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Title: Conceptual categories scaffold verbal semantic structure: A cross-cultural study of child homesign
In language evolution, formation of conceptual categories preceded formation of linguistic semantic categories (Hurford, 2007). The mapping from concepts to semantics is non-isomorphic, however, as particular languages categorize conceptual space in divergent ways (e.g. English put in is acceptable for both tight-fit and loose-fit relations, while Korean kkita encodes tight-fit relationships only; Choi & Bowerman, 1991). Despite this variation, are there crosslinguistic patterns in how words lexicalize conceptual space? We address this question analyzing how child homesigners from four different cultures describe instrumental events (e.g. cutting bread with a knife). Homesigners are congenitally deaf individuals who have not been taught a signed language. Despite growing up without structured linguistic input, these individuals use a gestural system ("homesign") to communicate (Goldin-Meadow, 2003). We find that homesign descriptions of instrumental events reflect categories present in adult English, Spanish and Mandarin, suggesting crosslinguistic biases for how verbs encode the conceptual space of events, biases which may have been present over the course of language evolution.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1654154
PAR ID:
10089630
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on the Evolution of Language
Page Range / eLocation ID:
405
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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