Sacrum i obscenum w polskich gwarowych nazwach roślin w kontekście historycznym
Sacrum and obscenum in Polish dialectal plant names

Summary/Abstract: The aim of the article is to demonstrate that the presence of the elements of sacrum and obscenum in Polish dialectal plant names indicates a clear bipolarity of cultural associations in the mechanisms of plant nomination. This opposition is also evidence of the diverse origins of these names, despite the fact that their motivational basis is always broadly understood plant features perceived by humans. The author provides numerous examples of metaphorical plant names in which sacrum or obscenum are present, and sometimes even coexist, appearing in the names of the same species and referring to the same feature of it. She examines the reasons for this situation, the most important of which are, on the one hand, religious traditions rooted in society, and on the other - the realities of rural life and the straightforwardness and bawdiness of people living in the countryside. After analysis (taking into account semantically parallel foreign names), she comes to the conclusion that figurative names of plants from the sphere of sacrum are old and mostly inherited, while names from the sphere of obscenum are newer products of dialect users. She also states that dialectal plant names are excellent evidence of the diverse ways in which humans perceive the world. They also reflect the diverse cultural influences on rural communities throughout history.

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