The dynamics of terminologization in English maritime vocabulary: a linguistic perspective

Abstract

The article offers a comprehensive analysis of the processes of terminologization in English maritime lexis, which represents an important object of contemporary linguistic research. The relevance of the study is determined by the growing role of English as the lingua franca of international shipping, where clarity and unambiguity of terminology are crucial for safe and efficient communication. The purpose of the research is to explore the structural-semantic, standardization, corpus-based, and translational aspects of English maritime terminology. The paper outlines the scope of previous studies conducted by Ukrainian and foreign scholars, who have laid the foundation for current approaches to maritime terminology research. Special attention is given to word-formation models, borrowings, phraseological structures, as well as the use of corpus technologies for systematic analysis of professional communication. Unresolved issues are emphasized, including the discrepancy between codified standards (*Standard Marine Communication Phrases, Seaspeak*) and actual communicative practices, the limited availability of corpus resources, and the challenges of translation caused by polysemy and cross-linguistic asymmetry of terms. The methodological framework integrates descriptive, contrastive, corpus-based, statistical, and componential methods, ensuring a multidimensional perspective on terminologization processes. The results demonstrate the dynamic character of English maritime terminology, its reliance on derivation, compounding, and metaphorization. At the same time, the study highlights the need for harmonization of terminology with international standards, the development of an open multi-genre corpus of Maritime English, and the creation of bilingual and multilingual glossaries with contextual examples. The findings of the study have both theoretical and practical implications: they contribute to a deeper understanding of the principles of terminologization in English maritime lexis and can be applied in terminology studies, translation practice, and the methodology of teaching Maritime English at the tertiary level.