In order to act on the world, we need to know where things are located in space. Underlying spatial memory and linguistic representation of spatial layouts are coordinate systems called "Frames of Reference". In language, three major types of reference systems can be distinguished: intrinsic (object-centered), relative (viewpoint-centered), and absolute (geo-centered). Coding spatial relations within different frames of reference requires different cognitive processes. Our research has shown that there is considerable variation between languages in which frame of reference is used for spatial description of objects in table-top space: while speakers of, for example, Dutch and Japanese prefer a relative frame, speakers of Arandic and Tzeltal prefer an absolute frame, and speakers of Kilivila and Mopan prefer an intrinsic frame. These differences in linguistic descriptions have consequences for how speakers of different languages remember and reason about spatial information.

Example pictures from the Man and Tree stimulus set, used to elicit spatial description for Frames-of-Reference analysis across a range of diverse languages.

Representative publications

• Levinson, S. C., & Wilkins, D. P. (Eds.). (2006). Grammars of space: Explorations in cognitive diversity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. more >
• Haun, D. B. M., Rapold, C. J., Call, J., Janzen, G., & Levinson, S. C. (2006). Cognitive cladistics and cultural override in Hominid spatial cognition. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 103(46), 17568-17573. more >
• Majid, A., Bowerman, M., Kita, S., Haun, D. B. M., & Levinson, S. C. (2004). Can language restructure cognition? The case for space. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 8(3), 108-114. more >
• Levinson, S. C. (2003). Space in language and cognition: Explorations in cognitive diversity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. more >
• Pederson, E., Danziger, E., Wilkins, D. P., Levinson, S. C., Kita, S., & Senft, G. (1998). Semantic typology and spatial conceptualization. Language, 74, 557-589. more >

Contact person

Stephen C. Levinson