Metaphoric Terms in Tatar Toponyms as the Reflection of the National World-View

The language of any people is the most important means of expressing the national distinctness, and one of the basic features, which store the unique world-image of the people. Each language reflects the elements of material and intellectual culture – the historic past of the people. Being part of the vocabulary of a language, toponyms attract the increasing attention of researchers, for analyzing place names provides insight into a number of problems of history, culture, and the language of the people. This article reviews such metaphoric terms as tamak, arka, bash, ayak, kash, kabak, bil, yöräk, boryn, mangay, syrt, kultyk, tel, and others in toponymic units, which play an important role in increasing the sphere of functioning and demonstration of semantic potential of words. The analysis results show us, that the basis of metaphorization is represented by the associated perception of the reality by the members of the language and ethnic community, which through national mentality and national world-view actualize the particular nature of their world-image in language units. The research reveals that the toponymy of the Tatar people uses quite often the transfer of the name of one object or event to another on the basis of their similarity.