Where did the phraseologism come from to cut down on the nose. Why do they say “Kill yourself on the nose! How well-known expressions of the Russian language appeared
Makes a notch on the nose
The Russian language is rich in many aphorisms and phraseological units. The foreigner will be at a dead end, trying to understand the true meaning of the next such phrase. However, not only foreigners. Often, the native speakers of the Russian language themselves will not be able to explain the origin of the winged proverb. For example, " Nick down ».
Everyone has heard this common phrase and even realize its meaning. “Vaska, so that this does not happen again! Kill yourself on the nose! - And the little tomboy understands that this is quite a serious warning. Although he does not even think about the meaning of these words. Really, what's with the nose?
It's all about literacy, or rather the lack of it. In the old days, literacy was not held in high esteem by ordinary people. Few peasants knew how to read and write. However, in the Middle Ages and among the nobility, few could boast of education.
However, human memory cannot remember all significant events. And if a person needed not to lose sight of something, then he had to use improvised means. Today, various gadgets come to our aid. At the same time, the role of a notebook was performed by ordinary boards or sticks, on which notches were placed. Simple and angry.
For example, one person owed another three sacks of wheat. Immediately, exactly three notches are placed on a commemorative stick. And, accordingly, as the debts were returned, this wand was divided into parts. The division took place in such a way that both sides had half of each mark.
And what about the nose anyway? In this case, this noun does not mean a detail of the face, but a derivative of the verb "wear". Commemorative plaques were important for their owners, as carriers of the necessary information. Therefore, they were carried everywhere with them. Hence the name of these "notebooks".
Phraseologism " Nick down"knows the majority of the inhabitants of our country: it is often used in colloquial speech, usually in the case when it is necessary for the second person to whom this phrase is addressed not only to hear and let it pass by, but to understand, draw the appropriate conclusions and remember for a long time what needs to be done. But how do you think this expression is interpreted Foreign citizens in the truest sense of this phraseological unit? Chances are they won't understand! After all, the expression is very difficult to translate into other languages and, moreover, in the end, it will lose its original meaning. This phrase is likely to be interpreted by foreigners as "a call to inflict harm on oneself."
In this article, we will answer the question of what the phraseologism "hack on the nose" means today, and what was the meaning of this expression in the past. where did this expression come from (came from), and why its meaning has nothing to do with the organ of smell. The human nose has nothing to do with it! What then? Let's deal with the meaning and origin of phraseology.
The meaning of the phraseological unit "about notches on the nose"
Nowadays, the phraseological unit “hack on the nose” means to put the information in memory forever, for the rest of your life. The expression is often said "in the hearts" accompanied by negative emotions. Therefore, it can carry aggression and rudeness to the address of the one to whom it is addressed. But also in this phrase can also act as a warning, because of the desire for a person to draw an appropriate conclusion from the current situation, for example, when a mother reprimands her child for committing a misdemeanor and requires him to remember the said instruction for many years.
This expression can be used in the educational and learning process, but more gently. For example, if a teacher wants to convey the necessary and very useful information to the students, I focus on its importance and considerable significance.
Some may think that the word "hack" is too rude and can be replaced with a softer one. However, the requirement to put a notch on the nose has nothing to do with damage to this human organ. To be convinced of this, let us turn to the history of the origin of phraseological units.
The origin of the phraseological unit "to chop on your nose"
Why did they begin to use the "nose" in this phraseological unit, and not another human organ? The history of the origin of phraseology originates on Russian soil, at a time when ordinary people were not illiterate - they could neither read nor write. And such a lack of these skills had a negative impact on trade in general. Because of this, people could not count money correctly and make purchases at the bazaar, as well as participate in different kind fairs. In those years, letters had to be brought on special wooden boards. Notches were put on these boards, various notes were applied.
Over time, this habit passed to merchants, who began to make notes on the boards about completed transactions and sales (purchases). Ill-literate people constantly carried signs with them. This is where the word "nose" came from - from the verb "wear", so they began to call the plate on which they put marks and notches.
And the expression “kill yourself on your nose” at that time meant “write it on your tablet”, and had nothing to do with the human nose, and even more so mutilating it.
An important purpose of this kind of writing tablets was to keep records of debt obligations. For example, one man borrowed four pounds of salt from another, and in order not to forget and remember this deal, he makes four marks on this tablet. If the return was not carried out immediately in several operations, then the peasants divided such a tablet among themselves. And on the hands of both remained parts with the required number of marks.
That is why, the expression "kill yourself on your nose", which later acquired a figurative meaning and became a phraseological unit, is used in Russian colloquial speech in our time.
Hack on the nose - they usually say if you need to remember something firmly, firmly. This is usually said with a reproach or threat, so that the person will forever remember the words of the speaker.
But why do they say so? What can be hacked on the nose and is it safe? What is the true meaning and origin of this phrase?
Origin
Interestingly, the expression Nick down has nothing to do with the part of the body that adorns our face. In the old days, a stick or a notched board was called a nose, which they carried with them - hence the word nose, i.e. the nose is what they wear.
Why were these notches on the "nose" necessary? This is a very simple, long-known technique that allows you to recall something. Someone ties a knot, another writes a dash on his hand, etc. etc. - everyone has their own ways not to let themselves forget about something important, about some assignment. Such a reminder will catch my eye - and that's it, I remembered what I needed. Thus, such noses used to play the role of notebooks, and "hack on the nose" meant making a note in such a "notebook".
And in the old days, notches on the nose were also made for another important reason - this is how they remembered debts, i.e. these sticks were used as IOUs.
Notches on the nose
"Nose" in the meaning of "what they wear" is used in another expression - " stay with the nose. "Stay with the nose" meant "stay with what you came with." Usually, they said so about those who gave an offering (in our opinion, a bribe) to some official, judge. And if the official turned out to be honest, then they said about the bribe giver that he "was left with a nose."
Phrase " kill yourself on the nose” means to remember once and for all, to remember firmly.
Take into account the future tense, remember well (Explanatory Dictionary of D. N. Ushakov, 1935-1940)
In the literature, this expression is quite common:
Ostrovsky A.N.
“Thunderstorm” - merchant Kabanova says to her son: “Well, you remember everything that I told you. Look, remember! Get it on your nose!”
“A profitable place,” Yusov says to Zhadov: “You should have listened to this man with your mouth open so as not to utter a word, but to chop off the words on his nose, and you are arguing!”
Dostoevsky F.M.
“Idiot” - “hear, not with a request, but with a demand, cut yourself this!”
As a child, I heard this expression very often from parents and teachers. When the purpose of the conversation with me was to memorize some written or unwritten rule, they told me, and quite strictly: kill yourself on the nose! Those. this cannot be done, or it must be done differently.
Do you know where this apparently meaningless expression came from? And what is the connection between cutting on the nose and the process of memorization?
In the Middle Ages, wooden sticks were used as IOUs. This was due to the fact that debtors and creditors did not know how to write. For example, in Ancient Russia, if a peasant took 2 bags of flour from a neighbor, then he cut out a stick and made 2 cuts on it. Then, the debtor had to split the wand into 2 longitudinal parts and give one part to the neighbor, and keep the second one as proof of recognition of the debt. At the time of calculation, both halves were folded, while the notches should have coincided. Such sticks in Russia were also called "nose" and were always carried with them for memory. Hence the expression " stab yourself in the nose».
In England, the same notched tags were used to record and collect taxes until the 17th century. And recently in Germany they found such a wooden promissory note. The find was made during the excavations of the town of Wittenberg. The thirty-centimeter stick has 23 cuts, and the name and date - 1558 - are also carved on it. I wonder if this city dweller managed to pay off his debts?
“Kill it on your nose” is usually advised to someone who needs to remember something very well. At modern man this expression can cause bewilderment: it is quite difficult to imagine how something can be hacked on the nose. Meanwhile, the origin of this expression is in no way connected with the nose that is on the face of a person or on the muzzle of an animal.
Origin of the saying
The nose referred to in this proverb is associated with the verb "to wear". Modern people often carry notebooks with them - paper or electronic, in which they write down something important that they would not like to forget. The people of the Middle Ages also did not particularly rely on their memory when it came to important matters- for example, which are to be given in the future. But it was difficult to make records in those days - after all, most of The population was illiterate, and there was nothing to write on: paper had not yet become widespread, and parchment was a very expensive material.People got out of the situation with the help of a simple mnemonic technique based on the psychological mechanism of association: they created a conventional sign, which in itself does not carry any information, but when looking at it, the person remembered why the sign was made. A knot on some piece of clothing or a notch on a wooden stick could act as such a reminder sign.
Such sticks with notches were especially convenient as promissory notes. For example, borrowing 2 bags of flour from a neighbor, a person made 2 notches on a stick. In order not to forget, such a stick was constantly carried with them, which is why it was called the “nose”.
Thus, the expression "to cut on your nose" originally meant a proposal to make a notch as a keepsake.
Another saying about the nose
The nose - a wooden stick with notches for memory - should not be confused with the other "nose" referred to in the expression "stay with the nose." It is used in the meaning of "to leave with nothing", "not to achieve your goal."
However, the “nose” is the same here: “what they wear”, “offering”. It's about about money or other material values, which were brought to a judge or other government official in order to persuade him to his side and achieve a decision in his favor. In modern Russian, this is called a bribe, and in pre-Petrine Russia it was called a nose.
Bribery in that era flourished, but still there were honest officials who refused to accept the "nose." It was said about a man who, while trying to give a bribe, met such an honest man, that he "was left with a nose."