Connotation as a Communicative Lacuna

The anthropocentric character of connotation and its dependence on sociocultural factors cause the universal and specific characteristics of this phenomenon which, on the one hand, make the cross-cultural communication possible, and on the other hand, can create communicative noises. Such noises or «gaps» in the process of communication when the recipient is unable to participate adequately in the process of communication because he/she is unaware of connotative meaning of a language unit we define as a connotative lacuna. It is supposed that viewing connotation within the theory of lacunology as an element of meaning which is inherent to a certain language unit in a source language and is absent within the meaning structure of its translation equivalent in the target language, thus provoking a communicative dissonance, is significant for the theory of cross-cultural communication as well as for such disciplines as theory and practice of translation, comparative and contrastive linguistics. The study of connotation within a lacunology as a system of knowledge on national and cultural specifics of a linguistic society provides an opportunity to view it holistically as it is known that such fuzzy entities remain on the periphery of researchers` interest, representing a risky zone for scientific adventures.