Introduction to Cognitive Linguistics
Fall 2025-2026
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alper Kumcu (Visiting Professor)
Email | Website
Description
This course offers an introductory overview of Cognitive Linguistics, a discipline that examines language as a cognitive function and the mind through language. It explores fundamental concepts such as categorisation, prototypes, image schemas, conceptual metaphor, mental spaces, the mental lexicon, conceptualisation in grammar, discourse, and embodied language processing.
Drawing on evidence from text analysis, language acquisition, psycholinguistic experimentation, neurolinguistic research, and brain imaging, the course provides students with an understanding of how language is structured in the mind and brain, how it reflects thought, and how it relates to embodied human experience.
Objectives & Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain the core principles of Cognitive Linguistics, including usage-based and meaning-as-conceptualization perspectives.
- Analyze how language is represented and processed in the mind and brain, drawing on psycholinguistic and neurolinguistic evidence.
- Apply cognitive models of embodiment, image schemas, and conceptual metaphor to understand meaning construction and their potential role in teaching abstract concepts.
- Evaluate key conceptual structures such as categorisation, polysemy, mental spaces, conceptual blending, and cognitive grammar, and reflect on their implications for language learning.
- Interpret discourse and figurative language from a cognitive perspective, and connect Cognitive Linguistics to broader applications in research, communication, and language education through independent projects.
Content
- Foundations of Cognitive Linguistics: Core principles, usage-based perspectives, and categorisation.
- Mind, Brain, and Embodiment: Neurolinguistic evidence, image schemas, and conceptual metaphor theory.
- Language Processing and Meaning: Embodied semantics, polysemy, and the mental lexicon.
- Conceptual Structures in Language: Mental spaces, conceptual blending, and cognitive grammar.
- Discourse and Applications: Figurative language, pragmatics, and student-led projects.
Weekly Schedule
| Week | Date | Topic | Content | Readings | Task |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 2, 2025 | Course Introduction | Course aims, scope, and requirements | – | – |
| 2 | October 9, 2025 | Foundations of Cognitive Linguistics | What is cognitive linguistics? // Key commitments | Croft & Cruse (2004, ch.1) Optional: Evans (2019, ch.1) | – |
| 3 | October 16, 2025 | Representing Language in Mind and Brain | Neurolinguistic & psycholinguistic evidence // Language in memory | Selected articles (to be announced) | – |
| 4 | October 23, 2025 | Categories, Prototypes, Frames and Domains | Prototype theory // Radial categories & cultural models | Evans & Green (2006, ch.2) | – |
| 5 | October 30, 2025 | Embodiment, Image Schemas, and Conceptual Metaphor Theory | Core image schemas (CONTAINER, PATH, FORCE, BALANCE) // Abstract thought and metaphors | Lakoff & Johnson (2003) Evans & Green (2006, ch.6) Optional: Bergen (2012, ch.2–3) | – |
| 6 | November 6, 2025 | Embodied Language Processing | Simulation semantics // Neural & behavioural evidence | Gibbs (2006, ch.5–6) Optional: Bergen (2012, ch.4–5) | – |
| 7 | November 13, 2025 | – | – | – | Midterm |
| 8 | November 20, 2025 | Meaning Construction | Mental spaces // Conceptual integration & blending | Fauconnier & Turner (2002, ch.1–2) Optional: Evans & Green (2006, ch.7) | – |
| 9 | November 27, 2025 | The Mental Lexicon | Lexical networks // Polysemy and meaning extension | Langacker (2008, ch.2) Optional: Evans & Green (2006, ch.4) | – |
| 10 | December 4, 2025 | Cognitive Grammar: Grammar as Conceptualization | Construal & perspective | Langacker (2008, selected chapters) Evans & Green (2006, ch.8) | – |
| 11 | December 11, 2025 | Discourse, Pragmatics, and Cognition | Figurative language in discourse // Narrative and inference | Cameron & Low (2004, ch.1) Kövecses (2010, ch.7) | – |
| 12 | December 18, 2025 | Student Presentations I | Applications of Cognitive Linguistics | Selected articles | Student Presentations I |
| 13 | December 25, 2025 | Student Presentations II | Applications of Cognitive Linguistics | Selected articles | Student Presentations II |
| 14 | January 1, 2026 | Holiday | – | – | – |
Assigned Readings
- Dabrowska, E., & Divjak, D. (Eds.). (2015). The Routledge handbook of cognitive linguistics. Routledge.
- Ellis, N. C., & Robinson, P. (Eds.). (2008). Handbook of cognitive linguistics and second language acquisition. Routledge.
- Evans, V. (2019). Cognitive linguistics: A complete guide. Routledge.
- Evans, V., & Green, M. (2006). Cognitive linguistics: An introduction. Routledge.
- Geeraerts, D., & Cuyckens, H. (Eds.). (2007). The Oxford handbook of cognitive linguistics. Oxford University Press.
- Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (2003). Metaphors we live by. University of Chicago Press.
Recommended Readings
- Bergen, B. (2012). Louder than words: The new science of how the mind makes meaning. Basic Books.
- Cameron, L., & Low, G. (2004). Researching and applying metaphor. Cambridge University Press.
- Croft, W., & Cruse, D. A. (2004). Cognitive linguistics. Cambridge University Press.
- Fauconnier, G., & Turner, M. (2002). The way we think: Conceptual blending and the mind’s hidden complexities. Basic Books.
- Gibbs, R. W. (2006). Embodiment and cognitive science. Cambridge University Press.
- Kövecses, Z. (2010). Metaphor: A practical introduction. Oxford University Press.
- Langacker, R. W. (2008). Cognitive grammar: A basic introduction. Oxford University Press.
- Talmy, L. (2000). Toward a cognitive semantics. MIT Press.
- Taylor, J. R. (1995). Linguistic categorization: Prototypes in linguistic theory (2nd ed.). Clarendon Press.
- Taylor, J. R. (2003). Linguistic categorization (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press.
Requirements
- Midterm (40%) – Week 7
- Student Presentation (20%) – Weeks 11-12
- Final Exam (40%) – January 8, 2026