The evolution of the concept of a living space and its nominations in the old and middle english periods

Abstract

The article addresses the question of how the image of a living space evolved and changed between the Old and Middle English periods in the mind of an English speaker, as well as the nominations they used to name artifacts associated with dwellings. Such images are modelled by means of mapping the concept dwelling as it was in OE and ME via its physical manifestations – words. The authors focus on the reasons why new cognitive features of this category may have appeared, while other characteristics of the concept became obsolete in the mind of the medieval Brit. The diachronic analysis of the lexis in correlation with this concept is based on the theory of interpretation fields, which is arguably the best method to trace the many changes in the way dwellings were pictured in the Middle Ages. The authors back their opinion with the analysis of various artifacts associated with dwellings and their functions: medieval buildings, architectural photography, book descriptions of houses, etc. The core features of medieval dwelling are defined as they may have been perceived by native English speakers centuries ago.