Conceptualization of Sar (Head) in Persian figurative expressions

Abstract

Abstract Since Lakoff and Johnson (1999) proposed ‘Embodiment theory’ in Cognitive Linguistics, the relationship between language and body parts has been a subject of research for many years. This paper examines the conceptualization of body part ‘head’ in 305 Persian figurative expressions and proverbs in two related Iranian dictionaries. Using the ‘Cultural Conceptualization’ model introduced by Sharifian (2011), this article demonstrates how sar, the Persian equivalent to ‘head’, is conceptualized to convey various notions such as mental activity, emotions, personality traits, social behavior and state, time, place, death, measurement, leader, and success. The conceptualization of body parts in a language can be bounded to that language and often rooted in some cultural background; however, this topic has received scant attention among scholars of Persian language. Apparently, no comprehensive studies on the conceptualization of head in Persian figurative expressions have been conducted so far, thus this research is an attempt to fill this gap. The analysis of the afore-mentioned word revealed that it can convey several meanings; these include mental activity, emotions, human traits, social action and status, time, location, death, measurement, leadership and success. The variety of meanings stems from contexts within which the word is presented.