Iconicity as an analogical problem

Analogy's crucial role in human cognition is constantly asserted since the 1980s. Modern cognitive psychology does not restrict analogy to a mode of thought (as opposed to deduction, or even induction). It is now considered to be a central process, essential to mental categorisation, since categories can be described as groups of entities, which are in certain respects analogous. The theoretical innovation that is brought by analogical linguistics to the problem of iconicity involves establishing a causal relation between iconic structures in natural languages and analogical cognitive processes. On the one hand, analogy wether binary or proportional can, in its widest meaning, be defined as a process involving similarities; on the other hand, iconic structures usually imply, in their description, a similarity-based relation between forms and contents. Considering that human beings, because of their cognitive equipment, can easily perceive or create analogical relations between perceived or conceived entities, it seems natural that this fundamental capacity should show within languages. By reconnecting in particular with Peirce's definition of icon, we will thus concentrate on showing why iconicity constitutes a case of analogical linguistics, and on presenting the major theoretical issues that spring from this perspective.