journal article
Apr 03, 2026
Color Idioms of Estonian, Swedish, and Turkish: A Comparative Analysis Based on Empirical Data
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Research on Estonian, Turkish, and Swedish color idioms suggests a prevalence of similarities over differences in the figurative usage of colors in these languages. Previous studies have looked at data collected from dictionaries and web corpora. Grounded in conceptual metaphor theory, the current study extends these findings through an empirical approach, employing a free‐listing task where native speakers of Estonian, Swedish, and Turkish were asked to list color idioms in their language. This empirical approach provides nuanced insights into speakers' mental representations of the world. Directly engaging native speakers helps capture idioms that might be absent from dictionaries, revealing their cognitive salience. The results showed that Estonian and Swedish color idioms share significantly more similarities with each other than either does with Turkish. The finding reflects that while the human experience is largely universal, the cultural experience can be distinct and varied.
Research on Estonian, Turkish, and Swedish color idioms suggests a prevalence of similarities over differences in the figurative usage of colors in these languages. Previous studies have looked at data collected from dictionaries and web corpora. Grounded in conceptual metaphor theory, the current study extends these findings through an empirical approach, employing a free‐listing task where native speakers of Estonian, Swedish, and Turkish were asked to list color idioms in their language. This empirical approach provides nuanced insights into speakers' mental representations of the world. Directly engaging native speakers helps capture idioms that might be absent from dictionaries, revealing their cognitive salience. The results showed that Estonian and Swedish color idioms share significantly more similarities with each other than either does with Turkish. The finding reflects that while the human experience is largely universal, the cultural experience can be distinct and varied.
Topics
No keywords indexed for this article. Browse by subject →
References
45
[1]
Lakoff G. (1980)
[2]
Bazzanella C. (2016)
[3]
Dobrovol'skij D. (2006) 10.1016/b0-08-044854-2/00426-0
[4]
Glucksberg S. (2001) 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195111095.001.0001
[5]
Liu D. (2008)
[6]
Gibbs R. W. "Speakers' Assumptions About the Lexical Flexibility of Idioms" Memory & Cognition (1989) 10.3758/bf03199557
[8]
K.Muischnek “Verbi ja Noomeni Püsiühendid Eesti Keeles [Fixed Expressions Consisting of Verbs and Nouns in Estonian]”(PhD dissertation University of Tartu 2006).
[9]
Philip G. (2011) 10.1075/scl.43
[10]
Berlin B. (1969)
[11]
A.Ginlund “Svenskans Grundläggande Färgtermer: En Experimentstudie av Inomspråklig Variation [Swedish Basic Color Terms: An Experimental Study of Intra‐Linguistic Variation]”(MA thesis Åbo Akademi University 2023).
[12]
K.Rätsep “Color Terms in Turkish Estonian and Russian: How Many Basic Blue Terms Are There?”(PhD dissertation University of Tartu 2018).
[13]
Sutrop U. (2011)
[14]
Dobrovol'skij D. "Idioms: Motivation and Etymology" Yearbook of Phraseology (2010) 10.1515/9783110222623.1.73
[15]
Bergen B. (2015) 10.1515/9783110292022-002
[16]
Kövecses Z. (2010)
[17]
Yu N. (2008) 10.1515/9783110199116.4.387
[18]
Kövecses Z. (2022) 10.4324/9781003184041-3
[19]
Gibbs R. W. (1999) 10.1075/cilt.175.09gib
[21]
Taylor J. R. (2003) 10.1093/oso/9780199266647.001.0001
[22]
Oguz M. (2026)
[23]
Rosch E. H. (1973) 10.1016/b978-0-12-505850-6.50010-4
[24]
Langacker R. W. (1987)
[25]
Cruse A. (2000)
[26]
Sutrop U. "List Task and a Cognitive Salience Index" Field Notes (2001)
[27]
G.Hastürkoğlu “A Cognitive Study on the Comparison of Basic Color Terms in Turkish and English Idioms”2017(PhD dissertation Hacetteppe University).
[28]
Lan L. (2009)
[29]
Piirainen E. (2015)
[32]
Uusküla M. "The Basic Color Terms of Finnish" SKY Journal of Linguistics (2007)
[34]
Weller S. (1988) 10.4135/9781412986069
[35]
[36]
OED (Oxford English Dictionary) s.v. “Blue Monday (n.) Etymology ” 2024https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/8348864598.
10.1093/oed/8348864598
[37]
Õim A. (2000)
[38]
K.Buturac “En Jämförelse av Svenska och Kroatiska Idiomatiska Uttryck Med Färgbenämningar [A Comparison of Swedish and Croatian Idiomatic Expressions Containing Color Terms]”2024(MA thesis University of Zagreb).
[39]
A.Stunžaitė “Manifestation of Color Idioms in the English Lithuanian and Russian Languages”(MA thesis Lithuanian University of Educational Sciences 2015) https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12259/118151.
[40]
G.Philip “Collocation and Connotation: A Corpus‐Based Investigation of Color Words in English and Italian”(PhD dissertation The University of Birmingham 2003).
[41]
Dobrovol'skij D. "Cognitive Theory of Metaphor and Idiom Analysis" Jezikoslovje (2005)
[42]
Vaňková I. (2007)
[43]
Jonauskaite D. "Do We Feel Colors? A Systematic Review of 128 Years of Psychological Research Linking Colors and Emotions" Psychonomic Bulletin & Review (2025) 10.3758/s13423-024-02615-z
[44]
Uusküla M. (2010) 10.1515/9783110228557.359
[45]
Uusküla M. (2011) 10.1075/z.167.17uus
Metrics
0
Citations
45
References
Details
- Published
- Apr 03, 2026
- Vol/Issue
- 51(3)
- License
- View
Cite This Article
Merle Oguz (2026). Color Idioms of Estonian, Swedish, and Turkish: A Comparative Analysis Based on Empirical Data. Color Research & Application, 51(3). https://doi.org/10.1002/col.70085
Related
You May Also Like
The CIEDE2000 color-difference formula: Implementation notes, supplementary test data, and mathematical observations
Gaurav Sharma, Wencheng Wu · 2004
1,668 citations
Color, arousal, and performance—A comparison of three experiments
Rikard Küller, Byron Mikellides · 2009
196 citations
How the CIE 1931 color-matching functions were derived from Wright-Guild data
Hugh S. Fairman, Michael H. Brill · 1997
145 citations