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Abstract
This chapter is a cross-linguistic synthesis of patterns found in non-corporeal uses of ‘eye’. Using data from previous studies representing a wide range of languages and families, the analysis here starts with common claims about the body within the embodiment framework and then examines semantic extensions from the physical properties of the ‘eye’ as triggers for metonymic and metaphorical chains. These triggers include synecdoche, spatial relations, shape and size, verbal action, and emotion. The analysis also compares semantic expressions of the ‘eye’ with other body parts, such as the internal organs. In addition to identifying common pathways of extension, the chapter claims ‘eye’ extensions are rooted in physical characteristics shaped by culture.
Abstract
This chapter synthesizes general patterns of ‘face’ extensions found across languages. With data from previously published work representing many languages and language families, I show common pathways of semantic extension for ‘face’. I demonstrate how each pattern is rooted in bodily-based salient features of the face: position, shape, size, and function.
Abstract
Within recent years, quantitative cross-linguistic research has shown that body parts are one of the least borrowed semantic fields (Tadmor and Haspelmath, ; ; ). With body parts showing many similarities to closed classes, it is simple to assume there is little motivation for a language to borrow body part terms into its lexicon. Yet, despite its lower percentage of borrowings cross-linguistically, some languages employ much higher percentages of borrowings for naming the body. The motivations behind such borrowings across languages remain unexplored but can largely be explained by social factors. As and claim, social factors generally trump linguistic factors as predictors of contact-induced change. This study first discusses proposed inhibitions to lexical borrowing and then examines cases of body part loanwords from various languages showing how they fit into social patterns motivating such borrowings.
The ‘Face’
The ‘face’ is the most identifiable feature of the human body, yet the way it is entrenched in language and cognition has not previously been explored cross-linguistically. This comparative volume continues the series on embodied cognition and conceptualization with a focus on the human ‘face’. Each contribution to this volume presents descriptions and analyses of how languages name the ‘face’ and utilize metonymy, metaphor, and polysemy to extend the ‘face’ to overlapping target domains. The contributions include primary and secondary data representing languages originating from around the world. The chapters represent multiple theoretical approaches to describing linguistic embodiment, including cultural, historical, descriptive, and cognitive frameworks. The findings from this diverse set of theoretical approaches and languages contribute to general research in cognitive linguistics, cultural linguistics, and onomastics.
The ‘Face’
The ‘face’ is the most identifiable feature of the human body, yet the way it is entrenched in language and cognition has not previously been explored cross-linguistically. This comparative volume continues the series on embodied cognition and conceptualization with a focus on the human ‘face’. Each contribution to this volume presents descriptions and analyses of how languages name the ‘face’ and utilize metonymy, metaphor, and polysemy to extend the ‘face’ to overlapping target domains. The contributions include primary and secondary data representing languages originating from around the world. The chapters represent multiple theoretical approaches to describing linguistic embodiment, including cultural, historical, descriptive, and cognitive frameworks. The findings from this diverse set of theoretical approaches and languages contribute to general research in cognitive linguistics, cultural linguistics, and onomastics.