A Cognitive Approach in Onomastics: Some Notes on Metaphorical Place-Names

In the framework of cognitive linguistics, metaphor is considered as a general mechanism that plays fundamental role in human thinking and understanding, creation our social, cultural, psychological reality, while also impacting language use. One its special types, image metaphor, appears name-giving serves basis specific toponym type. With reference primarily to Hungarian toponymic corpus and, sporadically, other languages, this paper provides brief description an overview typical target concepts source domains metaphorical toponyms features geographical objects constitute for mappings. It shown naming may be based on transonymization involve enantiosemy helps create irony. The fact place-names are most frequently documented when collecting unofficial toponymy has significant impact their status onomastic research. Being often microtoponyms, display clear quantitative variation from one area another, which can explained by weight patterns have among speakers living different regions, which, turn, influence readiness use those or similar new objects. author suggests despite numerical scarcity historical sources, long-standing ancient class names, outlines some perspectives further study.