The Collaborative Research Center “Negation in Language and Beyond” is searching for the cognitive foundations of human speech
Saying “No” is a deeply human characteristic. Yet how exactly does negation in language work? And how do the linguistic structures needed for it correspond with processes taking place in the brain? These are some of the topics that the Collaborative Research Center “Negation in Language and Beyond” (NegLab), which started work in 2024, is exploring.
Everyone was delighted when, in November 2023, the German Research Foundation (DFG) approved a proposal for a Collaborative Research Center (CRC) submitted by a group of linguists in Frankfurt and Göttingen and psychologists in Tübingen. Funding of € 9.3 million and a pro rata program allowance for indirect costs are now available over the next three years and nine months to shed light on a phenomenon so far insufficiently examined: negation in human language. Collaborative Research Centers are among the largest funding formats of the German Research Foundation, and large-scale projects in the humanities are rarely selected.
Now it’s the turn of linguistics, a comparatively young science that explores all aspects of language (phonology, i.e. the properties of linguistic sounds; syntax, i.e. which sequences are permitted in a given language; semantics, i.e. how we interpret meaning, and so on). Based on the premise that language is the product of a specific group of neural areas in our brain, linguistics examines all these aspects. In right-handed people, these are located in the left hemisphere. Since linguistics investigates a fundamental component of the human cognitive system, it is closely connected with psychology.
In addition to forming the basis for computational linguistics, formal linguistics, which analyzes language with the help of mathematical models (see Liefke/Zimmermann on p. 50), assumes there are a few universal features that exist in all languages and are unique to human language, while other features can vary. Against this background, the CRC is examining, from various angles, a phenomenon found in all languages: negation.
Negation as the key to the cognitive system
Put simply, negation is an instrument that reverses the truth value of a statement. If I say “John is sick” and “John is not sick”, these sentences are both true in the opposing situation. To a linguistic layperson, this might seem a trivial observation. Why, then, is negation so interesting for cognition research in general and why can it be regarded as a phenomenon key to cracking the linguistic code, the grammar of language, or in other words to understanding how human language works and how it is connected with other parts of our cognitive system?
It can be considered proven that human language has – in comparison to animal communication systems – certain features: For example, only humans can talk about the past or the future or refer to non-existent worlds (such as in science fiction). Although their communication skills can also be sophisticated, animals cannot do this. Negation, too, is a phenomenon that only occurs in human language. Although animals can refuse food or drink, for example, they are unable to negate the truth of a statement. Furthermore, negation is one of the linguistic phenomena found in all the human languages so far known to us, which confirms that it is a universal feature of our intellect. The Collaborative Research Center now wants to find out how this fundamental linguistic operation works as well as why it is universally present in all languages known to us, but expressed, on the other hand, via very different means. How does the acquisition of negation in children and non-native speakers look, that is, how do they learn it? How is it processed, what happens in our brain when we hear a negated sentence? These are all questions that the various projects within the CRC are examining.
IN A NUTSHELL
- Negation is a fundamental feature of human language and found in all known languages. Its purpose is to change the truth value of a sentence, and it is key to studying the human cognitive system.
- Although negation is present in all languages, it varies in the way it is expressed: Different linguistic elements (e.g. adverbs, articles, negative particles) are used in different languages to indicate negation.
- Studying negation helps us to understand how human language functions in the brain. It is closely connected with cognitive processes such as memory, judgment and perception, since it is regarded as part of the linguistic and cognitive system.
- A central research topic is the acquisition of negation by children and non-native speakers and how the brain processes this linguistic operation. Here, the researchers are studying how various regions of the brain go into action when negative sentences are heard and understood.
Related languages, different negation
What we think we already know about negation is that it appears, on the one hand, to be a fundamental feature of our linguistic and cognitive apparatus, meaning that our logical system cannot do without it, although artificial languages without negation are by all means conceivable. On the other hand, languages can differ greatly in the way negation is expressed. Let’s take, by way of example, two languages that are very close both historically and in terms of their typology: What is expressed in a language such as English with a negative adverb like “not” can be expressed in German with a negative article like “kein”: So when I translate the famous sentence from Magritte’s painting “This is not a pipe” from English into German, I get “Das ist keine Pfeife”. In French, I get “Ceci n’est pas une pipe”, whereby here I even need two elements for the negation (ne and pas).
Languages can also differ vis-à-vis a feature reminiscent of mathematical calculations: For example, if I insert two negating linguistic elements in English or German, I get a positive meaning. The sentence “Er hat nicht immer keine Steuern gezahlt” or “He hasn’t always not paid taxes” means that he has paid taxes sometimes. Two negating elements cancel each other out, similar to the mathematical equation 5 – (–2) = 5 + 2. This is different in the Romance languages where you can add as many negating elements as you like to a sentence and the meaning of that sentence will still be negative. For example, you can say in Italian “Nessuno ha detto niente a nessuno”, literally translated “No one said nothing to no one”, and the sentence is still negative and means “No one said something to someone” – an astonishing difference in comparison to English or German.
Negation can also have a reinforcing effect
But why do some languages treat every negating element as a separate instance of negation, which is then incorporated as such into the overall meaning, while others do not? How do these differences affect the general linguistic and cognitive system of the speaker of the respective language? And what about those cases where a negative word occurs but does not negate the meaning of the sentence – like in the German sentence “Was er nicht alles isst!” (literal translation: “What he doesn’t eat!”)? This sentence does not mean that he eats nothing, but exactly the opposite. What, then, is “nicht” doing in a sentence like this? Why is negation sometimes interpreted as such and sometimes seems not to change the truth value of the sentence but instead to reinforce it? And how do we know when we hear or read something when we should interpret negation as negation and when we should ignore it?
If we take a broader look and examine languages native to other continents, it becomes clear that negation interacts with the morphosyntactic system of the verb, meaning that certain negative elements can only be combined with some verb forms. For example, the negation of an imperative sentence, which expresses a command, is different from that of a normal declarative sentence. The result is that negation appears to be sensitive to temporal or modal relationships. But why is that so? One thing is definitely clear: The study of negation is key to a better understanding of how the linguistic system works overall as well as how it is connected with other cognitive systems such as memory, judgment and stereotypes. In addition, it can have an interesting impact on the way we construct communication in all areas. More generally, this study can help us to get to know ourselves better. “Know thyself” (Gnothi seauton), to cite the famous maxim inscribed on the Temple of Apollo at Delphi.
Projects explored within CRC 1629 “Negation in Language and Beyond”
Negation and cancellation
Cornelia Ebert and André Fuhrmann’s project focuses on linguistic elements that make it possible to negate a statement that has already been made or to restrict its validity. An example: “Peter has read all Thomas Mann’s novels except Doctor Faustus”. These elements are analyzed from a linguistic and a philosophical perspective.
Negative adjectives in language change
Cécile Meier and Helmut Weiß are analyzing negative adjectives (“un-verheiratet” (“unmarried”) = “nicht verheiratet” (“not married”)) in their development from Old High German to modern German. These adjectives are particularly interesting because they often do not follow the regular pattern (“un-vergesslich” ≠ “nicht vergesslich”) or are not derived from an existing word (“un-erbittlich”).
A comparative approach to the mysteries of the Jespersen cycle
A comparative approach to the mysteries of the Jespersen cycle
Cecilia Poletto and Helmut Weiß are studying the development of negation words in the Germanic and Romance languages. They are especially looking at the Jespersen cycle, according to which this development takes place in three stages: Stage 1: A simple word expresses negation (Old French “ne”), Stage 2: Negation is reinforced by a second word (Modern Standard French “ne pas”), Stage 3: Only this second element is left (colloquial French “pas”).
Resolving the Neg-Raising paradox
Manfred Sailer and Hedde Zeijlstra are examining composite sentences in which the negation of the main clause is understood as the negation of the subordinate clause (“I don’t think it’s raining” = “I think it’s not raining”). Why does this work with verbs such as “think” but not with other verbs? (“I’m not saying it’s raining” ≠ “I’m saying it’s not raining”)?
Negation at the interfaces: Negation and existential quantification in German
Markus Bader, Sascha Bargmann and Gert Webelhuth are exploring the psycholinguistic question of how negated sentences are produced when writing and speaking if negation can be expressed in different ways. They are focusing on the choice between negation with “nicht” (“Mir stand ein Flugzeug nicht zur Verfügung” (“An airplane was not available for me”)) and negation with “kein” (“Mir stand kein Flugzeug zur Verfügung” (“No airplane was available for me)).
Negative Concord in adult L2 acquisition
Irene Caloi, Cecilia Poletto and Jacopo Torregrossa are dealing with the acquisition of negation in Italian as a second language for native speakers of German, English and Spanish. As negation is very different in these languages, the project might explain the influence of the first language on the acquisition of the second.
Syntactic and morphological interactions of negation – a cross-linguistic study
Katharina Hartmann and Johannes Mursell are concentrating on the analysis of sentences in
two African language groups (Mabia and Bantu languages). Typical of languages in these families are the many different interactions between negation and other elements (tense, mood, etc.) that are not found in other languages examined in the CRC.
Negative scope mismatches in coordination
Katharina Hartmann and Hedde Zeijlstra are studying the interaction of negation and coordination (“and”) and disjunction (“or”) in European and West African languages. Sentences with “not” and “and/or” are interpreted differently in various languages. The project examines whether this is dependent on other language features.
Negative Polarity Items in non-negative contexts
Frank Richter and Manfred Sailer are interested in linguistic expressions and turns of phrase that can normally only be used in negated sentences (“He can’t see the wood for the trees”). The question is to what extent such turns of phrase are also adopted in affirmative contexts (“He can see the wood for the trees”).
The prosody of negation and its interpretation in sentence comprehension
Markus Bader and Frank Kügler are exploring the role of intonation in the production and comprehension of negated sentences. Which parts of a negated sentence are particularly emphasized through intonation in spoken language and what influence does this have on understanding the sentence?
Influences of negation on behavior, memory, and attitude
Carolin Dudschig and Barbara Kaup are exploring how the use of negated sentences influences non-linguistic cognitive processes. This can have an effect on our behavior, memory and attitude. Does it make a difference to our attitude whether we hear “Maria is not a liar” or “Maria is honest”?
Negation beyond language: Interactions between verbal and nonverbal negation
Carolin Dudschig and Merle Weicker are examining – both in children and adults – the interaction of different forms of linguistic negation (“not”, “no”) with negating gestures, especially head shaking. They are testing, for example, whether a negating gesture accelerates the listener’s comprehension of “not” or “no”.
The role of non-linguistic cognitive abilities in children’s negation processing
Angela Grimm, Barbara Kaup and Yvonne Portele are investigating whether the comprehension of negated sentences by children aged up to about 6.5 years of age is dependent on the development of non-linguistic cognitive abilities. Is this comprehension of negation conditional, for example, on children being able to understand the speaker’s knowledge and intention?
Discourse matters? The role of discourse relations and type of events in child production and comprehension of sentence negation
Angela Grimm and Jacopo Torregrossa are exploring how 3- to 5-year-olds produce and comprehend negated sentences in different discourse contexts. They especially want to shed light on whether children are already capable of taking the context adequately into account and, if so, whether this makes the processing of negated sentences easier.
Comprehension of negation in child and adult speakers of Spanish and German
Sol Lago, Esther Rinke and Petra Schulz are investigating whether the early or late position
of negation within a sentence influences the acquisition and comprehension of negated sentences. To answer this question, they are comparing negated sentences in German with negated sentences in Spanish in terms of the moment in time of acquisition and the length of time needed to understand the sentence.
The author
Cecilia Poletto has been Professor for Italian and French Linguistics at the Faculty of Modern Languages, Goethe University Frankfurt, since 2011. Her research interests include formal syntax of non-standardized Romance varieties and their historical development since the Middle Ages. She has supervised several projects, among them ones on quantification in Old Italian, indefinites in modern northern Italian dialects and the historical development of French and Venetian. She has led the Collaborative Research Center “Negation in Language and Beyond” since April 2024.
poletto@em.uni-frankfurt.de
To the entire issue of Forschung Frankfurt 1/2025: Language. The key to understanding
