A semantic analysis of the verbal prefiks o(b)- in Croatian

Abstract

This article analyzes the verbal prefix o(b)- in Croatian from a cognitive linguistic perspective, focusing on how its apparently different meanings relate to each other, and the extensions of its spatial meanings into non-spatial domains. The prototypical meaning of verbs prefixed with o(b)- involves a general notion of circular movement realized in concrete spatial realms: a trajector (TR) performs a circular movement around a landmark (LM). This spatial schema of circular movement can be illustrated by the motion verb optrčati ‘make a full circle by running around a certain area’. Our analysis aims to show that the central meaning, move around (an object), has a special status in the meaning network because it directly or indirectly motivates all of the other meanings. We show that the various meanings of o(b)-verbs are not a random collection of unrelated senses, but form a semantic network in which individual meanings emerge via metaphorical and metonymic extensions and relate to systematic and partially predictable applications of concrete spatial relations to abstract ideas.