Natalija Knyshenko

Kharkiv National Automobile and Highway University

SCIENTIFIC INTERPRETATION OF THE NOTIONS “TERMINOLOGY” AND “TERM SYSTEM”

(as exemplified in the road-building industry terminology)

© Knyshenko N. P., 2014

In the article the problem of differentiation of the notions “terminology” and “term system” has been considered. An attempt to determine the notional volume of the terms “road-building terminology” and “road-building term system” has been made.

Keywords: Ukrainian language, term, terminology, term system (TS), road-building terminology (RBT), Ukrainian road-building terminology (URBT).

No scientific research has been carried out yet in the field of the Ukrainian road-building terminology. Thus this article is the first attempt in the Ukrainian science of terminology to prove the individuality of the road-building industry terminology and determine its place in the hierarchy of related term systems.

One of the most important conditions of term existence is consistency, i.e. its existence as a separate element among others, with which it forms certain connections and interrelations, fixing in its notional volume a definite fragment of the reality and, thereby, together with other terms provides a complete and system depicting on the level of language consistency of knowledge concerning a certain field of human activity.

Functioning in different scientific spheres such terms form special terminological system. So, there are mathematical, linguistic, medical, metallurgic, automobile, road-building and other terminological systems.

The notion of “consistency” in terminology is not questioned because the terms exist not in isolation but belong to definite groups, which elements have certain connections and interrelations. D. Lotte was the first to raise the problem of consistency in his works. Later the scientist’s views were supported by a lot of other linguists, such as V. Vynogradov, G. Vynokur, B. Golovin, V. Danylenko, I. Kochan, G. Mats’uk, T. Pan’ko, O. Superans’ka, S. Shelov.

There are two opinions in linguistics as to the character of a term system formation. The first one is based on the concept of conventionality, that is, on the idea that terms do not appear by themselves but are formed intentionally in the system of a specific scientific or industrial activity. The second opinion is based on the idea that term systems are created according to the same laws with words of the common language.

Taking into account the characterized views on the content of the terms “terminology” and “term system” and in accordance with the conducted analytical work, it is possible to propose the following working definitions of these notions accepted to achieve the purpose of studying the road-building industry terminology: terminology (in a strict sense) is the group of terms of a certain science or field of knowledge taken irrespective of the structure and system organization criteria, determined by consistency and structuring of scientific knowledge and ideas about the fragment of reality studied by the specific science or field of knowledge; term system is an ordered group of terms, which gains signs of consistency as a result of progressive development of a certain science or field of knowledge and due to purposeful codification, normative linguistic interpretation of corresponding terminology for more clear depiction of notional continuum and comply with linguistic principles and system.

The notional volume of the term “road-building terminology” comprises the complex of terminological units used in such branch of the country economic activity as road-building industry and serve as a main fund of vocabulary in the process of scientific perception of this industry. At the same time, the term “road-building term system” denotes an ordered system of terms of the road-building industry being related to hierarchical submission to the general scientific term system as well as to the partial intercrossing with related industrial term systems, forming the fund of special economic and scientific and technical term systems.

Such definition implies evaluation of the volume of the road-building term system on the basis of determination of the nature of road-building as an economic activity.

With this approach the central attention is drawn to two fragments of reality: building as a type of human activity and roads as the product of this activity and the object of economic exploitation. It means determination of the building nature and its place in the system of other types of activity and roads as corresponding objects of reality created as a result of performing construction works.

Thus, we can make a conclusion that it is expedient to use the notion “road-building term system” to denote an ordered system of the road-building industry terms as a complex of all types of works performed in the process of building automobile roads, bridges and other types of engineer constructions as well as road line structures and the results of these works which are in close connection with hierarchical submission to the general scientific term system and at the same time are related to partial intercrossing with related industry term systems, which form the fund of special economic and scientific and technical term systems.