Metonymy and Metonymic Transpositions in the Officially Functioning Potamonyms of Vilnius County: Cognitive Models and Cultural Reflections

Abstract

The article examines cognitive and cultural foundations of metonymic naming and metonymic transposition in Lithuanian potamonymy by analysing a corpus of 404 officially functioning potamonyms of Vilnius County, 212 of which are metonymically motivated. Based on cognitive linguistics and onomastic theory, the study establishes three principal metonymic models underlying potamonym formation: PLACE FOR RIVER, SALIENT FEATURE FOR RIVER, and PERSON FOR RIVER. The analysis shows how perceptual salience, functional relevance, and culturally significant features of the landscape determine naming practices, with particular attention to analogy-based transfers between semantically related toponyms. Such processes often result in the extension and parallel functioning of toponymic meanings rather than semantic change in the traditional sense. The findings reveal that Lithuanian potamonyms are not merely geographical labels but rather cognitive and cultural constructs that reflect spatial organisation, ecological awareness, and collective memory encoded in the landscape.