Abstract
<jats:p>The study aims to identify the pragmatic functions of the linguistic means of expressing culture-specific information about the Weimar Republic in the novel “Success” by the classic of German literature, Lion Feuchtwanger. The research demonstrates the novel’s saturation with national-cultural naming (NCN) units, presents their classification, and identifies the functions performed by these NCN means. The scientific originality lies in the fact that the pragmatic potential of NCN units has not previously been subject to specialized study; the research reveals for the first time their pragmatic potential in German literary discourse in comparison with the academic discourse of entries in German linguo-cultural dictionaries. As a result, the functional load of historical and political NCN units within the discourse of a work of fiction is revealed. Four types of pragmatic functions for NCN units are distinguished: informing; creating the world picture of the era; describing the characters; and constructing the characters’ personal attitudes toward events. In contrast, the academic discourse of linguo-cultural dictionary entries is found to perform only one function – the informing one.</jats:p>