Multidisciplinary Journal of Science and Technology

Comparative Analysis of Anthroponyms and Toponyms in the English Translations of “Bygone Days”

Abdurakhmanov Ziyomukhammad Sodiqovich,

a second-year student of MA program of Comparative Linguistics, Linguistic Translation Studies, Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages,

Keywords: Anthroponyms, Toponyms, Literary translation, Uzbek-English translation, O‘tkan kunlar, Cultural realia.

Abstract

This study examines the translation of proper names (anthroponyms) and place names (toponyms) in Abdulla Qodiriy’s classic Uzbek novel “O‘tkan kunlar” (Bygone Days) by comparing two recent English versions: Mark E. Reese’s “Bygone Days” and Ilkhom. Tukhtasinov’s “The Days Gone By”. Using a corpus-based comparative approach, we analyze how culture-specific names (realia) are rendered in each translation. Key characters (e.g. Otabek, Kumush) and locations (Tashkent for Toshkand, Margilan, Kokand Khanate, etc.) are predominantly preserved in English, reflecting a foreignization strategy. For instance, Reese explicitly translates the Uzbek kinship term kuyov o‘g‘ul as “son-in-law” when referring to Otabek in Margilan, whereas Tukhtasinov paraphrases it by stating “we have no children but Otabek”. Both translators retain original anthroponyms: Otabek and others are left untranslated, in line with observations that “proper names are often found unaltered in target texts”. Toponyms like Marg‘ilon are rendered as “Margilan” in English, and Toshkand appears as “Tashkent”. Our analysis, supported by translation theory on cultural “realia”, shows that translators generally keep national names intact to preserve cultural flavor. Minor differences arise in phrasing and explicitation of culturally loaded expressions. This work contributes to translation studies by illuminating how national and local names in Uzbek literature are handled in English renditions.

References

1. Qodiriy, Abdulla. O‘tkan kunlar (The Past Days). Tashkent: Sharq Publishing (latest ed. 2019).

2. Reese, Mark E. Bygone Days: O‘tkan Kunlar. Nashville, TN: Amazon Digital Services LLC, 2019.

3. Tukhtasinov, Ilkhom M., Omon Muminov, and A.A. Khamidov. The Days Gone By [Translation of O‘tkan kunlar]. Toshkent: Mashhur-press, 2017.

4. Reese, Mark E. “Bygone Days, the first Uzbek novel, is a political love story set in the colonial past.” Calvert Reads (National Endowment for the Arts blog), July 2021.

5. Mambelli, Gloria. “Translating English Fictional Names: The Lord of the Rings.” Iperstoria – Saggi/Essays, Issue 20 (Fall/Winter 2022).

6. Nurmetov, Jasur. “Personal names as realia in a language.” Molodoy Ucheniy [Young Scientist], no. 93 (2016), pp. 69–73.