Event-based time in Amazonian cultures and languages

Abstract Many cultures do not organise life by metric time. Event-based time intervals in three Amazonian communities related to life stages, times of day and night, and seasons are documented and analysed. Metonymic indices for time intervals are common, while metaphoric space-time mapping is largely absent. Event terms can combine with motion verbs, though not to indicate movement on a timeline. Concepts of ‘past’ and ‘future’ are understood through embodied perception — such as the past in my heart or eyes and the future in my mind or vision. Recent innovations include hybrid calendars that combine the twelve-month cycle with indigenous time concepts. These findings challenge universal models of spatialised time, suggesting instead the primacy of events in temporal cognition and language.