National-cultural and cognitive features of the concept “Mother” in English and Uzbek

Abstract

The concept MOTHER is a universal human category whose linguistic realization is shaped by culturally specific knowledge, social expectations, emotional experience, and symbolic associations. This study compares the national-cultural and cognitive organization of MOTHER in English and Uzbek within the combined frameworks of frame semantics, cognitive linguistics, and cultural linguistics. The study uses a qualitative comparative design and analyzes lexical nominations, conventional collocations, phraseological and proverbial material, evaluative features, and metaphorical extensions associated with English mother and Uzbek ona. The analysis identifies a shared cognitive core structured around biological maternity, care, affection, protection, child-rearing, and sacrifice. At the same time, the two languages differ in the relative salience of peripheral and culturally elaborated frame slots. The Uzbek model foregrounds tarbiya (upbringing), respect, moral responsibility, family continuity, and intergenerational solidarity, whereas the English model more readily accommodates individual identity, personal agency, professional roles, and autonomy alongside traditional caregiving meanings. Metaphorical extensions also reveal culturally meaningful patterns: Uzbek Ona Vatan emphasizes origin, belonging, and collective attachment, while English Mother Nature and Mother Earth foreground generativity and the life-sustaining environment.