| Description |
We are surrounded by proper names in our everyday lives – so much so that we sometimes hardly recognize them as linguistic entities. Indeed, many approaches to language only treat names and the process of naming in a very fleeting manner. And yet, names play a vital role as a linguistic resource: they provide linguistics with information about historical, structural, lexicological and semantic aspects of the language. And the process of assigning and using names deeply affects us on a sociolinguistic and discursive level, where it is closely tied to issues of identity, affection and power.
In this class, we will familiarize ourselves with the linguistics of naming. We will include traditional onomastic approaches, and learn about the history, structure and semantics of names. In the second part of the class, we will zoom in on pragmatic and sociolinguistic aspects of naming. We will draw on examples from different domains, including proper names and nicknames, scientific terminology and biological naming conventions, place names and branding strategies. |
