A Neuropragmatic Comparison of English and Uzbek: Cultural and Cognitive Dimensions of Pragmatic Language Processing
Keywords:
neuropragmatics, English, Uzbek, brain and language, pragmatics, cross cultural communicationAbstract
This article explores the neuropragmatic features of English and
Uzbek, focusing on how the human brain processes context-dependent meaning such as
politeness, indirect speech acts, and culturally loaded expressions. Neuropragmatics, a
subfield of neurolinguistics, studies the interface between language, cognition, and social
behavior. While English has been widely studied in neuropragmatics using tools such as
EEG and fMRI, research on Uzbek remains scarce. This paper presents a comparative
overview of pragmatic strategies in both languages, drawing on existing neurocognitive
studies in English and sociolinguistic data from Uzbek. It also proposes a framework for
future empirical research combining neuroimaging with cross-cultural pragmatics. The
findings suggest that while both languages rely on similar brain regions for pragmatic
processing (e.g., prefrontal cortex, right hemisphere), cultural norms significantly shape
how indirectness, politeness, and emotional tone are interpreted. This study highlights the
need for more culturally inclusive research in neurolinguistics and opens avenues for
experimental work on lesser-studied languages like Uzbek.
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