Ultrametric Distance in Syntax

Figure 16: The Berlin-Kay Universal Colour Partial Ordering

CP3) Colour terms appear to evolve in a language according to the Berlin-Kay
(1969) [3] universal partial ordering illustrated by Figure 16,

CP4) Focal colours are more memorable and easier to recognize than any other
colours, whether or not the subject speaks a language having a name for the
colour.

CP5) The structure of the colour space determined by multi-dimensional scal-
ing of perceptual data is probably the same for all human communities and it
is unrelated to the space yielded by naming data.

Again there is a culturally determined linguistic partial ordering (or hierarchy).
On this occasion it determines the semantic content of individual words rather
than syntax rules. Again there appears to be nothing known on how the skill
develops in an individual, or any timing tests on the possession of a colour name
strategy. The existence of two separate hierarchical partial orderings suggests
that there is a general mechanism for there construction. Most members of a
community seem to develop these culturally determined skills suggesting that
the capacity to develop them is usually innate but their manifestation depends
on environment.

References

[1] Baldi,P. and BaumE.B.(1986)

Bounds on the Size of Ultrametric Structures.

Phys.Rev.Lett. 56, 1598-1600. 2

[2] Brekke,L. and Freund,P.G.O.(1993)

P-adelic numbers in Physics.

Math.Rev.94h:11115 Phys.Rep. 233, 1-66, especially sections 10 and 13.4.
2

[3] Berlin,B and Kay,P.(1969)

Basic Colour Terms,

University of California Press. 19

[4] Bjorken,J.D. and Drell,S.D.(1965)

Relativistic Quantum Fields,

Math.Rev.66:5092 McGraw Hill, New York. p.378. 4, 13

19

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