The characteristics of Russian and English terminological systems in the field of “Foreign Language Teaching”

Abstract

This study examines the structural, semantic, and functional characteristics of Russian and English terminology in the field of "Foreign Language Teaching" in terms of their interlingual equivalence. The paper examines the mechanisms of terminological unit formation, their systemic relationships, and the problems of polysemy, synonymy, and borrowing characteristic of modern linguodidactic terminology. Particular attention is paid to a comparative analysis of definitions of key concepts in Russian-language and English-language lexicographic sources, as well as the specifics of their functioning in the scientific discourse of Russian as a foreign language, which is driven by the need to standardize terminology for effective international professional communication. Furthermore, the study focuses on differences in the structural organization of terms, the degree of their terminological development in each linguistic tradition, and the influence of extralinguistic factors on the formation of non-equivalent units. The methodological basis of the study includes methods of corpus, comparative-contrastive and structural-semantic analysis, as well as elements of quantitative data processing to identify frequent terminological units. The scientific novelty of this work lies in its comprehensive comparative analysis of Russian and English terminology based on contemporary scientific periodicals on Russian as a Foreign Language (RFL), which allowed us to identify not only formal but also conceptual differences in the semantics of terms, stemming from differences in scientific traditions. The study identified three types of interlingual correspondences (full equivalents, partial analogs, and non-equivalent units), defined dominant structural models of Russian terminology (primarily two-component phrases), and developed a model for a bilingual dictionary entry with an extensive linguacultural commentary. This provides a practical basis for compiling a specialized glossary, essential for undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, and practicing teachers in the field of teaching Russian as a foreign language, as well as for preparing scientific publications in English.