Color as a semiotic resource in literary discourse: Linguocultural and educational perspectives from Alisher Navoi's ghazals

Abstract

Abstract

This study examines color terminology as a semiotic resource for meaning-making in literary discourse, with particular attention to its linguistic and educational relevance. Drawing on a qualitative analysis of color lexemes in the ghazals of Alisher Navoi, the research investigates how color expressions function as culturally embedded signs that mediate cognitive, emotional, and interpretive processes. The dataset comprises over 100 color-related lexical units of Turkic, Persian, and Arabic origin, identified through qualitative, text-based analysis of a purposively selected corpus. Using an interdisciplinary framework integrating cognitive semantics, discourse analysis, and social semiotics, the study explores the semantic development, morphological variation, and symbolic functions of these units in poetic contexts. The findings demonstrate that core color terms—such as qizil (red), oq (white), and qora (black)—extend beyond descriptive usage to encode complex cultural meanings associated with spirituality, morality, and human experience. From an educational perspective, the study argues that engagement with symbolically dense literary texts can enhance learners’ interpretive competence, cultural literacy, and awareness of language as a meaning-making system. In particular, the analysis highlights the pedagogical value of integrating linguocultural and semiotic approaches into language education, especially in multilingual and intercultural settings. By linking historical literary data with contemporary theories in linguistics and education, this paper contributes to ongoing discussions on how language mediates learning and participation across diverse contexts. It further demonstrates that color semantics, as a culturally grounded and cognitively structured domain, offers significant potential for both linguistic analysis and educational practice.