Abstract

This study analyzes the polysemy of one of the main body part terms in Thai, /hua/, which shows the broad meaning extension in the basic Thai lexicon. As a result of an analysis of various meaning extensions based upon the prototypical meaning of /hua/, we found interesting results regarding grammaticalization and conceptualization as follows: First, we identified that the meaning and function of the body part term, /hua/(‘head’), has extended in various ways, including: (1) animate object > inanimate object; (2) object > space; (3) space > time; (4) concreteness > abstractness; and (5) content word > function word. As examples of grammaticalization centered on the human physical experience, such meaning and function extensions provide an interesting basis for the polysemy of body part terms. Second, through an examination of conceptual metaphorical meaning extensions of /hua/, we captured two distinct aspects of such meaning extensions, the ontological metaphor and the orientational metaphor. Examples of the ontological metaphor include: THE HEAD IS A CONTAINER; THE HEAD IS AN OBJECT; and THE HEAD IS A MACHINE or THE MIND IS A MACHINE. Also, examples of the orientational metaphor include: SHOWING RESPECT OR SURRENDER IS BENDING THE HEAD; HIGH STATUS IS OVER HEAD; and UNCONSCIOUS IS DOWN. Third, we found that the meaning of /hua/ also extends by means of conceptual metonymy. Such a meaning extension can be largely divdied into five different categories: (1) WHOLE FOR PART: THE HEAD STANDS FOR THE HAIR; (2) PART FOR WHOLE: THE HEAD STANDS FOR THE PERSON; (3) THE HEAD STANDS FOR MENTAL FACULTIES; (4) THE HEAD STANDS FOR CHARACTER; and (5) BODY’S PHYSIOLOGICAL REACTION STANDS FOR EMOTION. We hope this study on grammaticalization and conceptual metaphors and metonymy of the Thai body part term, /hua/, will be of academic value as a case study supporting the embodied meaning and cognitive conceptualization theory in Cognitive Linguistics.

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