Central Asian Geolocation: Linguistic Reception of Toponyms (Turko-Mongolic Area)

Mongolisms in Turkic languages and Turcisms in Mongolic ones have constantly been objects of research interest. The whole of common Turko-Mongolic vocabulary is usually divided into two groups: the first one is believed to have stemmed from a most ancient non-graphic language, and the second one supposedly resulted from mutual political, economic and cultural contacts between diverse Mongolic and Turkic populations primarily in the Middle Ages. Mongolic (Kalmyk) borrowings in the Kyrgyz language are interesting enough. As is known, Mongolian toponyms had penetrated into Kyrgyzstan either during the 13-century Mongolian expansion, or during the Kyrgyz migrations from South Siberia and Central Asia to the Tian Shan accompanied by inflows of Mongolian toponyms and appellative place names. It is also believed by many that the toponyms retain traces of Kyrgyz-Mongolian language contacts (evidently those of the Dzungar period). Goals and Objectives. As a result of historical and geographical affinities between Turkic and Mongolic populations, the Turko-Mongolian ethnic perception of Central Asian geolocation had established close and largely identical approaches to the system of nomination that would change pursuant to migration processes. And those are toponyms that constitute a most conservative (rigid) lexical cluster. Materials and Methods. The paper examines common Turko-Mongolian (Kalmyk, Kyrgyz, Mongolian) toponyms, their areal distribution, semantics and etymology; analyzes Kyrgyz place names that stem from appellatives of genetically related languages and Mongolian toponyms that emerged during language contacts. The study involves lexical analysis of some legends and tales. The materials investigated can be further used in areal linguistics, comparative historical and typological studies, general and special linguistics. The work employs the method of parallel semantic analysis of toponyms from related and closely related languages. Results. Ethnic worldviews of Turko-Mongols are based on common historical and economic experiences, visual memories that indicate close ties and interactions. The paper focuses on Kalmyk and Kyrgyz toponyms that form most rigid lexical clusters. As is shown, Mongolisms are most frequent in Northern Kyrgyzstan place names but are get rarer towards the southwestern territories. The examined regional toponymy illustrates historical / chronological periods inherent to the language toponymic systems closely associated with landscapes, terms and onyms of certain localities. The whole of the Eurasian onomastic space is characterized by abundance of similar Turko-Mongolian place names. The investigated geolocation of Turkic and Mongolic regions of Kyrgyzstan manifest stable parallels it terms of toponyms and respective appellatives employed.

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