The received view in linguistics is that the linguistic sign is arbitrary by large. This is evident, for example, in the cross-linguistic variation of phonetic word forms (e.g., dog is perro [pero] in Spanish and כלב [kelev] in Hebrew). Yet, increasing amount of evidence, collected over the past several decades, suggests that the linguistic sign is also affected by non-arbitrary (i.e., iconic) factors.
In this talk, I will review some evidence for iconic relations between sound and various aspects of meaning, including object size and shape, as well as affective states (emotions, attitudes). The sources of evidence include cross-linguistic lexical surveys, laboratory experiments, and usage of sound patterns in literary texts. I will offer theoretical accounts for these iconic relations and discuss the roles of arbitrariness and iconicity in the evolution of language.
