Abstract:

The article analyzes the experience of teaching the Russian language and theoretical disciplines to Chinese students at RUDN University (Russia). Recently, a large number of students from the People’s Republic of China choose to study at RUDN University. Chinese students also come annually for language courses that last from 1 month to 1 year, which gives grounds for compiling special textbooks for them, in particular study guides, small bilingual dictionaries, and reference materials on intercultural communication.

When teaching the Russian language to the Chinese, it is necessary to take into account the cultural component, as the worldview of China and Russia differs significantly. This paper proposes an analysis of differences in the linguistic culture of the Russian and Chinese languages using the example of street names in Chinese and Russian cities.

The scientific novelty of the study is represented in a comparative description of hodonyms that is displayed as educational language material, which is also of practical value.

The article gives classifications of Russian and Chinese hodonyms and analyzes in detail the differences in street names that are largely dictated by divergence in the perception of the world. Hodonyms as a part of the culture of any nation reflect the cultural identity of people speaking different languages and the particularity of nomination in them. The study of hodonyms involves deeper understanding of the culture of people who speak Chinese. As an illustrative material, hodonyms are used in teaching the Russian language at the preparatory faculty. Russian hodonyms have a number of features, some of which present a certain difficulty in the foreign students’ mastering the Russian language at a beginner level. The greatest difficulty in studying Russian hodonyms is their declension, which is a grammatical feature of the inflected Russian language.

At an advanced level, while studying the street names of Chinese and Russian cities students for whom the Chinese language is native are offered their linguistic and cultural analysis.

The comparative study of Russian and Chinese hodonyms shows that they are closely connected with cultural traditions in China and Russia.

Keywords:

Cultural component in teaching, toponyms, hodonyms, Chinese language, Russian language.