On the relation between language and abstract thought: a cross-linguistic analysis on Infinity and its origins

Abstract

Delving into the study of abstract concept development from an interdisciplinary perspective, mainly philosophical and linguistic, the main purpose of the thesis is to examine the interrelation between linguistic phenomena and the emergence and development of one very specific (although highly complex and multifaceted) abstract concept: infinity. Following the hypothesis that the abstract notion of infinity is a linguistically modulated concept, this research aims to investigate the potentially substantial role that language may have played in the emergence and evolution of the infinity concept by examining whether morphological and syntactic processes may have facilitated or promoted its development. Through the analysis of all the words used in modern English to designate infinity, whether temporal, limitless, numerical and so on, and through the cross-linguistic examination of the infinity words and phrases in the New Testament across English, Spanish, Latin and Koine Greek (the original language), several findings were obtained. Firstly, the detection of a pattern of lexicalisation across the languages: beyond the general notion of infinity as a lack of limits or measurability, the specific notions of power-related infinity and, most noticeably, temporal infinity have been largely lexicalised, manifesting a cultural need to discuss, reflect and talk about omnipotence and, especially, eternity. The prominence of temporal infinity is also evidenced by the fact that the only simple lexemes refering to infinity directly, and not resulting from lexicogenic operations, are words designating temporal infinity. All other expressions bring about the meaning of infinitude from compositional processes, in particular, morphosyntactic processes of negation, universal quantification and the depiction of forward motion across a temporal medium. While it has not been possible to confirm the hypothesis whether these linguistic processes are necessary or influential for the inception of the abstract concept, given that the four analysed languages share the same mechanisms, the findings open new research paths. Particularly, this methodology can be replicated for other languages, thus building a large cross-linguistic database of infinity words and expressions in the New Testament, aiming at a better understanding of the interrelation between language and cognition, particularly in abstract thought. Ultimately, the prominence of temporal infinity, from which other notions of specific infinitude and the general concept of infinity itself probably arose, constitutes a topic worth exploring.