Metonymic compounds in Spanish. Exocentricity or reference point predication?

Abstract

In this paper I study exocentricity and its common issues in linguistic morphology; likewise I propose a metonymic analysis as an alternative to exocentricity. Exocentricity is a contradictory concept and in its definition, structural and semantic concepts are mixed. Various types of compounds (sacacorchos, cara dura, puntapié) are considered exocentric without the criteria taken into account were clearly defined. Because of this, it has been considered a heterogeneous and even anomalous category (Benveniste, 1977; Bauer, 2008; Scalise and Guevara, 2006). Instead, this research proposes a metonymic analysis, based on the phenomenon of “reference point” (Langacker, 1999). This concept is, I argue, more explanatory and has greater cognitive relevance for speakers. In addition, a metonymic analysis classifies external relation in compound words convincingly.