NATIONAL-CULTURAL ANALYSIS OF FIGURATIVE DEVICES USED IN ENGLISH CHILDREN’S FOLKLORE TEXTS

Abstract

This article examines the national-cultural characteristics of figurative devices used in English children’s folklore from linguocultural and cognitive perspectives. The research focuses on nursery rhymes, riddles, folk tales, counting-out rhymes, lullabies, and traditional children’s songs. Particular attention is paid to metaphor, metonymy, synecdoche, simile, personification, and symbolic imagery as mechanisms of cultural transmission and conceptualization. The findings demonstrate that figurative language in English children’s folklore performs not only aesthetic and educational functions but also serves as a medium for preserving and transmitting national values, historical memory, social norms, and cultural models. The study reveals that recurring folklore images such as the moon, animals, kings, queens, birds, gardens, and seasons function as culturally embedded symbols that shape children's perception of the world and contribute to the development of national identity.