Motivating Features of the Concepts Zhurok and Heart

The concept is widely known to have a multi-level structure. Emerging as a subjective pictorial image, it then acquires new conceptual layers at different historical periods. The center of the image, its inner form is actualized by motivating features of the concept. The article analyses the cognitive features of the concept Zhurok/Heart in the Kyrgyz and English pictures of the world. The aim of the article is to identify the motivating features of the concept Zhurok/Heart relying on the data of lexicographic sources (etymological dictionaries) and trace the development of the conceptual characteristics. The paper has three main tasks: 1) to analyse etymological dictionaries; 2) to determine the spectrum of motivating features of the concept under study; 3) to compare the findings in the light of the theory of mentality. The main methods in the work are historical and etymological analysis of the representation of the concept under study, and descriptive and interpretative methods. The research methodology encompasses cognitive linguistic approaches to conceptual analysis, comparative linguistics, and cultural-semantic investigation of language units across different linguistic systems. In the course of the study, five main groups of motivating features of the concept Zhurok/Heart were identified: "inside, inner", "center", "soul", "courage, bravery" and "movement". The comparative analysis reveals both universal and culture-specific characteristics of heart conceptualization in Kyrgyz and English mentalities. The findings demonstrate how etymological motivating features influence contemporary semantic structures and metaphorical expressions in both languages, contributing to cross-cultural understanding of fundamental human concepts.