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1.3. Classes of nouns

As far as their lexical meaning is concerned nouns -are traditionally divided into a number of lexical categories or classes each of which is formed by the op-positional pair: 1) proper vs common nouns (собствен­ныенарицательные), 2) concrete vs abstract nouns (конкретныеабстрактные}, 3) countable vs uncoun­table nouns (исчисляемыенеисчисляемые}, 4) ani­mate vs inanimate nouns (одушевленные неодушевлен­ные}, 5) human (person) vs non-human (non-person) nouns (обозначающие человека не обозначающие человека).

1.3.1. Proper vs common nouns

The division of nouns into proper and common is based on the type of nomination.

Proper nouns are special names given to human beings or things to single out and individualize them by means of capitalization. In accordance with the object of nomination proper nouns may be personal names (Mary, John, Dickens), geographical names (Moscow, the Thames, the Alps), the names of the months and of the days of the week (January, Sunday), names of hotels, ships, etc. (the Ritz, the Titanic).

Common nouns are the names which may refer to any person or thing (man, woman, doctor, bird, dog), a group of similar individuals or things (family, government, machinery, foliage), materials (cotton, iron, rubber), abst­ract notions (kindness, strenght, friendship, love).

Proper nouns may turn into common nouns. For example, such words as champagne (a sort of white wine), ulster, mackintosh (special types of a coat), Wellington (boots) trace back to and correlate with the existing proper names denoting either the places of origin (Cham­pagne, Ulster) or the inventor (Wellington, Mackintosh).

At the same time most of surnames like Mason, Smith, Bush originated from common nouns as well as some place names like the City (an area in central London which is the British centre for money matters) or the Globe (the theatre in London where Shakespeare's plays were first performed).

1.3.2. Concrete vs abstract nouns

Within the category of common nouns lies the second nounal opposition, namely between concrete and abstract nouns.

Concrete nouns are further subdivided into a) class nouns which denote individuals — persons or things as belonging to a class: a man, a woman, a bird, a dog, a pen, a flower, b) collective nouns, i.e. names of a group of living beings or things considered as a unit: family, crowd, police, poultry, cattle, foliage, machinery; c) names of materials indicating a mass of air, water, iron, gold, sugar, etc.

Abstract nouns are conventionally grouped though less explicitly and rigorously into a) the names of qualities (kindness, strength, courage, sadness), b) states (fear, fight, sleep), c) processes (conversation, discussion, read­ing), d) fields of knowledge or activities (linguistics, ma­thematics, economics, physics, gymnastics), e) phenomena (weather, rain, thunder, storm, lightning, earthquake, ra­diation), f) periods of time (minute, hour, week, day, night, summer), g) generalized notions (direction, tenden­cy, accommodation, time, space).

Abstract nouns may convert into concrete nouns if they refer to concrete objects. Compare: beauty (красо­та) a beauty (красавица), youth (юность) a youth (юноша), glass (стекло) — a glass (стакан), crime (пре­ступность) a crime (преступление).

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