CCL 5: Dynamic Aspects of Meaning Construction 2027

Dynamic Aspects of Meaning Construction

Date 27-28 April 2027

Institute of English Studies, University of Rzeszów, Poland

The Institute of English Studies at the University of Rzeszów has the pleasure of announcing the fifth edition of the conference Culture and Cognition in Language: CCL 5. The conference is aimed at viewing language as both a cultural and a cognitive phenomenon. This year's leading theme is: Dynamic Aspects of Meaning Construction.

Meaning is not a static property of words or sentences but an emergent, context-sensitive outcome of cognitive and communicative processes. Historical semantics provides an essential backdrop for understanding how meaning emerges and transforms across time, and how changes in meaning correlate with shifts in conceptual organization and communicative practice. Rather than treating semantic change as a sequence of isolated shifts, contemporary approaches emphasize its dynamic,cognitively motivated character [1].

Yet diachronic and synchronic variation are inextricably connected, for processes such as metaphorization, metonymization, broadening, narrowing, and shifts in evaluative meaning can be seen as long-term manifestations of the same conceptual mechanisms that shape meaning in everyday discourse, while lexical variation may be regarded as the result of an interaction between semasiological and onomasiological changes [2].

Dynamic approaches to meaning construction foreground the idea that "meaning construction is grounded in the principles of cognitive modeling" [3], highlighting the role of conceptual integration, frame shifting, perspective taking, metaphor, metonymy, and other cognitive mechanisms in shaping how speakers produce and interpret meaning in real time.

Building on the rich traditions of Cognitive Linguistics, Construction Grammar, and Discourse Analysis, this year's edition invites contributions that investigate the dynamic, situated, and often unpredictable nature of meaning-making across a range of linguistic and multimodal contexts.

[1] Kay, C., & Allan, K. (2015). English historical semantics. English historical semantics. Edinburgh University Press.

[2] Geeraerts, D., Speelman, D., Heylen, K., Montes, M., De Pascale, S., Franco K., & Lang, M. (2024). Lexical variation and change. A distributional semantic approach. Oxford University Press.

[3] Ruiz de Mendoza Ibáñez, F. (2021). Ten lectures on cognitive modeling. Between grammar and language-based inferencing (Distinguished lectures in Cognitive Linguistics, vol. 25). Brill.

With the above in mind, we particularly welcome submissions addressing topics such as:

• Diachronic aspects of meaning
• The interplay between synchrony and diachrony
• Conceptual integration and blending
• Metaphor and metonymy in discourse
• Construction Grammar and constructional meaning
• Frame semantics and frame-shifting
• Perspective, subjectivity, and viewpoint
• Embodiment and situated meaning
• Dynamic meaning in multimodal communication
• Meaning construction in interaction and conversation
• Creative language use: humour, irony, and non-literal meaning
• Cross-linguistic and cross-cultural variation in meaning construction
• Computational and corpus-based approaches to dynamic meaning

While we will especially appreciate presentations aligned with the theme of the conference and the proposed topics, we are open to papers on all topics discussing language from a cultural and cognitive perspective

Research areas especially welcome

• Cognitive linguistics
• Cultural linguistics
• Semantics and pragmatics
• Sociolinguistics
• Psycholinguistics
• Construction Grammar
• Discourse analysis
• Multimodality and semiotics
• Philosophy of language
• Rhetoric and argumentation
• Contact linguistics

Confirmed Keynote Speakers

Prof. Dirk Geeraerts

University of Leuven (Professor Emeritus)

Prof. Francisco José Ruiz de Mendoza Ibáñez

University of La Rioja

Prof. Kathryn Allan

University College London

Submission Guidelines

We invite proposal submissions for 20-minute presentations (followed by 10 minutes for discussion). Abstracts of a maximum of 300 words (excluding references) should be submitted in .docx format via the conference e-mail: ccl@ur.edu.pl. Please indicate in your submission whether you are submitting as a PhD student.

Abstract submission deadline:

15 September 2026

Notification of acceptance:

15 October 2026

Conference Fees

Conference fees cover refreshments, conference dinner, lunch, conference pack, and transportation(Rzeszów-Polańczyk-Rzeszów):

• 220 EUR (950 PLN) for regular speakers
• 200 EUR (800 PLN) for PhD students

Contact & Further Information

CCL 5 website: http://ur.edu.pl/ccl

Contact: ccl@ur.edu.pl

Organisers

dr Bożena Duda

dr hab. prof. UR Robert Kiełtyka

dr hab. prof. UR Ewa Konieczna

dr Beata Kopecka

dr Marcin Kudła

Venue & Accommodation

Hotel Skalny Spa

ul. Zdrojowa 11, 38-610 Polańczyk

https://skalnyspa.pl/

Accomodation is NOT included in the conference fee. Participants may book a room at the conference venue at a special rate of 220 PLN per person per night (use the password: CCL5).

Alternatively, participants may arrange accommodation in other hotels in Polańczyk; a list of recommended options will be published on the conference website.