A Comparative Lexical Analysis of Kazakh, Russian and English Children’s Folklore

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Introduction

Children start to create and participate in peer cultures already in preschool, although peer cultures, being a stable set of activities or routines, artefacts, values, and concerns that people produce and share in interaction are often associated with adolescents [1]. A peer group represents an important context in which children learn language and culture through playing and interacting with each other [2. P. 36]. Folklore is often part of children’s play and serves an important function in the context of language and culture acquisition [3].

Children’s folklore occupies a special position in the oral folk art of any nation. Comprising lullabies, or cradle songs, nursery rhymes, barker songs, teasers, and counting rhymes, children’s folklore refers to the kind of creativity of people, and becomes a part of their life. These genres of children’s folklore accompany a person in childhood, entertain and provide the first knowledge about the world, develop creativity and imagination. Children’s folklore is based both on the universal and nation’s cultural traditions, plays a special role in education of the younger generation and formation of spiritual values.

Children’s folklore is a more complex subject area than most might suspect, as it deals with two separate and yet interrelated areas — folklore for children (presented to children), and folklore of children (created by children, learned from adults, and passed on from children to other children) [4. P. 11]. As the communities’ ways of life are reflected in folklore [5. P. 9], so the peoples’ world and values are reflected in children’s plays. Children watch adults, and modifying individual elements, lend them their own meanings and interpretations. Ethnographic study of children’s folklore contributes to the understanding of the specifics of various cultures and children’s participation in them.

The study is aimed at the cultural investigation of children’s folklore in the Kazakh, Russian, and English languages. The importance of identifying the lexical features of different genres of children’s folklore and describing their common and culturally marked characteristics lies in the fact that despite the availability of ethnographic studies of children’s folklore in some cultures, there is no single research on crosscultural comparative perspectives of various genres of children’s folklore.

Literature Review

Folklore is a universal subject, which consists of all kinds of knowledge transmitted through traditions [6. P. 3] and forms the traditional culture developing in close connection with people for many centuries [7]. Folklore (1) is an oral art, passed from person to person and generation to generation, (2) is of traditional form and style, fixed or standardized and shared within or among a particular or set group, (3) exists in different versions, though, is usually recognizable as a variation of the set to which it belongs, (4) has no known author or place of origin, though specific versions or variations are attributed to a particular performer, (5) is formularized and repetitive in the inclusion of a set phrase, refrain, pattern in form, design or decoration of a material object [4].

The children’s folklore is a vast, original and multifaceted area of the folk art that unites the world of children and the world adults including a whole system of poetic and musical-poetic genres [8]. Children’s folklore encompasses the rhymes, riddles, jokes, sayings and other play traditions of childhood, which have been passed down through the generations, mostly through oral transmission and largely without any adult involvement [9]. Contemporary children’s folklore is interesting and dynamic as it covers both traditional and new genres and reflects present-day realia as well as younger children’s and adolescents’ psychological world [10].

Play language is considered to be “the lingo of a particular peer group in a specific community. A child, to fit in, be one of the group successfully, must speak the language” [11]. Thanks to folklore, a child more easily enters the world around him, more fully feels the charm of nature, assimilates the people’s ideas about beauty and morality, gets acquainted with customs and rituals, along with aesthetic pleasure he absorbs the nation’s spiritual heritage, without which the formation of a full-fledged personality is impossible [12. P. 188].

Folklore is of great educational importance, since it spiritually educates children and builds the fundamentals of moral education [13]. The folklore plays are characterized by their emotional saturation and by their functional load; “they enrich the thought processes and are means for the development of physical skills, fostering creative thinking and a number of moral-volitional qualities — mutual help, friendly relations, honesty, responsibility, strong will, etc.” [14. P. 31]. For, as Lunacharsky stated, “any game is serious for a child, for by playing a child lives. He lives, he exercises, he grows his soul and body only when he plays” [15. P. 31].

Counting-out rhymes use transrational language primarily applied to numerals. The distorted forms of counting in counting-out rhymes, as reported by Anikin (1957), include the modification of the verbal form of numerals раз ‘one’ — ази, анзы, ранцы, разум, разин, азики / azi, anzy, knapsacks, mind, razin, aziki; два ‘two’ — двази, дванцы, дванчик / dvazi, dvantsy, dvanchik; первый ‘first’ — первички, первенцы, первенцики / pervichki, pervintsy, pervetsiki; другой ‘other’ — другичники, другенцы, другенцыки / drugichniki, drugentsy, drugentsyki. Teasers, rhymes from two words to full-fledged teasing verses, are “a training in wit, a verbal duel, the development of a sense of humor, and helps in correcting the speech of young children” [12. P. 191].

Nursery rhymes, investigated in the Karakalpak folklore, present rhyming questions and answers, since the events in them are built on short plots they resemble fairy tales [16]. The study of the Romanian songs-patterns revealed that they have survived in the repertoire of children’s folklore to present day, although, losing their initial function, and they have become simply a “cause for children’s games and entertainment” [17. P. 167]. The investigation of the Bulgarian children’s folklore plays indicated that they remain a part of the cultural national heritage and wealth, and become an active part of the children’s lives contributing to not only motor skills but also mental constructs in a psychological-pedagogical aspect [14]. The participant observation and video ethnography of preschool children’s use of counting-out rhymes, faecal humour, and word play in Slovenia [2] demonstrated the importance of social participation in peer groups from an early age and the alliances, conflicts, and power hierarchies involved.

Methods and Materials

The research design comprised a comparative linguistic and cultural study of children’s folklore in the Kazakh, Russian, and English languages. Ethnography states the unique and distinctive features of a particular culture, whereas cross-cultural comparison indicates general notions, true for different human cultures [18–20].

The study manipulated descriptive and analytical and comparative methods [21]. The research data were collected through the online sociolinguistic surveys parallelly conducted in the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation and comprised folklore for children and created by children. To involve a large number of respondents into the study: 200 000 persons from Kazakhstan and 12000 persons from Russia. Texts of children’s folklore in English were taken from the collections and Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes^[1] (Laptime Songs). The amount of research data made nearly 2000 Kazakh, Russian and English children’s folklore texts.

Results and Discussion The Lexical Analysis of Folklore for Children Features of Cradle Songs

The lexical structure of the text is formed by lexical units in their combination and interconnection. The study of lexical content of words involves the study of means that are a reflection of the internal structure of the content and its external expression [22. P. 56]. The lexical features of cradle songs include the words of the thematic group “Sleep”, such as to sleep, sleep, bed, баиньки / bainki, баю-бай / bayu-bai. The composition of cradle songs is built in accordance with their main purpose to calm the child and help him fall asleep. In lullabies, special refraining onomatopoeic words are used: әлди-әлди / aldi-aldi, алюпай-ай алюпай / alupai-ai alupai (In Kazakh), баю-бай / bayu-bai, баю-баю-баюшки / bayu-bayu-bayushki, люли-люли / lyuli-lyuli (In Russian), lullabye, hush-a-bye, croon-croon, O ho-ro ee-ree-ree (In English) (Tabl. 1).

Table 1. Samples of Russian, Kazakh and English Cradle Songs

Kazakh	Russian	English
Әлди, әлди, ақ бөпем, Ақ бесікке жат, бөпем… / Aldi, aldi, my white baby, lie in the white cradle…	Баю-баюшки-баю, Не ложися на краю… / Bayu-bayushki-bayu, Don’t lie on the edge…	Hush-a-bye, baby, on the tree top, When the wind blows the cradle will rock;

Source: authors’ study

The analysis of figurative and expressive means of cradle songs shows the abundance of epithets: маленький / small, милый / cute, сладкий / sweet, родной / native (In Russian), ақ-бөпем / white baby, ақ балам / my white child, бал бөпем / my honey child (In Kazakh); little baby (In English); an affectionate appeal to the child: дитя / child, деточка / baby, радость / joy, кроха / baby, крошка / baby (In Russian); бөпем / my baby, бөпешім / my baby, балақай / child, балашым / my child, жаным / my soul, көкешім / my dear, құлыным / my foal, қошақан / my lamb (In Kazakh); baby, honey, my treasure, little star (In English). In the texts of Russian cradle songs, diminutive names of animals are often used when referring to a child (заинька / hare), addressing by name is also used in a diminutive form (Олеженька / Olezhenka, Наташечка / Natashechka). This contributes to the awareness of one’s name, awareness of oneself as a person, personality.

The analysis of cradle songs that are known to most parents and which they sing to their children allows us to state that at present they perform only excerpts of the most common lullabies in various versions: «Әлди- әлди ақ бөпем, ақ бесікке жат бөпем…» / “Aldi-Aldi ak bөpem, ақ besіkke zhat bөpem…”, “Aldi, aldi balashym. Sen darasyn, danasyn / «Әлди, әлди балашым. Сен дарасың, данасың» (In Kazakh); «Не ложися на краю» / “Don’t lie down on the edge”, «Колотушек надаю» / “I’ll give beaters”, «Купим сыну валенки» / “Let’s buy felt boots for our son”, etc. (In Russian). The study also revealed the widespread use of author’s lullabies and other songs by modern parents.

The analysis of the age categories of lullaby performers shows that traditional lullaby performers are most often representatives of the older generation — grandmothers, nannies, aunts. young mothers seldom sing lullabies for newborns and almost never use their traditional versions, managing at best with a melody without words, and more often with just a physical swaying rhythm. Children are sung lullabies written by professional poets and composers. Replenishment of the genre is due to borrowing. As a rule, songs are borrowed from the popular TV programme «Спокойной ночи, малыши» / “Good night, kids”: «Спят усталые игрушки, книжки спят…» / “Tired toys are sleeping, books are sleeping …”^[2], «Ложкой снег мешая, ночь идет большая…» / “Spooning the snow, the big night is coming …”^[3].

As a result of the survey, 67 respondents aged 30–40 sing to their children the song about a small Christmas tree in Russian as a lullaby: Маленькой елочке холодно зимой, Из лесу елочку взяли мы домой… / It’s cold for a small Christmas tree in winter, We took the Christmas tree home from the forest…^[4]. This New year’s children’s song turned out to be so popular in Soviet times that it is perceived as a folk song, and few people know its authors. Perhaps this is due to the fact that the respondents who sing this song to their children belong to the Soviet generation that grew up with it. An important factor, in our opinion, is that the song is performed in a calm, monotonous rhythm, allowing children to relax and fall asleep.

In the texts of Russian lullabies, there are often references to animals (кот / cat, собака / dog, волчок / wolf), as well as to mythical creatures (Сон / Sleep, Дрема / Nap, Угомон / Calmer, Бука / Buka), which do not occur in the lullaby texts of the Kazakh and English languages. Lyrics of English lullabies are stable and unchanged.

In the texts of lullabies in Kazakh, Russian and English, such stylistic figures as comparison, anaphora, inversion, personification are frequently used, syntactic parallelism is observed.

Features of Children’s Shouts, Sayings and Teasers

Small works, beginning with an expressive double appeal to the mouse (Мышка, мышка, на тебе зуб плохой… / Mouse, mouse, you have a bad tooth …), snail (Улитка, улитка, высуни рожки … / Snail, snail, stick out your horns …), rain (Rain, rain, stop…), rainbow (Радуга-дуга, Не давай дождя… / Rainbow-arc, / Don’t let it rain…), sun, ladybug butterfly, etc., despite their simplicity, play a very important role. They demonstrate to children a poetic form of communication with the natural world, birds, insects. The common to Kazakh, Russian and English languages are shouts and sayings containing appeals to a ladybug (Tabl. 2).

Table 2. Appeals in Russian, Kazakh and English Children’s Shouts and Sayings

Kazakh	Russian	English
Хан қызы, хан қызы, ханның үйіне бар, Ұш, ханның үйіне бар, Ұш! / King’s daughter, King’s daughter, go fly to the king’s house!	Божья коровка, полети на небко, Там твои детки кушают конфетки. Всем по одной, а тебе ни одной. / Ladybug, fly to the sky, there your children eat sweets. One for everyone, and none for you.	Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home, Your house is on fire And your children are gone, All except one. And her name is Ann, And she hid under the baking pan.

Source: authors’ study

In the course of the analysis, we came to the conclusion that the language of folklore depends not only on the culture of the people, but also on their worldview. For instance, the beetle, which is often found in children’s folklore, in the three linguistic cultures under study has the following names: ladybird in Britain, — bird, it is called ladybug and rarely lady cow in the USA, божья коровка / God’s cow in Russian, қызыл қоңыз / red beetle and хан қызы / King’s daughter in Kazakh. The name of the beetle in different languages includes different components: bird in British English, bug (beetle) in American English, cow in American English and Russian, beetle and daughter in Kazakh. In all three linguistic cultures, the belonging of this beetle to a deity is emphasized (the component божья / God’s in Russian). There is also a belief that the ladybug is the messenger of the Virgin Mary. In the English and Kazakh languages, there is an appeal to the beetle as an exclusively female individual: ‘lady’, ‘қыз / girl, daughter’.

Some shouts and callouts have alternatives directly opposite in meaning. The predominance of references to rain in various variants of children’s shouts and sayings is probably due to the climatic features of a region.

Children’s sayings (prigovorki in Russian) also have specific features. In children’s folklore, if a tooth falls out, then they need to throw it into the fire (into the furnace). When they begin to throw a (fallen out) tooth into the fire (into the oven), they have say: Огонь-Бабушка, я тебе хороший зуб дам, а ты мне плохой зуб дай. / Fire-Grandma, I will give you a good tooth, and you give me a bad tooth. Then a mouse will give the child a good tooth for the old tooth (a good tooth will grow). Children believe if they say otherwise: Огонь-Бабушка, я тебе плохой зуб дам, а ты мне хороший зуб дай. / FireGrandma, I’ll give you a bad tooth, and you give me a good tooth, then a bad tooth will grow [23. P. 33] (Tabl. 3).

Table 3. Differences in Russian, Kazakh and English Children’s Shouts on Climatic Features

Kazakh	Russian	English
Жау-жау, жаңбыр, жау, жаңбыр, Жауған жаңбыр — жауған нұр. Жердің шаңы басылсын, Гүлдің аузы ашылсын, Еккен егін көктесін, Бізге нанды көп берсін Жау, жау! Гүлденсін бау! / Pour-pour, rain, pour, rain, The rain is the light. Let the dust settle, Let the flower open, May the harvest grow, Give us plenty of bread Pour, pour! Let the garden bloom!	Дождик лей, лей, лей На меня и на людей! На людей — по крошке, На меня — по ложке. / Rain pour, pour, pour On me and people! On people — crumbs, On me — a spoonful; Дождик, лей, не жалей Хоть ведром полей! Дождик, лей, не жалей, Чтобы было веселей! / Rain, pour, don’t spare, Pore a bucket! Rain, pour, don’t spare, To make it more fun!	Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day. All the family wants to play. Rain, rain, go away.

Source: authors’ study

In Russian culture, there are children’s sayings with an appeal to a mouse asking to replace a lost milk tooth with a new one, since the mouse is a rodent and has strong teeth. The appeal to the mouse to replace an old tooth with a new one is present not only in Russian culture, but also in the cultures of other peoples: Spaniards (Pérez), French (La Petite Souris / A little mouse), Vietnamese. In English culture, the Tooth Fairy replaces the mouse. There is no definite saying in Kazakh culture, but when a baby tooth fell out, the Kazakhs wrapped the tooth in paper and put it in the gap of the floor. At the moment, among children living in Russia and Kazakhstan, there is an increase in the popularity of the tooth fairy, which gives a gift for a fallen tooth, in contrast to the mouse. The development of information technology has led to the borrowing of the cultural traditions of other countries, thanks to which new characters, such as the tooth fairy, are found in the texts of children’s folklore.

At present, the use of shouts and sayings by modern children is declining. There are practically no new texts of this genre, which also allows us to state the regression of the genre.

The teaser is the result of creativity exclusively of the children themselves. This genre is very popular. One of the specific features of the teaser genre is rhyme. Teasers are addressed to a specific person with the aim of making fun of him, offending and hurting him, therefore, teasers contain proper names. Texts of teasers reflect any physical defect and peculiarity of the child’s appearance, bad qualities such as greed, cowardice, sneakiness (Tabl. 4).

Table 4. Russian, Kazakh and English Children’s Teasers

Kazakh	Russian	English
Айдос жынды, есекке мінді… / Aidos stupid, climbed on a donkey… Төрт көз, соқыр — көртышқан! / Four eyes, blind — mole! С Сары, сары, піскен тары! / Yellow, yellow, ripe millet!	Борис-кипарис / Boris is a cypress; Андрей — воробей / Andrey is a sparrow; Аслан — баклажан / Aslan is an eggplant У кого четыре глаза, тот похож на дикобраза. / Whoever has four eyes looks like a porcupine. Борис-кипарис / Boris is a cypress; Андрей — воробей / Andrey is a sparrow; Аслан — баклажан / Aslan is an eggplant
		Georgie-Porgie, Peter-Pumpkin-Eater
	У кого четыре глаза, тот похож на дикобраза. / Whoever has four eyes looks like a porcupine.	English Four eyes, goggle eyes. Don’t forget to wash your eyes.
Сары, сары, піскен тары! / Yellow, yellow, ripe millet!	Рыжий, рыжий конопатый! / Red, freckled red!	Ginger minger!
Қорқақ, қорқақ, бұтына тышқақ! / Coward, coward, pissed in pants!	Трус, трус, беларус! / Coward, coward, Belarusian!	Cowardy, cowardy custard, eats his mother’s mustard.

Source: authors’ study

The responses to this kind of teasing are comebacks: Говоришь на меня, переводишь на себя! / You speak to me; you translate to yourself! (In Russian), I’m rubber, and you’re glue. Whatever you say bounces off of me and sticks to you (In English).

Features of Counting-out Rhymes

A strict sequence of events is inherent in the texts of fairy tales, though the real time of action in fairy tales cannot be guessed. Most of the folk tales in Russian, Kazakh and English begin with the words Once upon a time: Жили-были, Давнымдавно / Once upon a time (In Russian), folk tales start with Ерте, ерте, ертеде / Once upon a time (In Kazakh), Once upon a time (In English). The timeless nature of folklore is observed in the tales of three different cultures.

Vocabulary in the texts of counting-out rhymes (считалки (schitalki) in Russian / санамақ (sanamaq) in Kazakh) performs a special function indicating their origin, and includes words associated with direct or veiled counting. None of the genres of children’s folklore is so replete with counting and its distorted forms as a counting-out rhyme [24. P. 5]. In counting-out rhymes, simple, often monosyllabic words, images understandable to children are used. Children easily understand the content of the rhyme, have a desire to repeat the rhyme after adults, which develops the children’s speech. The dynamics and repetition of the text correspond to the emotional state of the child, who is still unable to describe the transmitted event in detail.

Any appeal to stylistically marked words must be motivated, but if they are used inappropriately, they give the speech a comic sound: За черемя, за беремя, за старого, за Петра Петровича, Егорыча, труса. / For the crust, for the armful, for the old, for Pyotr Petrovich, Yegorych, the coward. Counting-out rhymes include such phrases as пляшущая посуда / dancing dishes, доктор, едущий на свинье с балалайкой на спине / a doctor riding a pig with a balalaika on his back, баба, поехавшая на клюке к старику / a woman riding a stick to an old man, заяц, ищущий работу / a hare looking for a job.

Most counting-out rhymes are based on the count, meaningless words and consonances (Tabl. 5).

The content of counting-out rhymes was made up of counting words, the plot appeared afterwards. The genre of counting-out rhymes as a genre of children’s folklore is characterized by its predisposition to meaningless in semantics, but rhythmic and phonetically expressive words — zaum meaning “beyond mind” [25] or tranrational language [26]. According to M.P. Cherednikova, the attraction to zaum is associated with the stage of children’s autonomous speech, when the word has only situational semantics, and the child easily uses them in his speech due to the rhythmic organization of syllabic combinations [27. P. 54]. Zaum performs a communicative and aesthetic function. The countingout rhyme is aimed at creating an atmosphere of an outdoor game, being an introductory part of the game, which, on the one hand, goes back to the actual language game-experiment, “the first semantically significant words”, “rudimentary speech”, and on the other hand, it plays the role of a draw, a tossup. (жеребьёвка in Russian).

Table 5. Russian, Kazakh and English Counting-out Rhymes

Kazakh	Russian	English
Бір, екі, үш, Ал, кәнеки, ұш.  Төрт, бес, алты, жеті… / One, two, three, come on, take off. Four five six …	Раз, два, три, четыре, пять! Вышел зайчик погулять… / One two three four five! The bunny went out for a walk…	One, two, three, four, five, I caught a fish alive. Six, seven, eight, nine, ten, I let him go again. O — U — T spells out goes you!
Алма кетті домалап, Көше бойын жағалап, Кім алманы алады / табады. Сол ойынан шығады. / An apple rolled through the streets, whoever picks up / finds an apple will leave the game.	Катилось яблоко, мимо сада, Мимо сада, мимо града! Кто поднимет, тот и выйдет! / An apple rolled past the garden, past the garden, past the hail! Whoever picks it up will get out!	FIVE little apples so red and bright Were dancing about on a tree one night. The wind came rustling through the town One little apple came tumbling down. FOUR… THREE… TWO… ONE…

Source: authors’ study

Most of the draws are pronounced in rhyme:

Конь вороной или барабан заводной?

Бочку с салом или казака с кинжалом?

Шар тесать или по воде плясать?

Шар катить или воду лить?

Коней кормить или печи топить?

С неба стрельца или с земли молодца?

Дома быть или по морю плыть?

Соловья или воробья?

Шапки или фуражки?

/ A black horse or a clockwork drum? A barrel of bacon or a Cossack with a dagger? To hew a ball or dance on water? Roll the ball or pour water? Feed the horses or heat the stoves? Archer from the sky or a young man from the earth? To be at home or to sail on the sea? Nightingale or sparrow? Hats or caps? (In Russian).

According to V.P. Anikin [28. P. 4], zaum represents ancient formulas of the secret account. The connection of rhymes with ancient magic in function brings it closer to incantations, which were often chanted by ancient tribes in their conventional language. The transrational language of counting-out rhymes can be an imitation of foreign speech in the sound as it is perceived by the child. At the same time, counting-out rhymes convey emotional content through phonetic organization and rhythm. meaningless sound combinations are repeated in transrational counting-out rhymes (Tabl. 6).

Table 6. Zaum in Russian, Kazakh and English Counting-out Rhymes

Kazakh	Russian	English
Арбадам, бербадам, екі ара дорба дам. Батс-багли, огол-шогол, вон ты пошел! / Arbadam, berbadam, I’ll give two bags of lady bees. Batsbugley, ogol-shogol, there you go!	Эна деу рики факи, Торба, орба, онба, смаки, Деу-деу, косметеу, Смаки бакас! / Ena deu riki faki, Torba, orba, onba, smaki, Deu-deu, kosmeteu, Smaki bakas!	Inter mitzy titzy tool, Ira dira dominu, oker poker dominoker, out goes you.

Source: authors’ study

The counting-out rhymes are maximally adapted for children’s perception. The texts of the counting-out rhymes can contain only a few words can be understood and the meaning of which is explainable. The etymology of remaining words is incomprehensible, but pronunciation of the words fosters emotionality and uplift, speed, required by the game situation, and the dynamism of actions: Авсень — наусень, Алтата, эра, раки, даки, шинь — пень. Торбу, орбу, раки, шлаки, ширварвень. Деус, деус, космодеус, авсень — наусень, Балус! Дзинь! / Avsen — nausen, Altata, era, crayfish, duki, shin — stump. Torbu, orbu, crayfish, slag, shirvarven. Deus, deus, cosmodeus, avsen — nausen, Balus! Ding!

Counting-out rhymes can consist entirely or partially of zaum words, which may look like a distorted account, but are perceived as transrational words that do not have a lexical meaning. Foreign words can be used as part of counting-out rhymes: Тук-тук-туманэ, абы-хабы-куманэ, Чики-брики-дамасики, ин-блин- спрячь один. / Knock-knock-tumane, aby-haby-kumane, Chiki-briki-damasiki, in-pancake-hide one; Цук-цук-цумоне. Абуль-фабуль-дамоне. Ихи-пикиграматики. Ин-блин, спрячь один. / Tsuk-tsuk-tsumone. Abul-fabul-damone. Ihi-spik-grammars. In-pancake, hide one; Дон-дон дэри, а дэри-дэри дон-дон, айдана бейби, Айдана вису-вису, а жу-жу жу, а си-си си о пепси! / Don-don dary, a dary-dary don-don, Aidana baby, aidana visu-visu, a zhu-zhu zhu, a sisi si oh Pepsi!; Со-си-со, а ден-ден джони, джони-джони драйв май бейби, драйв май пепси-кола два прикола, джими-джими акабака, джони-джони уа, айрон бейби, айран чиз, бумсики бумсики бумсики Бяка! / So-si-so, a DenDen Johny, Johny-Johny drive my baby, drive my pepsi-cola two jokes, JimmyJimmy akabaka, Johny-Johny ua, iron baby, airan cheese, bumsiki bumsiki bumsiki Byaka!; Том и Джери, джери, джери, беспантери-тери, тери. I love you, you, you, I love see, see, see. I love you, I love see, ooo pepsi! / Tom and Jerry, Jerry, Jerry, bespanteri-teri, teri. I love you, you, you, I love see, see, see. I love you, I love see, ooo pepsi!

Counting-out rhymes describe the visible objective world. Children’s counting-out rhymes, in addition to zaum, include vocabulary with specific subject semantics — nouns and a small number of adjectives: Белка прыгала, скакала, и на елку не попала, а попала в царский дом. Там сидели за столом, царь, царевич, король, королевич, сапожник, портной, кто ты будешь такой? / Squirrel jumped, galloped, and didn’t get on the Christmas party, but ended up in the royal house. There they sat at the table, the tsar, the tsar’s sone, the king, the prince, the shoemaker, the tailor, who will you be?; Солнце и луна, ветер и волна, вода и огонь, теплая ладонь. К замку прикоснется, Замок отомкнется, Раздастся звон. Ты выйдешь вон! / Sun and moon, wind and wave, water and fire, warm palm. One will touch the castle, The castle will open, The ringing will sound. you will get out!; verbs: Шел баран, по крутым горам. Вырвал травку, положил на лавку. Кто ее возьмет, тот и вон пойдет. / There was a ram, on steep mountains. Pulled out the grass, put it on the bench. Whoever takes it, he will go out.; interjections: Ахи, ахи, ахи, ох, Маша сеяла горох. Уродился он густой, Мы помчимся, ты постой. / Ahi, ahi, ahi, oh, Masha sowed peas. He was born thick, We will rush, you wait.

The use of numerals and quantitative words in counting-out rhymes, according to M.P. Cherednikova [27], has its cognitive functions, a child learns to count in the “ideal conditions” of a rhymed text. It is necessary to bring up a child’s steady interest in mathematics, the ability to use mathematical knowledge and the desire to independently acquire it. Counting is the main content of any of the counting-out rhymes, which have their own rhythmic structure contributing to memorization of numerals and their sequence. In addition to cardinal numbers in countingout rhymes ordinal numbers are used: Раз, два, три, четыре, пять, Шесть, семь, восемь, девять, десять, Выплыл ясный круглый месяц, А за месяцем луна, Мальчик девочке слуга. Ты, слуга, подай метлу, А я в карете подмету. / One, two, three, four, five, Six, seven, eight, nine, ten, A clear round moon emerged, And after a month the moon, A boy is a servant to a girl. you, servant, give me a broom, And I will sweep in the carriage; Куба-куба-кубака, Больно ямка глубока. Там мышки сидят, Все на солнышко глядят И считают: раз, два, три. В этот счет выходишь ты! / Kuba-kuba-kubaka, The hole is very deep. The mice are sitting there, Everyone is looking at the sun And they count: one, two, three. you go out on this account!; Первые — горелые! Вторые — золотые! Третьи — серебряные! Четвертые — простые! / The first ones are burnt! The second ones are golden! The third ones are silver! The fourth ones are simple!; Раз, два — голова; Три, четыре — прицепили; Пять, шесть — сено везть; Семь, восемь — сено косим. / One, two — head; Three, four — attached; Five, six — carry hay; Seven, eight — we mow hay.

Counting-out rhymes can be constructed of opposite concepts — antonyms: Раз — один денёк прошёл. Два — другой денёк пришёл. Остальные не спешили, Три, четыре — дни решили: В обгонялки не играть, Друг за дружкою шагать. Пять, шесть, семь — они успели Путь пройти к концу недели. / One — one day has passed. Two — the other day has come. The rest were in no hurry, Three, four — days they decided: Do not play overtaking, Follow each other. Five, six, seven — they managed the way to go by the end of the week.

The creation of rhymes in counting-out rhymes is subject to certain artistic patterns. To convey rhythm, expression and expressiveness, lexical repetitions are used in counting-out rhymes: По селу идет Иван, потерял он свой кафтан.

А кафтан на улице, его склевали курицы,

Курицы — наседки, добрые соседки.

Дон, дон, дон, дон, начинай играть свой кон!

/ Ivan is walking through the village, he lost his caftan. And the caftan is on the street, it was pecked by hens, Hens, hens, good neighbors. Don, don, don, don, start playing!;

Заяц белый, лыко драл.

Куда бегал, куда клал?

/ The white hare was tearing a bast. Where did you run, where did you put it?

Hand-clapping rhymes are widespread among schoolchildren. Variations of clapping games and rhymes are listed across regions and schools. Girls are the traditional custodians of the clapping patterns and rhymes:

My mother said, I never should,

Play with the gypsies in the wood.

If I did, she would say,

‘Naughty girl to disobey!’ Disobey one, disobey two,

Disobey over the waters blue.

Perceiving the rhythm of the rhyme, the child easily learns the rhythmic structure of the word, gets acquainted with various types of verse. Many former ditties, fragments from lyrical songs, sayings, proverbs passed into the genre of counting-out rhymes. Repeatability is a structural property of rhymes at all levels — rhythmic, sound, syntactic, figurative.

Children’s folklore is characterized by historical changes. This finding is in line with Loiter [29], stating the interaction between children’s literature and children’s folklore. Counting-out rhymes remain a popular genre of children’s folklore today.

They are often transformed, and their content is enriched with new realities. Improvisations introduced into the plot of the counting-out rhyme are associated with the age characteristics of the performers. Children use counting-out rhymes in games for a long time, gradually introducing new content. Social connections of modern children in children’s community are growing and the spheres of life experience are expanding. The text of the rhymes is influenced by films, cartoons, children’s poems, the media, collections of rhymes, and the Internet.

Many shouts and callouts in different versions in children’s repertoire arose under the influence of children’s books:

Дождик, дождик, кап, кап, кап, Не мочи дорожки!

Все равно пойдем гулять,

Наденем калошки. (не намочим ножки).

Other ending:

Наша Таня в сад пойдет, Вымочит сапожки.

The popular rhyme of recent decades “На златом крыльце сидели царь, царевич, король, королевич… / A tsar, a tsar’s son, a king, a prince, sat on the golden porch …” has undergone modernization in the light of modern realities in the media. In the modern version of the counting-out rhyme, Walt Disney cartoon characters appear: На златом крыльце сидели, Микки Маус, Том и Джерри, Дядя Скрудж и три утёнка, А водить-то будет Понка! / Mickey Mouse, Tom and Jerry, Uncle Scrooge and three ducklings were sitting on the golden porch, And Ponka will start!

The appearance of new heroes in modern cartoons is also reflected in children’s folklore. Thus, a new verse appears, which children use in different genres of children’s folklore:

Лучше Спанч Боба никого нет,

Даже Свирдворда кларнет,

Мистера Крапса денюжки

И Сендины приёмушки.

/ There is no one better than SpongeBob, Even Squidward’s clarinet, Mr. Crab’s money And Sandy’s techniques;

На дне морском живёт Спанчбоб,

И ничего от жизни он не ждёт,

Вставай, Спанчбоб, пора идти,

Вот только Гери накорми.

/ SpongeBob lives on the bottom of the sea, And he doesn’t expect anything from life, Get up, SpongeBob, it’s time to go, Just feed Gary. Known not only in Russia, but also in Kazakhstan, the character of the cartoon “Masha and the Bear” is reflected in the texts of Kazakh rhymes:

Маша, Маша, Маша төгіп алды каша,

Енді не кылайын? Доктор шақырайын.

Доктор келмей калды, тышқан шакырайын

Тышқан шықты тесіктен, доктор шықты есіктен.

/ Masha, Masha, Masha spilled porridge, What to do now? I’ll call the doctor. The doctor didn’t come. I’ll call the mouse. The mouse came out of the hole, the doctor came out of the door.

The children’s rhymes in the Kazakh language contain Russian words: Не қарайсың, что қарайсың? Все равно, мені танымайсың. / Why do you look at me? (In Kazakh) What for (In Russian) do you look at me? (In Kazakh) Anyway (In Russian), you don’t know me (In Kazakh).

Moreover, in the Kazakh texts of children’s folklore the mixture of Russian and English words are also observed.

Conclusions

The genre variety of children’s folklore always leaves an imprint on the speech of each genre. The lexical analysis of various genres of children’s folklore demonstrated an active use of neologisms, transrational language and personal names. Many texts of children’s folklore are a modernized version of an old text. Children’s folklore is characterized not only by genre and intragenre dynamics, but also by historical changes.

The comparative linguistic and cultural analysis of children’s folklore identified general and nationally marked features of various genres. Shouts and saying of the Kazakh, Russian and English languages include an appeal to nature, sun, birds, insects, etc., of which common to all three languages is the appeal to the ladybug and rain. However, the appeal to rain in the English shouts and sayings differs from those of the Kazakh and Russian languages due to the climatic features of the countries. In Kazakh and Russian shouts and saying children ask rain to pour, whereas, in English rhymes, children ask rain to go away.

The younger generation of Kazakhstan is mainly bilingual. A large share of the bilingual population is natural bilinguals (native speakers of Kazakh and Russian languages). Due to this fact, the mixture of Kazakh and Russian languages is reflected in the texts of the Kazakh children’s folklore. Moreover, in the Kazakh texts of children’s folklore Russian and English words are found due to the adoption of trinity of Kazakh, Russian and English languages policy in Kazakhstan, and the introduction of the English language as an obligatory subject in preschool institutions.

 

_{¹ Laptime Songs. Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes. The Ultimate List. URL: https://laptimesongs. com/alphabetical/mother-goose-nursery-rhymes/ (accessed: 21.09.2023).}

_{² Petrova, Z.A. (2010). Tired toys are sleeping. Moscow: Pro-Press. (In Russ.).}

_{³ yakovleva, yu. & Krylatov, E. (1969). Kolybel'naja medvedicy. Iz mul'tfil'ma «Umka» [Bear’s lullaby. From the cartoon “Umka”]. URL: http://a-pesni.org/baby/kol-medv.php (accessed: 21.09.2023) (In Russ.).}

_{⁴ Krasev, M. & Aleksandrova, Z. (1939). Pesnja pro malen'kuju elochku [Song about a small Christmas tree]. URL: http://a-pesni.org/baby/elotchka.php (accessed: 21.09.2023) (In Russ.).}

About the authors

Lyazzat Sabirovna Tokpayeva

K. Zhubanov Aktobe Regional University

Email: lyazzat.tokpayeva.82@mail.ru
ORCID iD: 0009-0005-5466-9564
SPIN-code: 9552-7266

PhD in Philology, Senior Lecturer of the Department of English and German Languages

34, A. Moldagulova Prospect, Aktobe, Republic of Kazakhstan, 030000

Gulzhana Aytzhanovna Kuzembayeva

K. Zhubanov Aktobe Regional University

Author for correspondence.
Email: kuzembayeva@mail.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0001-8964-3683
SPIN-code: 1510-2232
Scopus Author ID: 57211602995
ResearcherId: J-2591-2015

PhD in Philology, Associate Professor of the Department of English and German Languages

34, A. Moldagulova Prospect, Aktobe, Republic of Kazakhstan, 030000

Diana Pavlovna Spulber

RUDN University; University of Genoa

Email: 22spulber@gmail.com
ORCID iD: 0000-0001-7395-986X
SPIN-code: 6448-0531
Scopus Author ID: 57194034492

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Professor of the Department of Theory and History of Journalism, RUDN University; Professor of the Department of Education, University of Genoa

6, Miklukho-Maklaya str., Moscow, Russian Federation, 117198; 5, Via Balbi, Genova, Italy, 16126

References