LangMov has made significant advances in the study of the linguistic representation of motion verbs. The findings go beyond our current understanding of motion verbs and motion event encoding in several ways. For example, we found that ground-encoding motion verbs against prior claims in semantic theory, i) can encode salient aspects of the local topography in motion verb roots, ii) are responsive to and mirror the topography in fine-grained ways, and iii) can be considered basic terms. The discovery that terrain is linguistically encoded in such a specific manner is an important contribution to the field of motion event typology and the understanding of how language interacts with environmental factors. From a methodological perspective, the innovative use of combining linguistic data with geographic information systems (GIS) added to previous work on motion semantics in that we recorded actual spatio-physical occurrences of linguistic features, which enabled the exploration of their meaning in relation to the environment and speakers’ associations of motion-related categories in their language. This interdisciplinary approach is highly innovative and provides a new framework for future studies that aim to link language, culture, and the environment.
Beyond the linguistic contributions, the project's findings have practical implications for community empowerment and maintenance of language and culture. For example, maps created during the project are already being used by the Dâw community for the negotiation of land rights. This application demonstrates the potential for academic research to directly benefit local communities. To ensure the full impact and success of these results further uptake would benefit from comparative studies within and outside the geographic region using the same methodology. This could provide a broader understanding of how motion verbs and environmental features are encoded across diverse linguistic systems. Moreover, an expansion of the scope of this research including more collaborations with linguists, anthropologists, and geographers working in different geographic regions could enhance the international impact of the findings. International workshops or conferences focusing on language and mobility could foster future interdisciplinary dialogues and collaborations. Finally, to maximize the societal impact of the project, ongoing dialogues with policymakers could ensure that the maps and the documentary record created during this project are used to support Indigenous land rights and cultural maintenance efforts.
