Sign (linguistics)
There are many models of the
linguistic sign (see also
sign (semiotics)). A classic model is the one by the Swiss linguist
Ferdinand de Saussure. According to him, language is made up of signs and every sign has
two sides:
* the
signifier (French
signifiant): the "shape" of a word, i.e. the sequence of letters or
phonemes: e.g. C-A-T
* the
signified (French
signifié) : the concept or object that appears in our minds when we hear or read the signifier: e.g. a small domesticated animal with fur, four legs and a tail(The signified is not to be confused with the
referent. The former is a
mental concept, the latter the
actual object in the world)According to Saussure, the relation between the signifier and the signified is
arbitrary, i.e. there is no direct connection between the shape and the concept (cf. Bussmann 1996: 434). For instance, there is no reason why the letters C-A-T (or the sound of these
phonemes) produce exactly the image of the small, domesticated animal with fur, four legs and a tail in our minds. It is a result of
convention: speakers of the same language group have agreed (and learned) that these letters or sounds evoke a certain image.
Compare an aerial drawing of London (field of potential signifieds) with a grid (field of signifiers) placed on it. The grid is arbitrary. Its structure (however motivated) divides the drawing into areas (which can then be referred to). The division of the drawing is arbitrary. A square 'EC1' is an inseparable fusion of grid and area of drawing i.e. is a sign - just like two sides of the same sheet of paper - which refers to 'real' land. EC1 does not have to refer to the particular part of London it does. Drawing + grid = map = language.
The
concept of arbitrariness of linguistic signs is relativized in
word formation, e.g. in compounds such as
living room or in onomatopoeic expressions (
onomatopoeia) such as
miaow or
crash (cf. Bussmann 1996: 32).
References* Bussmann, Hadumod (1996),
Routledge Dictionary of Language and Linguistics, London: Routledge.
* Saussure, Ferdinand de (1916), "Nature of the Linguistics Sign", in: Charles Bally & Albert Sechehaye (Ed.),
Cours de linguistique générale, McGraw Hill Education. ISBN 0070165246.See also:
Cours de linguistique générale,
Structuralism,
Semiotics,
Sign (semiotics)
