To the problem of determining the status of the term "religious vocabulary"

this article analyzes the theoretical status of the term "religious vocabulary" and its place among similar terms. Every religion encapsulates special meanings and messages in its specific vocabulary. It is the vocabulary that manifests the meaning and symbolism of the religious existence, as well as develops and enables religious consciousness. In modern linguistics, the term "religious vocabulary" is interpreted ambiguously since its status among other terms of the religious sphere, such as "church vocabulary," "biblical vocabulary" "biblical terms," "sacred vocabulary", and "confessional vocabulary", has not been conclusively determined. For this purpose, we examined in detail the use and interpretation of these terms in scientific literature and established how they corelate in their semantics and functioning. As a result, we have determined semantic-functional relationships among the terms of the religious sphere. This relationship appears to be of the hierarchical nature where the term "religious vocabulary" occupies a dominant (hyperonymic) position, while "biblical vocabulary," "church vocabulary," "sacred vocabulary", and "confessional vocabulary" are its hyponyms that are more specific in their semantics and functioning. Study of the religious vocabulary is of interest not only for linguists, but also for literary scholars, sociologists, cultural scientists. The study of the terms contributes to the expansion of knowledge about the cultural diversity and dynamics of the language system.

religious vocabulary, church vocabulary, biblical vocabulary, sacred vocabulary, confessional vocabulary, term