Deikenlik

Deikenlik is a linguistic term used in Turkish linguistics to denote the deictic property of language—elements whose reference depends on context. The concept aligns with the English term deixis and is used to analyze how expressions locate people, places, and times relative to the speaker or to the discourse. Deikenlik covers categories such as personal deixis (pronouns and person markers like ben and sen in Turkish), demonstrative deixis (bu, şu, o), spatial deixis (burada, orada), and temporal deixis (şimdi, sonra). It also includes discourse deixis (referencing elements of the ongoing discourse, such as bu ifade).

The essential feature of deikenlik is contextual anchoring: the interpretation of a deiktic expression depends on factors such as the speaker’s identity, location, time of utterance, and, in some cases, the listener’s perspective. In Turkish linguistic descriptions, deikenlik is often discussed as part of deixis more broadly, highlighting how deictic meaning can shift with context and how different languages encode these distinctions.

Terminology in Turkish scholarship varies: some authors use deikenlik, others deiksellik or deiksis to refer to the same general phenomenon. The concept is commonly connected to broader discussions of how language encodes reference in relation to speakers, addressees, and situational context, and it intersects with topics such as deictic center, anaphora, and sociolinguistic variation.

See also: deixis, deictic expressions, deictic center, Turkish linguistics.