George Lakoff

Cognitive Linguist, University of California, Berkeley

George Lakoff is a renowned cognitive linguist known for his work on the relationship between language and thought, particularly how language shapes our understanding of the world.

in LinkedIn Profile

Expertise

cognitive linguistics metaphor language and thought

Articles featuring George Lakoff

1 article

Featured Analysis

The Untranslatable Self: What Do We Lose When We Can Only Express Our Deepest Experiences in a Language That Wasn't Built for Them?

Some emotions don't travel across languages — the Japanese komorebi, the Portuguese saudade, the German Weltschmerz — and something gets lost when you try to translate who you are into a language that wasn't built to hold it. George Lakoff, Lera Boroditsky, and John McWhorter examine what happens to the self when words run out.

Jul 17, 2026