Referential conventions as compromise

Abstract

This chapter explores reference in the case of oronyms, that is, proper nouns which designate portions of mountainous relief. As a linguistic function, reference binds a linguistic sign to an extra-linguistic entity. How is this function initiated and how does it operate? I argue that oronyms create referents, the geographical objects speakers create by naming a portion of the relief. Likewise, humans can cognitively divide a spatial continuum to comprehend it better. Oronyms emerge from the naming process I call “toponymation”. They design (create) and designate (name) a referent which has fleeting contours and is thus difficult to retrieve. I explore oronyms in a corpus of alpine travel narratives to identify what criteria are necessary to reach towards what I call “referential efficiency”.