Yesterday I ran across this fascinating link about synesthesia, onomatopoeia, and new hints about the origins of language. For those who don't know, synesthesia is when the senses intermix, and in this case, scientists have been looking at places where words and other sensations cross. It turns out that if you show experimental subjects the words "kiki" and "bouba" and ask them to assign one of two meanings to them - pointy or round - the distribution is not at all random. Most people will assign kiki to pointy, and bouba to round. The article draws some fascinating conclusions about language, and whether or not it can be considered entirely arbitrary.
I think these conclusions are very interesting for writers who make up words. Think about it - your gut feeling about whether the sounds of the words "feel" right for the meaning is not only legitimate, but likely to be shared across much of the world. There's something satisfying to me about the idea that on some basic level, the way I might assign random words to meanings by feel will be accepted and found natural by readers of other cultures. I suspect there are also some story idea opportunities available there - either about the historical origins of language or about synesthesia in unexpected contexts!
I guess "kiki" is to pointy because of its phonetic whipping sound? Much like "bouba" sounds like boob...I mean bubble.
ReplyDeleteI would say those shape assignments are based on hard and soft sounds (or pointy versus rounded letters). Neat concept. I'm a synesthetic with smell and taste, though I didn't know the name for it until more recently.
ReplyDeleteI've always thought hard and soft was a legitimate phonetic distinction. It's one of the ones I used in my first language Vas'hehr as part of its foundational structure.
ReplyDeleteThis rings so true. I'm synesthetic as well. I apply personalities and locations to numbers, dates, and letters. The other day my husband asked me how I came up with one of the words in my novel and I explained it in terms of what each letter and sound represents. The word started with a T, because T is powerful, sharp, and nobel. Etc.
ReplyDeleteYou have to be careful about that though. My first three main characters were all female with names starting with "K" because it sounds so strong, independent, and forceful. Then I went in the absolute opposite direction and for a while named characters all Sara/Sarah (all without noticing until I started editing and had to ban certain letters until I found a balance :).
ReplyDeleteThat's cool, Margaret. And Megan, it is legitimate as a phonetic distinction, but whether it has some significance beyond simply the association of sounds with words is the question here (and yes, it seems to have). Sarah, that sounds neat. Margaret, I agree. Not everyone can have the same name. I generally try to make my names internally relevant, so maybe what a parent thought the person would be like instead of what I thought that person would be like.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the comments!
Yeah. That's kind of what I meant. :shakes head at self:
ReplyDelete