Wine conceptualizing and lexicalization in Indo-European languages

Abstract

Translation and typological studies have traditionally evidenced the significant prevalence of the lexeme ‘wine’ in most Indo-European-based languages. The somehow universal presence of this term has been explained by the insight provided by etymologists, linguists, historians, archaeologists and anthropologists, amongst others. Such an interdisciplinary approach unveils the complex network of factors required for understanding the context in which this term was originated within a particular culture, at a given time in history and how it became part of the lexicon of most languages not only spoken in Europe, but also in other language families. Based on that interdisciplinary evidence, it is possible to ascertain when and how the term ‘wine’ arose and spread west and east all over Europe, Indo-Asia and down to the north of Africa. Our contribution intends to broaden this approach by introducing a new question, that is, why. Whether a single process of conceptualizing originated in just one Indo-European language or an analogous process resulting from a similar morphological process, the lexicalization of ‘wine’ has proved successful. We will endeavour to explain the reasons for that successful choice, which no doubt reveals that it was not an arbitrary one but based on a socio-linguistic context that favoured culturally the choice of an existing root and the lexicalization of grammatical and phonological varieties in different Indo-European languages.”