on the semantic basis of heraldic propaganda · 2006. 8. 29. · antti leino: semantics in heraldry...

On the Semantic Basis ofHeraldic Propaganda

or

What do Arms Mean, and How?St. Andrews, August 2006

Antti Leino 〈[email protected]〉

University of Helsinki

Heraldry Society of Finland

Introduction

Flag of the Carelia Air Command since 1958

Swastika adopted byI Finnish air force in 1918

I NSDAP in 1920

How do these associations work?

Antti Leino: Semantics in Heraldry St. Andrews, August 2006 2(17)

Introduction

Flag of the Carelia Air Command since 1958

Swastika adopted byI Finnish air force in 1918

I NSDAP in 1920

How do these associations work?Antti Leino: Semantics in Heraldry St. Andrews, August 2006 2(17)

Introduction

Compare to names

Where’s WashingtonI State in North-Western USA?I Capital of the USA?

I Town in North-Eastern England, near Durham– Sir William de Wessyngton c. 1180

...– George Washington 1789


Introduction

Similarities between names and armsCommon perception

I Names-and-arms clauses in willsI Cases of surname usurpation in Court of

ChivalryI etc. all over Europe

Linguistic viewpointI Primarily used for identificationI Further semantic content not necessaryI Often some vestige remains


Cognitive LinguisticsIntroduction

Linguistic movement since around 1980

Basic claimsI Language is cognitionI Grammar comes from conceptualisationI Knowledge of language comes from language

use

Viable theoretical framework for describingplace names

How about arms?


Cognitive LinguisticsBasic concepts: construction

Basic unit for language: constructionCoupling of form and meaningUsually composed of smaller elementsAll elements not necessarily fully specifiedIdiomaticity: overall meaning not necessarilysum of elements

coat of armsCat NSem 'armorial bearings'

coatCat NSem 'type of

garment'

ofCat PrepSem 'associated

with'

armsCat NNum PlSem 'weapons'


Cognitive HeraldryArms as constructions

Arms of Henry IV

Schematic construction:quartered armsSpecific instantiation:

I France and England asthe quarters

I Claim to the Frenchthrone

B

BA

A

A and B

England and France

EnglandFrance


Cognitive LinguisticsBasic concepts: entrenchment

A new construction is hard to understand

Once it has been heard lots of times, it is easy

In other words, it has been entrenched as a partof the language

The same applies to meaningsThe more often something is used with aparticular meaning, the more entrenched thismeaning becomes

I Washington: state in the USA vs. town nearDurham


Cognitive HeraldryEntrenchment of heraldic charges

Carelia Air Command

CareliaFinnish Air Force

unknown Nazi flag

Nazi ? ?

The swastika is entrenched as a Nazi symbolI Kipling abandoned his swastika badge in 1930’s

This is easily interpreted as a Nazi flag


Cognitive LinguisticsConceptual integration

New expressions are created from existingconcepts

I Schematic constructions filled in with specificelements

I New innovations from analogy and metaphorI These are all applications of the same mental

process

Conceptual integration or blendingI Concepts from several input domains or spaces

projected to a new oneI For instance, canting arms integrates the

concept of speaking with the concept of arms— the arms »speak» the name of their bearer


Cognitive HeraldryConceptual integration in propaganda

Case: the arms of Finland

Designed in the late 1570’s

Johan III, King of Sweden, assumed the titleGrand Duke of Finland

The title matches that of Ivan IV, Tsar of Russiaand Grand Duke of Muscovy

The arms of the new Grand Duchy go furtherBlend of three conceptual spaces

I HeraldryI GeographyI Battle



Case: the Flodden augmentation

Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey, commandedthe English army at Flodden

James IV, King of Scotland, died in the battleThe augmented Howard arms can be seen as ablend of three conceptual spaces

I HeraldryI Individual personsI Death


Conclusions

Heraldry is a system for identificationI It has some grammar-like structureI This structure does not cover everything

Cognitive linguistics allows such lack ofcompleteness

I Concentrate on the structures that existI Acknowledge the existence of the rest

DescribeI Regularities as constructionsI Semantic content in terms of conceptual

integration


What Next?

The current work applied linguistic methods toheraldry

Blazon is language and heraldry

What is the relationship between the»grammars» of

I armorial compositionI blazon?

Is this relationship apparent in blazon as alinguistic genre?


Thank you

[email protected]://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/leino/index.en.html


on the semantic basis of heraldic propaganda · 2006. 8. 29. · antti leino: semantics in heraldry...

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