Analysis of conceptual patterns and intraterm relationships of terminological variants in Economics

Abstract

Denominative variation in terminology, that is, the use of different names to designate the same concept or nuances of the same conceptual reality, is often considered as a mere stylistic resource or a strategy of thematic progression. It can present, however, distinct conceptual patterns and distinct intra-term relations, which means that the units are not always semantically equivalent. Thus, much more than a thematic progression mechanism, variants act as a discursive and cognitive resource to highlight different conceptual nuances of terminological units. In this sense, in this article, based on the assumptions of modern trends in Terminology, in particular on the Communicative Theory of Terminology (CABRÉ, 1999, 2005) and on the classification of conceptual specification patterns by Kageura (2002), we aim to analyze conceptual patterns and intra-term relations present in terminological variants of Economics. Through this analysis, we intend to show which conceptual information is highlighted in these terminological units and how they can influence the understanding and construction of specialized knowledge.