论语言的根本属性——任意性

The Fundamental Attribute of Language-Arbitrariness

现代语言学之父索绪尔将语言符号的任意性视为语言的第一原则。然而近年来随着认知语言学的发展,致力于语言理据性研究的学者大多将这个普遍接受的观点放在不可调和的对立面加以批判。研究证明理据性是就符号组合而言的,而任意性是就单个符号而言,它们不属于同一研究范畴,因而理据性不能构成对任意性的否定。

Arbitrariness proposed as the first principle of language Saussure has been widely accepted. However, with the development of cognitive linguistics, this principle is greatly challenged. Whether language is arbitrary or motivated has been heatedly debated. The present paper argues that motivation is not the denial of arbitrariness since they are just put forward from different dimensions. Motivation is to study the features of language in the perspective combination while arbitrariness is about a single sign and its meaning.