New Year's Table in Russian and Chinese Linguocultures

The subject of the research is the New Year's table as a significant component of the linguistic and cultural space in Russian and Chinese traditions. The object of the study includes linguistic means, symbolism of festive dishes, phraseological constructions, and communicative practices that reflect national concepts of happiness, abundance, and family values. The author examines in detail aspects of the topic such as the semantics and etymology of dish names, the role of metaphors, homonymy, and sound associations in shaping the festive worldview, as well as behavioral and ritual characteristics related to the holiday meal. Special attention is given to stable expressions, toasts, and wishes entrenched in the language and culture of both countries. The study considers both modern lexical and semantic manifestations and historical and cultural prerequisites of the symbolism of the New Year's feast, which allows for the identification of universal and specific features of Russian and Chinese linguistic cultures. The research materials included data from Russian ethnolinguistic dictionaries, Chinese philosophical treatises ("Li Ji"), media texts, as well as culinary and phraseological sources from both cultures. The methodological foundation consists of contrastive linguistic and cultural analysis as well as lexical-semantic and phraseological approaches. The novelty of the research lies in the comprehensive comparison of lexical-semantic, cultural, and communicative aspects of the New Year's feast in Russian and Chinese linguistic cultures. For the first time, the festive gastronomic tradition is considered not only as an ethnographic or sociocultural phenomenon but also as a structural element of the linguistic worldview that reflects the profound values of the people through food symbols, stable expressions, and the semantics of dish names. A special contribution of the author to the research of the topic is the identification of universal (the idea of abundance, family unity, cyclical time) and unique (phonetic symbolism, taboos, structure of the meal) meanings inherent to each culture. The main conclusions of the conducted research are the propositions that the New Year's table in both traditions serves not only a utilitarian but also a sacred function; it acts as a tool for transmitting cultural memory and national values. The lexical-semantic and phraseological analysis demonstrates that the names of dishes and festive expressions have pragmatic and axiological functions, contributing to the preservation of linguistic and cultural heritage. Thus, the New Year's table serves as an important linguistic and cultural marker that shapes ideas about well-being, success, and familial harmony.