Conceptual Mapping of Livestock-Related Vocabulary in the Varaki Dialect: Reconstructing a cognitive-Cultural System

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Departmentof Linguistics, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Jahrom University, Jahrom, Iran.

2 Department of Persian Language and Literature, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Jahrom University, Jahrom, Iran.

Abstract

This study aims to reconstruct and map the conceptual structure of livestock-related vocabulary in the Varaki dialect—a rural vernacular spoken in the Kazerun region of Iran. Challenging the common perception of livestock terminology as merely technical or economic, this research treats animal husbandry as a central conceptual domain that encompasses the biological, social, cultural, and cognitive dimensions of Varaki speakers’ lives. The research data consist of 252 words and expressions collected over a six-month period through interviews with native speakers (mostly illiterate or with little formal education) and subsequently analyzed using a descriptive-analytical method and a cognitive semantics approach. Findings reveal that livestock-related terms in Varaki exhibit a deeply cognitive and cultural organization, shaped by sensory experiences, environmental observations, and indigenous beliefs. These terms are systematically classified into eight conceptual subdomains. Furthermore, the study explores cross-domain mappings, demonstrating how cultural metaphors and metonymies—such as “livestock = wealth (state),” “shepherd = community guardian,” or “orphan Goat = dependent child”—enrich and complexify the semantic network of this lexicon. The conclusion underscores that, despite its small speaker population, the Varaki dialect possesses a coherent and unique conceptual system in which every lexical item functions as a node within an intricate cognitive-cultural network. Preserving this dialect entails more than saving words; it means safeguarding an entire conceptual world now at risk of erosion and oblivion due to younger generations’ growing detachment from rural life. Thus, documenting and analyzing this conceptual map is essential not only for cognitive semantics but also for anthropology, cultural history, and indigenous studies

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Journal of Linguistics & Iranian Languages
Volume 10, Issue 2
October 2025
Pages 101-125

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History

  • Receive Date: 23 October 2025
  • Revise Date: 11 November 2025
  • Accept Date: 21 November 2025

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