Conceptualization specifics in East African English: quantitative arguments from the ICE‐East Africa corpus

Abstract:  Setting out from a cognitive perspective, lexical‐semantic content of verbal constructions in British and East African English will be quantitatively and qualitatively evaluated according to their componential profiles (conflation) in large collections of texts like the ICE corpora. Following landmark research by Talmy (1985) we will recognize motion, manner, path, and goal as components of event semantics. Results will be investigated concerning their metaphorical uses of motion for the expression of temporal configurations/arrangements. We hypothesize a continuum of conflation of path and goal with German and Spanish/Italian at the respective typological ends. As will be shown, British English exhibits – in contrast to, e.g., Choi and Bowerman (1995) – a latent conflation of path and manner, a trend that will have to stand the test for Kenyan and Tanzanian English.