Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Our aim in this article is to argue that an adequate account of semantic development in early ®rst language acquisition requires a theory and methodology that synthesize the insights of cognitive and cultural linguistics with a Vygotskian sociocultural approach to human development. This involves recasting and extending the notion of embodiment, which is a central philosophical underpinning of cognitive linguistics. We discuss evidence from the cross-linguistic and cross-cultural study of spatial semantic development, and argue that current controversies regarding language-speci®c acquisition strategies and universal cognitive bases of semantic development may best be resolved by viewing the issue of ``linguistic relativity'' in a sociocultural, as well as a grammatical, perspective.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
A 2001 study studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 10 related papers. Consider them for comparative context: