FUNCTIONS OF MICROTOPONYMS OF THE CITY OF AKTOBE IN THE FICTIONAL AND AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL PROSE OF R.M. MIR-KHAYDAROV AND A.I. DUNAENKO

Abstract

The article examines microtoponyms as a means of representing the urban space of Aktobe (formerly Aktyubinsk) in fiction. The relevance of the study is обусловлена the growing interest of contemporary literary studies in local forms of representing the urban topos. The research material includes R.M. Mir-Khaidarov’s novella “The Grey-Haired Man with a Rose in His Buttonhole” (1982) and A.I. Dunaenko’s autobiographical stories “Rossovkhoz” (2018) and “How I Was Born” from the collection “Thank You, Dad!.. Family Chronicles” (2021).

The aim of the article is to identify, systematize, and analyze microtoponyms, as well as to determine their functions within the structure of literary narration. The main focus of the research is the consideration of microtoponyms as an element of textual poetics that contributes to the formation of the city’s image and the reconstruction of its socio-cultural context. The scholarly significance of the work lies in clarifying the role of microtoponymy in regional literature and expanding the understanding of ways in which urban space is represented in authorial discourse.

The methodological framework of the study includes the descriptive method, methods of analysis and synthesis, elements of content analysis and classification, as well as a comparative analysis of literary texts. As a result of the research, a classification of microtoponyms based on semantic and functional criteria is proposed, including the names of streets and squares, objects of social and cultural infrastructure, and loci of everyday urban life.

It has been established that in the analyzed texts microtoponyms perform not only a nominative but also a representative function. In the fiction of R.M. Mir-Khaidarov, they contribute to the creation of an effect of authenticity and historical specificity, whereas in A.I. Dunaenko’s autobiographical texts they predominantly record personally significant spaces and routes. It is concluded that the system of microtoponyms is an important component of the texts under study and reflects the specificity of the authors’ perception of both urban and rural environments (in A.I. Dunaenko’s stories).

The value of the conducted research lies in the possibility of using its results in the study of literature with a regional component. The practical significance of the work consists in the applicability of the proposed classification of microtoponyms in university courses on literary studies and regional studies related to urban themes.