일본어에 있어서 クロ（黒）의 인식에 관한 일고찰

This study analyzes, from a cognitive linguistics perspective, how the Japanese word '黒 (kuro)' (black) is perceived in terms of color by Japanese people and how it is utilized linguistically. Unlike previous studies, which have primarily focused on morphological aspects, this research investigates how the color is perceived and how this perception is semantically reflected in Japanese. For the analysis, compound words combined with 'kuro-' were extracted from the Japanese dictionary "Daijisen," and the perceptual patterns of each target word were examined using Google Image Search. The analysis revealed that 'kuro' is perceived not only in reference to actual black objects but also to a variety of other colors such as gray, dark gray, brown, dark brown, dark red, and dark navy blue. Furthermore, it was found that while related to color, the meaning of 'kuro' extends to reflect perceptions such as [being relatively darker than a standard reference point] within a category, and [being in an unprocessed or raw state]. In terms of linguistic application, it was confirmed that compound words incorporating 'kuro' are used with diverse meanings through figurative extensions such as metaphor, metonymy, and synecdoche. Through these figurative mechanisms, 'kuro' was found to express a wide range of meanings, including vitality, defeat, concealment, profit, shame, negativity, crime, abundance/majority, and skillfulness.