[Lexis] Words about Olfaction

“Words about Olfaction”.

The deadline for abstract submissions is 15 November 2026. Abstracts should be submitted via the journal’s submission platform.
 
Papers can examine the ineffability of olfaction either quantitatively or qualitatively, comparing it to the linguistic codability of the other Aristotelian sensory modalities. Papers may also study ineffability by analyzing lexical and semantic tools used to overcome onomasiological gaps: conceptual metaphors (DETECTING IS SMELLING), adjectival constructions (musky perfume), prepositional constructions (the smell of cheese), synesthesia (this thing stinks out loud), and like-comparison (smells like teen spirit).

Olfactory words can be studied from a diachronic perspective: are there any attested lexical and semantic neologies in the olfaction domain? Lexical neologies are understood as the creation of new lexical forms, while semantic neologies are understood as the acquisition of a new meaning by an existing lexical form (Bauer [2001]). The latter can be illustrated by diachronic semantic changes which lexical items undergo such as the trajectory of pejoration of the verb reek. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, reek evolved from referring to “of something burning or smouldering: to emit or give off smoke. Also figurative.” (Old English) to denoting “figurative and in extended use. To be strongly suggestive or reminiscent of something unpleasant, disreputable or undesirable. With of, with.” (1679). Moreover, the former type of neology can be illustrated by the coinage of the blend smellscape (smell + landscape), defined as “the olfactory environment as perceived and understood, consisting of odours and scents from multiple smell sources” by Lindborg & Liew [2021]. Consequently, is there any observable diachronic change in the productivity of olfactory lexemes or olfactory semantic change?

On the other hand, are there any attested disappearance, obsolescence, or death of olfactory lexemes and lexical senses? In other words, are there any attested necrologies? For instance, are there any attested examples in contemporary English of the verb stink referring to the obsolete sense in the Oxford English Dictionary “intransitive To emit a smell or vapour of any kind; to smell (sweetly or otherwise). Obsolete.”; and can the absence or scarcity of data of this ineffable sensory modality be viewed as proof of necrology? Papers can also discuss:
 

• The lexicalization of olfactory lexemes, defined as the establishment of a lexical unit having a form and a meaning in a language (Bauer [2001]): in Doesn’t it smell fishy a lawmaker comes out -- there is not a big tween lobby out this state? I mean, it’s like is the liquor industry pushing him to do this?, the lexical unit smell fishy is established as referring to suspicion and not to a smell of fish;
   
• The semantic change of olfactory lexemes: a smell referring to a very small amount or a hint of something is an attested sense in the Merriam Webster, such as add only a smell of garlic, and
   
• The frozenness of sequences, understood as the degree to which multi-word units become conventionalized and resistant to syntactic variation such as in If you don’t come clean, your whole campaign will stink to high heaven.