Linguistics: Cognitive Linguistics

Cognitive linguistics is a unification of George Lakoff’s metaphor theory plus Ronald Langacker’s cognitive grammar and depends upon both the cultural model and the cognitive model of a social group. In other words, even if you don’t like baseball, it is part of American culture and you can cognitively “see” what is meant.

This field emerged in the [1970s] as an alternative to generative linguistics after a number of theories were explored and eventually pulled together under the heading of cognitive linguistics.

These linguists believe that language can be divided into general and modular — that “the human mind is organized into distinct ‘encapsulated’ modules of knowledge” (Evans), but that all these modules come together in cognitive linguistics. (See Other Posts on Theoretical Linguistics.)

Linguist Dirk Geeraerts notes that there is cognitive linguistics (referring to all approaches in which natural language is studied as a mental phenomenon) and Cognitive Linguistics, which is one form of cognitive linguistics.

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Other Posts on Theoretical Linguistics

Other posts on the primary theoretical categories that you can explore include:

• Intro to Theoretical Linguistics
• Generative – the theory that human language speakers have an idea of what the rules are and are able to learn in a short time with little effort
• Phonetics – the study of the physical production, acoustics, and hearing of speech sounds
• Phonology – the abstract study of the sound systems of languages in their cognitive aspects
• Pragmatics – the study of how language is used (in context)
• Semantics – the study of words and meanings
• Syntax – the study of how words and phrases make sentences

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Linguistics is . . .

. . . the systematic study of the nature, structure, and variation of language (of which grammar is a part), which describes how people use language. For the writer, how words are used (or spelled!) determines a character’s social and educational level and the time period for the story.

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Cognitive Linguistics
Part of Speech: Linguistics
Definition: The study of what language means when integrated with experience and culture, blending conceptual metaphor and cognitive grammar. It holds that the physical expression of one’s thoughts is automatic and unconscious, pulling together all of one’s experience through a combination of conceptual metaphor and construction. POST CONTENTS Conceptual Metaphor Cognitive Grammar Construal (Construction) Expression Linguistic Units Relations Semantics and Phonemes A.k.a. Lakoff-Langacker theory
Conceptual Metaphor	Definition: George Lakoff states that metaphors are modes of thought that may unconsciously shape the way we think and act — and not just figures of speech. That language relies upon a combination of perception, attention, motor skills, visual and spatial processing, and the sense of time: Perception is how we view the world Paying attention ensures the correct word is chosen Motor skills enhance cognitive development Visually we detect motion, objects, and locations Spatially, we understand where objects are in space which influences word choice Time influences the tense used
Return to top or post contents	The Phrase The Metaphor The Perception love is a journey journey Passage or progress from one stage to another. life is a journey journey A trip that takes one from place to place. love is war war That love can be a battle. current flowing against impedance current flowing Describing the movement of electricity.
Cognitive Grammar	Definition: Focuses on words and how they fit together, based on how we use and understand them. Grammar allows us to construct phrases, clauses, and sentences to create more detailed meanings.
Return to top or post contents	Linguistic structures, such as nouns, verbs, etc., help provide these meanings. Langacker’s concepts include: Construal (Construction) Expression Linguistic Units Relations A.k.a. space grammar Credit to: Cognitive
	throw ball verb + object sit chair verb + object We are going to walk. to walk as infinitive, it focuses on the components that are involved in the act of walking We’re going walking. walking was gerund, focuses on the act Did you have a nice walk? walk as noun, focuses on the action as a whole Credit to: Cognitive
Construal (Construction)	Definition: Looks at how the units of language are interconnected and structured since they suppose that grammar consists of constructions rather than stored words and applicable rules. Our ability to conceive and portray the same situation in different ways relates to the idea of bases and profiles. Credit to: Cognitive
Return to top or post contents	The speaker can choose active voice or passive voice, focusing attention on the person or on the object. The choice of active versus passive allows for a different degree of precision, turning a static situation into a dynamic event, highlighting different characteristics of an object, describing an object from one cognitive domain as belonging to another cognitive domain. A.k.a. construction grammar Credit to: Iriskhanova
	Expression Frame/Base Profile The ball is in front of the dog. The relationship is between the ball and the dog. Focuses on and profiles the ball’s position The dog is behind the ball. The relationship is between the dog and the ball. Focuses on and profiles the dog’s position Max hid Angela’s keys. The relationship refers to Max hiding the keys. Focuses on Max having hidden her keys. Angela’s keys were hidden. The relationship is about the keys being hidden. Focuses on Angela’s keys were hidden. Where is the Sunday Times? The relationship is the location of the paper. The speaker is looking for the newspaper. Have you read the Sunday Times? The relationship is a query from one person to another. It’s a question that may refer to an article about which the speaker is interested. He will come to London. The speaker is not “he” but another person. The speaker is already in London. He will go to London. Changes the viewpoint. From one place, he is going to go to London.
Expression Concept	Definition: All expressions evoke Frame = Base + Profile Credit to: Cognitive
Return to top or post contents	Expression Frame/Base Profile Explanation my uncle familial network how uncle fits into that network Without prior knowledge of what an uncle is or how familial networks work, you would not understand the expression my uncle. spaghetti and meatballs food network the type of food it is and its origins Without prior knowledge, you wouldn’t visualize long thin strands of pasta with a tomato sauce and round balls of meat vacuuming cleaning network an activity that uses a machine Without prior knowledge, you wouldn’t visualize a machine that sucks up dirt, etc.
Linguistic Units	Definition: The cognitive routines we engage in when we use language. Credit to: Cognitive
Return to top or post contents	The act of golfing is a multi-step process: A club needs to be picked. It needs to be lifted to a certain degree. It needs to be swung with a certain amount of force to send the golf ball to a desired location. Gardening can involve various activities: Harvesting flowers or vegetables. Pulling weeds. Digging in the soil.
Relations	Definition: The connections between different symbols, including things like prepositions, adjectives, and verbs. Credit to: Cognitive
Return to top or post contents	Grammar Expresses Relation Preposition below Expresses relation between two entities in space Adjective better Expresses a relation between the quality of one entity and another Verb to eat Expresses a relation between a person and a meal
Semantics and Phonemes	Definition: Pairs sound and a cognitive structure that helps you process information in an organized and meaningful way. Semantics studies words while phonemes are the smallest unit of spoken sound that can be grouped into syllables and are often the one thing that distinguishes one word from another. You may also want to explore “Semantics” and/or phonemes in the post on “Phonetics”.
	tree noun Can you pass the gravy? interrogative question run verb I like ice cream. simple sentence

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Linguistics posts by exploring its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, the Properly Punctuated, Word Confusions, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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Resources for Cognitive Linguistics

“Cognitive Grammar.” The Decision Lab. n.d. Accessed 20 Aug 2023. <https://thedecisionlab.com/reference-guide/linguistics/cognitive-grammar#>.

“Conceptual Metaphor.” Wikipedia. 18 Apr 2023. Accessed 29 Aug 2023. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conceptual_metaphor>.

Croft, William and D. Alan Cruse. Cognitive Linguistics. Cambridge University Press, 2004. <https://amzn.to/3ZZvzOa>. Print.

Evans, Dr Vyvyan. “What Is Cognitive Linguistics?” Psychology Today. 12 July 2019. Accessed 13 Aug 2023. <https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/language-in-the-mind/201907/what-is-cognitive-linguistics>.

Geeraerts, Dirk. Cognitive Linguistics: Basic Readings.. De Gruyter Mouton, 2006. <https://amzn.to/47msw5V>. Ebook.

Iriskhanova, Olga and Natalya Petrova. Katya Tytianko (trans). “Construal.” Centre for Socio-Cognitive Discourse Studies. Moscow State Linguistic University. n.d. Accessed 20 Sept 2023. <http://scodis.com/for-students/glossary/construal/>.

Langacker, Ronald W. Foundations of Cognitive Grammar: Volume I: Theoretical Prerequisites. Stanford University Press, 1999. <https://amzn.to/3KBhEHB>. Ebook.

⸻ Foundations of Cognitive Grammar: Volume II: Descriptive Application. Stanford University Press, 1991. <https://amzn.to/447Gvd4>. Print.

Nordquist, Richard. “Cognitive Linguistics.” ThoughtCo. 12 Feb 2020. Accessed 9 Aug 2023. <https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-cognitive-linguistics-1689861>.

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Ferdinand de Saussure’s Sign by smok is under the Freeimages.com Content License, via FreeImages.