CONCEPTUALIZATION OF TIME IN COGNITIVE LINGUISTICS.
Abstract
Time, as an abstract concept, plays a central role in human cognition and language. This subchapter explores the conceptualization of time within cognitive linguistics, highlighting its metaphorical, embodied, and culturally variable nature. Drawing on foundational theories such as conceptual metaphor theory, the discussion illustrates how temporal understanding is shaped by spatial experience, cultural narratives, and linguistic encoding. Empirical studies involving gesture analysis, bilingualism, and neuroimaging provide evidence for the embodied and flexible nature of temporal cognition. Cross-linguistic examples demonstrate how different languages and cultures map time in diverse ways, including linear, cyclical, and spatially grounded frameworks. The chapter argues that time is not universally perceived but rather constructed through interaction between cognitive mechanisms, language, and socio-cultural context.
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