Linguistic-Cultural Stereotype ‘Philologist’ in Individual Consciousness of Chinese Speakers

This article is dedicated to modeling the linguistic-cultural stereotype ‘philologist’ in the individual consciousness of Chinese language speakers. The modeling procedure adopted in the study involves identifying the constitutive features of the professional stereotype, elucidating its figurative and valuable characteristics. Lexicographic data, materials obtained during sociolinguistic experiments, and photo documents were utilized as the primary sources. The analysis leads to the conclusion that within the Chinese linguistic-cultural context, this stereotype is interpreted much more broadly by individuals than defined in dictionaries. The sphere of activities of a Chinese philologist extends beyond the realm of science, making room for teaching activities, as well as affiliations with disciplines requiring erudition or language knowledge. It is established that in the individual consciousness of the Chinese, philology is almost entirely associated with linguistics. A typical philologist is a person who has received specialized education and possesses profound knowledge in the fields of languages and literature. They are characterized by rich inner culture, erudition, intellect, modesty, self-discipline, industriousness, openness, spirituality, pursuit of truth, articulate and elegant speech, respect for traditions, a healthy lifestyle, orientation towards spiritual rather than material values. The evaluative component of the stereotype exhibits axiological polarity with a significant bias towards positive traits.