[徵稿] (Jrnl) Recent Developments on the Semantics of Perceptio
Journal: Languages
Issue: Recent Developments on the Semantics of Perception Verbs
Call Deadline: 30-Nov-2025
Perception, the process by which a conscious entity captures, decodes, and
interprets external stimuli, can rightly be considered one of the most
sophisticated and fascinating processes of nature. As a cognitive process
fundamental to all living beings, the phenomenon of perception has received
considerable attention across various scientific fields, including linguistics
. Indeed, since language is used primarily to talk about the world we perceive
, language and perception are inextricably interwoven (Miller & Johnson-Laird
1976). This relation is reflected in the rich linguistic bibliography and the
numerous studies dedicated to verbs of perception (cf. for instance Enghels
2007; Evans and Wilkins 2000; Ibarretxe-Antuñano 1999; Jansegers 2017;
Norcliffe & Majid 2024; Sweetser 1990; Viberg 1984, 2001 among many others).
Over the last few decades, perception verbs have garnered widespread interest
as a key to understanding the relationship between language and cognition and
how language mediates our human experience. Therefore, they can be studied
from many angles, including – but not limited to – a typological, diachronic
and syntactic perspective.
First, verbs of perception have been studied typologically in relation to
their polysemy and the (universal) patterns of lexicalization they give rise
to. This had led to the idea that the lexicalization of perception verbs is
constrained by a biologically grounded sense-modality hierarchy (Viberg 1984,
2001): sight > hearing > touch/taste/smell. According to this hierarchy, a
verb having a basic meaning belonging to a sense modality higher in the
hierarchy can get an extended meaning that covers some (or all) of the sense
modalities lower in the hierarchy. Verbs higher in the hierarchy also give
rise to metaphorical extensions. For example, it is well known that visual
perception verbs have developed extended meanings beyond their denotational
meaning linked to the domain of cognition (cf. ‘I see what you mean’) and
similarly auditory perception has extended towards the notion of obedience (cf
. ‘a child that does not listen’) (Evans and Wilkins 2000; Sweetser 1990).
Likewise, it is well known that verbs of sight often give rise to a wide range
of evidential values in various typologically non-evidential languages (
Albelda 2018). Also, senses higher in the hierarchy are supposed to be more
frequent, diachronically stable and morphosyntactically complex.
From a diachronic perspective, then, scholars also have focused on the
lexicalization and grammaticalization process of perception verbs evolving
towards discourse markers and serving a more pragmatic function. This process
typically involves a gradual shift from concrete sensory meanings to more
abstract, interactional and even discursive uses helping to organize and
manage the flow of conversation (e.g. look in English, écoute in French,
guarda in Italian, mira in Spanish). These patterns of grammaticalization have
originated a rich bibliography on the cross-linguistic comparison of these
grammaticalization patterns including both major national languages and under-
studied indigenous languages (Van Olmen & Tantucci 2022; San Roque et al. 2018
; Norcliffe & Majid 2024).
Third, perception verbs and their meaning extensions are closely related to
the choice of argument structure. Indeed, perception verbs can select both
nominal or sentential complements and this selection interacts with their
meaning (Dik & Hengeveld 1991). This syntax-semantics interface has been
studied in large corpora, which allows not only qualitative descriptions of
perception verbs, but also quantitative and statistical processing of the data
(cf. among others Divjak 2015; Gries et al. 2020).
The main purpose of this Special Issue consist of reporting on new and current
interest and developments in research on the semantics of perception verbs,
focusing on studies that innovate in terms of their topic, theoretical
approach, and/or methodology. We welcome a wide range of (relevant) topics,
which may include but are not limited to:
- Cross-linguistic variation of perception verbs: studying both major national
languages and under-studied (indigenous) languages, but also dialectical
variants of the same language and sign language;
- Cross-linguistic comparisons of grammaticalization trajectories of
perception verbs: convergences and divergences;
- A re-evaluation of the sense modality hierarchy through the analysis of
lesser-studied languages (e.g. descriptions of tactile-dominant languages,
alternative hierarchies in languages with different sensory salience);
- New (diachronic) case studies of perception verbs evolving into discourse
markers or modal particles. Perception verbs as markers of stance,
evidentiality or (inter)subjectivity; emergence of discourse-level functions;
- Lexicalization and grammaticalization of perception verbs as observed in
different kinds of corpora, including spoken data;
- New quantitative approaches to the syntax-semantics interface of perception
verbs;
- Corpus-based or experimental approaches to the analysis of the syntax and
semantics of perception verbs.
- Relevant papers regarding all languages from different frameworks are
welcome.
Timeline:
Abstract Submission Deadline: September 10th
Notification of Abstract Acceptance: September 30th
Full Manuscript Deadline: November 30th
We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors
initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200 words summarizing
their intended contribution. Please send it to the guest editors (Marlies.
Jansegers@UGent.be) or to /Languages/ editorial office (languages@mdpi.com).
Abstracts will be reviewed by the guest editors for the purposes of ensuring
proper fit within the scope of the special issue. Full manuscripts will
undergo double-blind peer-review.
More information and full list of references can be found on the on the
journal's website:
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/languages/special_issues/6RKEQ25KPG
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