Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences
Anna Wierbicka and other writers of Natural Semantic Metalanguage (henceforth NSM) often argue that anthropologists and psychologists, particularly Western ones, are wrong for applying concepts like mind, anger and depression to foreign cultures because these cultures do not have words with similar...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Penerbit UKM
2002
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| Online Access: | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/719/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/719/1/GemaVol1.1.2001No1.pdf |
| _version_ | 1848809320380104704 |
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| author | Hazidi Bin Haji Abdul Hamid, |
| author_facet | Hazidi Bin Haji Abdul Hamid, |
| author_sort | Hazidi Bin Haji Abdul Hamid, |
| building | UKM Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Anna Wierbicka and other writers of Natural Semantic Metalanguage (henceforth NSM) often argue that anthropologists and psychologists, particularly Western ones, are wrong for applying concepts like mind, anger and depression to foreign cultures because these cultures do not have words with similar intention and extensions. Their critics on the other hand argue that the NSM critique is unjustified because while other cultures do not necessarily have similar words, they must have corresponding concepts simply because people in these other cultures, like in Malaysia, experience feelings like these (M, Immler 1991:51). This paper intends to show that the NSM critique is justified because these corresponding concepts can be similar to a certain extent but can also carry great semantic difference when broken down to their more basic elements of meaning. More importantly, this will be done using analysis of the Malay language. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T23:12:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | ukm-719 |
| institution | Universiti Kebangasaan Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T23:12:44Z |
| publishDate | 2002 |
| publisher | Penerbit UKM |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | ukm-7192016-12-14T06:27:59Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/719/ Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences Hazidi Bin Haji Abdul Hamid, Anna Wierbicka and other writers of Natural Semantic Metalanguage (henceforth NSM) often argue that anthropologists and psychologists, particularly Western ones, are wrong for applying concepts like mind, anger and depression to foreign cultures because these cultures do not have words with similar intention and extensions. Their critics on the other hand argue that the NSM critique is unjustified because while other cultures do not necessarily have similar words, they must have corresponding concepts simply because people in these other cultures, like in Malaysia, experience feelings like these (M, Immler 1991:51). This paper intends to show that the NSM critique is justified because these corresponding concepts can be similar to a certain extent but can also carry great semantic difference when broken down to their more basic elements of meaning. More importantly, this will be done using analysis of the Malay language. Penerbit UKM 2002 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/719/1/GemaVol1.1.2001No1.pdf Hazidi Bin Haji Abdul Hamid, (2002) Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences. GEMA: Online Journal of Language Studies, 2 (1). ISSN 1675-8021 http://www.ukm.my/ppbl/Gema/gemahome.html |
| spellingShingle | Hazidi Bin Haji Abdul Hamid, Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences |
| title | Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences |
| title_full | Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences |
| title_fullStr | Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences |
| title_full_unstemmed | Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences |
| title_short | Similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences |
| title_sort | similar words, different meanings: a natural semantic metalanguage exploration of cultural differences |
| url | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/719/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/719/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/719/1/GemaVol1.1.2001No1.pdf |