Актуализация на адвербиалната част на фразеологизма „Има нещо гнило в Дания“ в български и чешки
Update of the Adverbial Part of the Phraseme “Something is Rotten in the State of Denmark” in Bulgarian and Czech

Summary/Abstract: The article offers a contrastive analysis of the updates applied to the phraseological unit Има нещо гнило в Дания/Je něco shnilého ve státě dánském in Bulgarian and Czech. The study demonstrates that, despite the unit’s strong formal stability, it exhibits a high degree of adaptability, primarily through modifications of its adverbial component. Various types of substitutions are examined–choronymic, oikonymic, institutional, and metaphorical–which enable precise contextual anchoring of criticism and reveal the productivity of the model in media and public discourse. The contrastive perspective highlights structural and cultural differences between the two languages: Bulgarian tends to employ direct geographical names, whereas Czech frequently uses ktetic adjectives and occasionally ironic or hyperbolic variants. The findings confirm that the phrase functions as a flexible and culturally shared tool for expressing social and political critique, combining stability with remarkable adaptability.

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