Perception in Najdi Arabic: Sensory Lexicon and Constructions Denoting the Five Senses

This qualitative study investigates how sense and perception are expressed through language. Senses vary in their degree of expression across languages and within the same language, as some senses proved to have elaborate lexicon and others have very limited vocabulary. This paper investigates sensory language in Najdi Arabic. The study concluded sensory lexicon In Najdi Arabic is variable including verbs of perception, sensory nouns and adjectives. Speakers often use a variety of constructions to denote sensory experiences. Sense modalities are encoded using abstract terms, evaluative adjectives, and source-based nouns. Sensory adjectives that describe intrinsic properties of sense modalities are variable in Najdi Arabic, with vision, taste, and touch having a rich vocabulary of abstract terms for these properties. Synesthetic adjectives from the vision modality are used in other sensory domains for subjective evaluation, to indicate pleasantness or unpleasantness. Tactile-related terms are also used to describe sounds. Extended meanings of perception verbs in Najdi Arabic are cognition, understanding, anticipation, disobedience and past experiences.