"stroinyi kak topol'" and other arboreal epithetry

[Inna Caron]

Thank you all, and I stand corrected: evidently, topol' is a unisex
measure of "stroinost'" in Russian language and literature. To drill
another hole in my own argument, I'll add to this list "Topolek moi v
krasnoi kosynke." Of course, Aitmatov is not a Slavic writer, but the
translator would not have used the diminutive of "topol'" (and probably
would have opted for another tree) if the imagery did not ring a bell
with the Russian readers.

It is peculiar, though, that there are English analogies to both, iva
and dub, and in the same sense they are applied in Russian. "Willowy"
for a lithe female and "strong as oak" for a sturdy man. Thank you.

IC

-----Original Message-----
From: Slavic & East European Languages and Literature list
[mailto:SEELANGS at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU] On Behalf Of Irene Delic
Sent: Wednesday, April 12, 2006 6:22 PM
To: SEELANGS at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU
Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] "stroinyi kak topol'" and other arboreal
epithetry

In Pushkin's Poltava we have the heroine Mariia likened to a kievskii
topol'
(Kak topol' kievskikh vysot,/ Ona stroina.)

Irene Masing-Delic, Professor,
The Ohio State University
400 Hagerty Hall
1775 College Road
Columbus OH 43210-1215
tel.: 614-292-4726/6733
fax: 614-688-3107

-----Original Message-----
From: Slavic & East European Languages and Literature list
[mailto:SEELANGS at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU]On Behalf Of Inna Caron
Sent: Wednesday, April 12, 2006 10:09 AM
To: SEELANGS at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU
Subject: [SEELANGS] "stroinyi kak topol'" and other arboreal epithetry


Michael Holman wrote:

>What about 'stroinaya'? It may seem a bit tame after all the other
body-part
>slang, but it's still a fine word with no immediately obvious universal

>equivalent in English.

True, there doesn't seem to be an analogous term in English. Thing is,
even in Russian the visual association with this word somewhat differs
when applied to men's and women's appearance. To go with the most common
folk idiom, a man would be described as "stroinyi kak topol' (poplar),"
whereas a woman is "stroinaia kak berezka (birch)." I tend to use
"slender" for women, and "lean" for men when translating "stroinaia/yi"
into English.

It seems the visual comparison of people to trees is a Slavic thing, and
not really found in English. Or am I mistaken? Is there an English
equivalent to "moguchii kak dub," or "gibkaia kak iva"?

Inna Caron
Ohio State

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