Lexicalization within terminological change

Abstract

Based on previous works (Lorente 2019, 2022) in which the phenomena of terminological change that occur in specialty discourses are delineated, and that the reference bibliography on linguistic change (Hopper & Traugott 2003; Himmelmann 2004; Brinton & Traugott 2005) identifies under the categories of lexicalization and minor grammaticalization, in this article we want to delve into the various processes of lexicalization that affect terminological units in the field of health. Some of the results of the TERMMED. Evolution of scientific knowledge in medicine project are explored: the lexical and semantic change, with the analysis of the concurrence of various formal, functional, semantic and pragmatic procedures in the discourse of assisted reproduction. Criteria which clarify the polysemy of the term «lexicalization», organized in two levels; one of general dimensions, based on the theoretical principle of situated description of Cabré (2022), and a particular one based on the various procedures of lexical formation and evolution of lexicalization, are introduced.