人体語彙の多様性(Variability in human body vocabularies)

ad

2024-05-13 マックス・プランク研究所

マックス・プランク進化人類学研究所とパッサウ大学の言語学者チームが、人体の部位の言語間の語彙比較を行い、言語、文化、人体認識の相互作用に光を当てました。この研究は、1,028の言語バリエーションを対象にした初の大規模比較であり、普遍的な人間の領域における変動性について重要な洞察を提供します。例えば、英語では「腕」と「手」に異なる単語がありますが、セネガルのウォロフ語では両方の部位を「loxo」として一つの単語で表します。この研究は、体の部位の名前付けにおける言語間の違いを明らかにし、その背景にある機能的特徴や視覚的手がかりへの焦点の違いを探りました。

<関連情報>

普遍的・文化的要因が身体の部位の語彙を形成する Universal and cultural factors shape body part vocabularies

Annika Tjuka,Robert Forkel & Johann-Mattis List
Scientific Reports  Published:07 May 2024
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-61140-0

人体語彙の多様性(Variability in human body vocabularies)

Abstract

Every human has a body. Yet, languages differ in how they divide the body into parts to name them. While universal naming strategies exist, there is also variation in the vocabularies of body parts across languages. In this study, we investigate the similarities and differences in naming two separate body parts with one word, i.e., colexifications. We use a computational approach to create networks of body part vocabularies across languages. The analyses focus on body part networks in large language families, on perceptual features that lead to colexifications of body parts, and on a comparison of network structures in different semantic domains. Our results show that adjacent body parts are colexified frequently. However, preferences for perceptual features such as shape and function lead to variations in body part vocabularies. In addition, body part colexification networks are less varied across language families than networks in the semantic domains of emotion and colour. The study presents the first large-scale comparison of body part vocabularies in 1,028 language varieties and provides important insights into the variability of a universal human domain.

生物工学一般
ad
ad
Follow
ad
タイトルとURLをコピーしました