ABSTRACT:Language is the reflection of culture. Proverbs are an important part of language, which is called “the flower of language” and “the mirror of a nation”. They are the crystallization of people’s collective wisdom and must have a close relation with culture.
Both in English and Chinese, there are many animal proverbs. Owing to the difference of cultures, there are many differences between the cultural connotation of English and Chinese animal proverbs. There is no denying that the cultural connotations of English and Chinese animal proverbs also have some similarities. This paper uses comparative method to investigate the similarities and differences of English and Chinese animal proverbs, which is supposed to be helpful for the language learners to have a better understanding of the cultural connotation of English and Chinese animal proverbs. The comparison includes two aspects: the animal species involved in English and Chinese animal proverbs; the cultural connotation of these animal proverbs. After careful comparison, this paper finds out that animal species involved in English and Chinese animal proverbs are quite different. In addition, the similarities and difference of the cultural connotation of English and Chinese animal proverbs have some characteristics as following: same animal has different cultural connotation in English and Chinese animal proverbs; same animal has same cultural connotation in English and Chinese animal proverbs; different animal has similar or same cultural connotation in English and Chinese animal proverbs; some animals with cultural connotation only exist in one language. Knowing these characteristics can help people understand and use English and Chinese animal proverbs better.
Keywords: animal proverbs; cultural connotation; associative meaning; difference
摘要:语言反映着文化。谚语作为语言中重要的组成部分，被称为“语言之花朵”、“民族之明镜”，是人类智慧的结晶，它必然与文化有着密切的联系。
英语和汉语中都包含了丰富的动物谚语。由于文化的差异，英汉动物谚语的文化内涵也有许多的不同之处。不可否认的是它们也存在一些相似之处。本文通过比较的方法来讨论英汉动物谚语的相似和不同之处，文章主要从以下几个方面进行比较：英汉动物谚语在所涉及的动物种类上的异同；英汉动物谚语在文化内涵上的异同。通过比较研究，发现英汉动物谚语所涉及的动物种类有比较大的差异，且两种语言中的动物谚语在文化内涵的异同上也体现了以下特点：相同的动物在英汉动物谚语中具有相同的文化内涵；相同的动物在英汉动物谚语中具有不同的文化内涵；不同的动物在英汉动物谚语里具有相似或相同的文化内涵；一些动物只在一种语言的谚语里具有文化内涵。了解这些特点能帮助人们更好的认识和使用英汉动物谚语。
关键词：动物谚语；文化内涵；联想意义；不同之处
