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In:At the Crossroads of Historical and Cognitive Linguistics
Edited by Anna Rogos-Hebda and Heli Tissari
[Figurative Thought and Language 21] 2026
► pp. 12–31

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At the intersection

Historical and cognitive linguistics

 | Wayne State University
Published online: 29 January 2026
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https://doi.org/10.1075/ftl.21.01win
Abstract
The goal of this article is to demonstrate the ways in which cognitive linguistics (CL) and historical linguistics (HL) interact with each other. Although CL has no free-standing theory of change, the framework has permitted and continues to inspire discussion of the relationship between synchrony and diachrony, a topic which has been precluded by other theories. Following this discussion is a survey of ways in which the apparatus of CL has been applied to HL: included are the evolution of prototypes and semantic sets, grammaticalization, iconicity, analogical change, and the role of both frequency and figurative language in overall considerations of change.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1Does historical linguistics have a theoretical basis?
    • 1.2Historical linguistics as an independent discipline
    • 1.3Outline of paper
  • 2.Basic commitments of cognitive linguistics
  • 3.Diachrony and synchrony
    • 3.1Perceptions of polysemy and homonymy
    • 3.2The role of emergence and frequency
    • 3.3Other considerations
  • 4.Cognitive structures and language change
    • 4.1Prototype theory
    • 4.2Analogical thinking and iconicity
    • 4.3Entrenchment and directionality
    • 4.4Grammaticalization
    • 4.5A somewhat speculative note on figurative language
  • 5.Future lines of investigation
  • 6.Conclusions
  • References
References (62)
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