A Psycolinguistic Approach to the Color Lexeme “Red”: Color, Cognition and Language Interaction
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31150/ajshr.v6i7.3808Keywords:
Psycholinguistics, Color Term, Red, Language and Perception, Cognitive Semantics, Emotional Salience, Linguistic Relativity, Color AcquisitionAbstract
The intersection of language, cognition, and perception is a central concern in psycholinguistics, particularly in understanding how abstract concepts are encoded and retrieved in the mind. Among linguistic categories, color terms—especially “red”—are unique for their perceptual salience and cultural symbolism. Despite numerous studies on color perception and cognition, limited research has examined the psycholinguistic dimensions of how the color term “red” operates across language, culture, and neural processing. This study explores the cognitive, emotional, and linguistic representations of the lexeme “red” through a psycholinguistic lens, integrating perspectives from cognitive linguistics, neurolinguistics, and cross-linguistic analysis. Findings reveal that “red” holds a privileged position in the mental lexicon, being among the earliest acquired and most perceptually salient color terms. It elicits faster reaction times in linguistic tasks and stronger neural activation in emotionally charged contexts. The term is deeply entrenched in metaphorical expressions and cultural discourse, often symbolizing emotions such as love, anger, and danger. Cross-linguistic comparisons confirm that while perception of “red” has universal underpinnings, linguistic categorization influences nuance in its usage. This research combines neurocognitive data with metaphorical and linguistic analysis to illustrate how a single lexeme functions simultaneously as a perceptual, cognitive, and cultural signifier. These insights have implications for understanding language acquisition, emotional processing, and the interface between language and thought. The study demonstrates that “red” is not merely a lexical item but a conceptual hub linking perception, emotion, and cultural meaning.
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