keivan zahedi

Cognitive metaphor as a special cognitive mechanism, which facilitates the comprehension of higher level concepts via the comprehension of the lower level concepts, is acquired by bilinguals in the process of second language acquisition by means of collocation and lexical selection following anumber of phases. The hierarchical feature of this type of acquisition accounts for certain problems in comprehension and production of second language facing bilinguals. The present research aims to assess the levels involved in the cognitive metaphor acquisition of bilinguals. An ex post facto experimental design with a descriptive-analytic nature is applied to 248 English- Persian bilingual participants in both genders and Persian monolinguals between 11-17 years of age. The research instrument comprises a validated researcher– ade questionnaire based on Bloom’s taxonomy within the cognitive domain. The relevant statistical tools consist of mean, standard deviation, correlation coefficient of each question with the total score, alpha coefficient, reviewers agreement coefficient, Pearson coefficient between re-test values, standard T and Zscores, and discrimination analysis. Findings offer a validated cognitive metaphor acquisition questionnaire (0.82 validity and 0.96 reliability) and a database of bilingual levels of metaphor acquisition in the targeted age limit. It is also observed that the level of acquisition of cognitive metaphors along with the level of complexity increases with an increase in age. Although demonstrating a good capacity for acquiring cognitive metaphors at the levels of knowledge and comprehension,bilinguals show a considerable amount of difficulty at higher levels of cognitive domain, namely analysis and synthesis.

This paper, using Government and Binding Theory, deals with resumptive pronouns in Persian. It is concluded that the resumptive pronouns in genetive structures are obligatory. Such pronouns can be absent in genetive position of topicalized structures in the old and literary Persian. They are obligatory in prepositional structures too. The presence of prepositon before the head of relative clauses is possible, if in the of both relative and matrix clause verbs there exist -roles needing a joint preposition by which they are represented. Otherwise, the preposition must be stranded in the relative clause with a resumptive pronoun in the complement position. Resumptive pronouns are optional in the object position of relative clauses but banned in topicalized structures. A trace is prefered in the unmarked subject position of relative clauses but resumptive pronoun occurs when this position is focused and shows a sort of uniqueness. Relative element in Persian relative clauses is a non-overt operator coindexed with resumptive pronouns or traces. Persian language is sensitive to complex noun phrase consraint, and accordingly, in cases where a resumptive pronoun inside a complex noun phrase is coindexed with a non-overt operator out of that complex noun phrase and yet the structure is grammatical, it is concluded that no movement happens. So Persian resumptive pronouns are base-generated. Non-clitic pronouns can not be resumptive in topicalized structures.

The present research aims to examine the behavior of a widely used preposition in Modern Persian (Farsi), namely ‹az› within the framework of cognitive semantics. The analysis is geared towards determining the prototypical and various distinct senses of this preposition and proposing a semantic network for it. The nature of the research is descriptive- analytical and the type is corpus-based. The selected corpus is Farhang-e Sokhan (Sokhan Dictionary) and the tools applied are those of cognitive semantics e.g. categorization tools, prototype, cognitive schemas, semantic predominance, semantic network and protoscene. ‹Az› shows that it fits the criteria for the determination of the prototypical sense of a linguistic item e.g. highest frequency of occurrence and composite formation. The prototypical sense of ‹Az› constitutes the core sense within a semantic network, which is presented. This network makes it possible to establish and explain the differences between the concrete and the abstract (metaphorical) functions of the preposition under study.

Iconicity, as a fundamental concept in cognitive linguistics, emphasizes the existence of motivation between the form and meaning of language structures and signifies a relationship which represents any kind of correspondence, analogy or resemblance between a sign form and what it stands for. In the cognitive approach to linguistics, language is considered a part of cognitive system, which mirrors the conceptual organization as well as the world inside the speaker's mind. According to this view, the outside world experience and cognition are reflected in language structure, and language forms are completely associated with the semantic structures they are supposed to manifest. Among the most noticeable models of this approach is the Cognitive Grammar model. This grammar posits a symbolic nature for language and assumes language to be a set of symbolic units which symbolize meaning and thought. It is believed in this model that language structures are motivated through cognitive processes and the existence of iconic and motivated structures in language is considered quite natural by this approach. Causative structures are among the motivated structures in a language. Thus the present research looks into the 5 types of diagrammatic iconicity peculiar to the grammatical structures of Modern Persian (Farsi) causatives from the Cognitive Grammar point of view. Findings indicate that Persian causative structures reflect all 5 types of diagrammatic iconicity (distance, independence, order, complexity and categorization) one way or another. Therefore, it is concluded that such causative categories should be recognized as “causative icons” in Modern Persian.

The present paper aims to investigate abbreviated forms and the process of abbreviation in Modern Persian; it also looks into the historical development of such word formation process. It will be demonstrated that abbreviation is rule- governed and dates back to Old Persian era. The analysis presented in the article is based on Zipf’s Law (1949). Within this approach Zipf introduces the first theoretical model in order to explain the observations and find a mathematical formula for the corresponding function. Zipf and Martinet (1962) believed the Economy/Least Effort Principle(s) govern the behavior of words. The principles indicate the use of frugal means in order to achieve greatest impact in a specified period of time. Abbreviation will be claimed to follow the same principles; that is, there is a reverse correlation between the length of words and the frequency of their application.

In linguistics, linguistic gender is distinguished from the biological one. Despite the existence of a relation between the two, linguistic studies indicate that the relationship is not isomorphic. Language of the Holy Quran, also known as Classical Arabic, exhibits an extensive variation in the use and types of linguistic gender. This research provides a new classification of this type of gender, different from the ones already presented in traditional grammars of Arabic, based on the language of the Holy Quran and adopting the Markedness Theory in linguistics. The results may prove useful both in the linguistic interpretation of the Quranic verses, especially those related to women and their significance in the Holy Quran, and in offering language researchers a new and different approach to the analysis of the Arabic language and grammar.