Going towards the Unknown: Expressions for Dying in European Languages

The chapter investigates expressions for dying in five European languages with an onomasiological approach. The data was collected from questionnaires, dictionaries, web resources and literature, both fiction and non-fiction. The results indicate that expressions for dying show great similarities across the languages. Expressions involve verbs with high agentivity. A location (where one will be after death) is often specified. Expressions often make use of trivial tasks, such as “put down the receiver”. Further, death is associated with lack of breath and sleep. Here, the study supports earlier research. Finally, a seemingly paradoxical way of relating death to both cold and heat is explained by discussing specific conceptualizations, separating the body from the location of the body.