin of the root of the word, comparing it with other languages, adverbs, dialects and trying to find its former sound.
The origin of the word "bear" in Russian is estimated by this science not as borrowed from other dialects and not as inherited from the parent language. This is a new word constructed using the means of speech itself.
Having comprehended the origin of the word "bear", we stop before a riddle: what was it called before? How to find an unnamed word?
Tales of the clubfoot
Images of fairy-tale characters-bears teach children the ambiguity of life. In the characters of huge furry animals, simplicity and cunning, strength and naivety, kindness and malicious intent are intertwined. It is not difficult to agree that the cult of the bear is also manifested in the anthropomorphic features of this character.
Origin of the word"bear", associated with this beast's love for honey, created a rather attractive image that fits wonderfully into fairy tales. Although everyone has heard about the complex, sometimes ferocious disposition of real animals.
However, he is a rather difficult character in fairy tales. Either he destroys the tower, then he takes the pies, then he wants to protect the hare, then he chases after the girl, then he catches the heffalump. It is impossible to list all children's books, both Russian and foreign, in which the bear is the main character.
Great Literature
First of all, of course, the image of a rustic "good-natured man" in the fables of I. A. Krylov is remembered: "The hermit and the bear", "Dinner at the bear", "Hard-working bear", "The bear at the bees". S. V. Mikhalkov has "Bear vow", "Moshka", "Hare-simulant". Remember?
Mishka is feeding, Mishka is feeding, Cleverly I spent it!
Don't bother me
Absolutely nothing!
"The Bear" by A. P. Chekhov, "The Bear" by E. L. Schwartz, the story by Prosper Merimee "Lokis" (this is also "bear", only in Lithuanian) were repeatedly reprinted and staged in theater and cinema.
These images take us far from the substitute word - "one who loves honey." But how our ideas about human nature are developing!
Teddy Bear
Teddy bears (now made from a variety of soft and fluffy materials) are the most popular toy for children20th and 21st centuries.
The expression "Teddy Bear" is no less interesting than the origin of the word "bear". Why Teddy?
"Taking a bear" is an ancient tradition in many countries. Therefore, Theodore Roosevelt, the American president, was offered to shoot a bear while hunting. He refused - it seemed to him an unsuccessful idea to kill an already caught animal.
The cartoon in the newspaper caused an interesting reaction. The Teddy Bear (a diminutive of Theodore) was made by toy salesmen. At the beginning of the twentieth century, he received tremendous popularity.
Now around the world there are exhibitions and festivals of old toys, including those specially dedicated to teddy bears. Some of them are over a hundred years old. The cult of the bear has acquired new funny features.
World War I and "pocket bears"
During the First World War, the pocket teddy bear was a souvenir that British soldiers took with them. A series of such "babies" was released, which reminded of the house, of those who are waiting for their return from the front. It is now a collectible or a family heirloom.
The origin of the word "bear" is different in different languages, but the image of this beast is close to many nations, is part of the international culture.
