Leonard Talmy

Leonard Talmy is a cognitive scientist and linguist known for his research on how language expresses spatial and motion concepts. He proposed that languages categorize and describe movement and space differently, often highlighting the moving object ("figure") and its background ("ground"). Talmy identified common patterns across languages, such as how some emphasize the starting point, path, or endpoint of motion. His work helps us understand how people naturally think about and communicate about physical movement and space, revealing universal principles underlying language and thought.