LEXICAL AND SEMANTIC COMPARISON OF UZBEK AND TURKISH LANGUAGES

Аннотация

This article analyzes the similarities and differences between the Uzbek and Turkish languages in terms of their lexical and semantic features. A comparative study is conducted on aspects such as the origin of words, polysemy, semantic narrowing or broadening, national vocabulary, and modern terminology. Keywords: Lexical-semantic comparison, Turkish language, Uzbek language, common Turkic words, semanticrange, polysemy, realia, semantic differences. ЛЕКСИКО-СЕМАНТИЧЕСКОЕСРАВНЕНИЕУЗБЕКСКОГОИ ТУРЕЦКОГО ЯЗЫКОВ Аннотация:В даннойстатье анализируются сходства и различия узбекского и турецкого языков с точки зрения их лексических и семантических особенностей. Проводится сравнительное исследование по таким аспектам, как происхождение слов, полисемия, семантическое сужение или расширение, национальная лексика и современная терминология. Ключевые слова: Лексико-семантическое сравнение, турецкий язык, узбекский язык, общетюркские слова, семантический диапазон, полисемия, реалии, семантические различия. As two prominent representatives of the Turkic language family, Uzbek and Turkish have a close historical root connection, although they have followed independent paths of development in the modern era. Both languages have evolved from common Turkic foundations, and while many lexical-semantic similarities exist between them, significant differences are also present. This article explores a comparative analysis of Uzbek and Turkish in terms of vocabulary (lexis) and meaning (semantics). In linguistics, such comparisons between the two languages not only reveal historical roots butalso facilitatemodern communication processes. First of all, both languages have preserved a set of common Turkic words. For example, Uzbek words such as oy (moon), quloq (ear), ko‘z (eye), yurak (heart), ot (horse), qo‘l (hand), and qor (snow) also appear in Turkish as ay, kulak, göz, yürek, at, el, kar. These words are semantically equivalent in both languages, reflecting a shared lexical layer rooted in the genetic connection of the languages. However, such similarities are mostly observed in the basic and ancient vocabulary. This is because, since the early 20th century, modern Turkish underwent a language purification process, actively replacing Arabic and French borrowings with native equivalents under a “pure Turkification” policy. On the other hand, Uzbek has retained a large numberofArabic and Persian words. For instance, Uzbek words like ilm (science), sabr (patience), adolat (justice), kitob (book), maktab (school), though Arabic in origin, have Turkish counterparts which are often either Turkified versions or substituted with native terms: bilim (ilm), kitap (kitob), okul (maktab), adalet (adolat). Especially in modern Turkish, new compound words like bilgisayar (computer) are commonly used, while in Uzbek, this word is used in its original borrowed form (kompyuter). This contrast shows that Turkish prioritizes forming new words from internal 3 INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL FOR RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT SJIF2019:5.2222020:5.5522021:5.6372022:5.4792023:6.5632024:7,805 eISSN:2394-6334 https://www.ijmrd.in/index.php/imjrd Volume12,issue07(2025) resources, while Uzbek more readily accepts foreign (especially English) terms in their original forms. There are also semantic differences between the two languages. For example, the Uzbek verb chiqmoq (to go out)ispolysemous: it can mean to exitahouse, toresult insomething, to appear, or to emerge as a problem. In Turkish, these meanings are expressed through different verbs: çıkmak(to go out), ortaya çıkmak (to appear), sonuçlanmak (to result). This polysemy inUzbek demands syntactic and contextual adaptability, whereas Turkish tends to favor semantic clarity through distinct verbs. Moreover, both languages have similar metaphorical and idiomatic systems, though some idioms differ semantically. For example, the Uzbek idiom ko‘ngli cho‘kdi (became sad or disheartened) is expressed in Turkish as morali bozuldu. The Uzbek word ko‘ngil carries various semantic nuances such as soul, heart, intention, or emotion, while in Turkish, these are expressed through several distinct words: gönül, kalp, ruh, duygu. This again highlights Uzbek’s polysemous nature and theimportance ofcontextin semantic interpretation. Anotherarea where lexical-semantic differences manifest isin the vocabulary related tomodern technology. In Turkish, for instance, kapatmak is used for “turning off” a phone (literally, “to cover”), while Uzbek uses o‘chirmoq (to extinguish/turn off). Also, internete girmek (to enter the internet) in Turkish directly corresponds to the Uzbek phrase internetga kirish, although theirsyntacticconstruction can differ significantly. In conclusion, lexical and semantic similarities between Uzbek and Turkish reflect their shared historical roots, while the differences arise from each language’s independent development, cultural and economic environment, external influences, and language polici