Edible items

The first systematic classification of food items was done by Brenda Beck [Beck]. While the study was careful and systematic, there were several problems with it. I outline some of these issues below.

While Beck classifies food items as hot or cold (with an occasional note indicate the degree (very hot), the data clearly suggests that the quality of hot-cold is mapped onto a radial category that indicates a gradient for the classification. The categories are comprised of some central members that are prototypical instances of hot or cold. Other substances are more ambiguous and can be either hot or cold depending on the context. The notion of context is key to any assignment of hot and cold qualities to these items. The following features contribute to the context under which any assignment must be viewed.

• The geographical region of interest. The classification varies according to the region or ur of interest. Examples include certain varieties of vala palam (banana) which are considered hot in one region of Tamil Nadu (north) while cool in another region (south). Similarly, wheat is considered a hot food in South India whereas it is a neutral food in much of North India. However, food items that are foreign (originate from outside the country (natu)) are universally hot is character (such as ice-cream)

• The caste of the person consuming the food. Goat meat, for instance is considered hot by Nambudri Brahmins of Kerala, whereas in the same village, a Parayan may consider the item as a cold item.

• The changes in seasons. In certain months (indeed even at different times of a day) the same item may be hot or cold. An example that has always puzzled me is the categorization of milk which is hot in winter but cold in summer.

• The state of the food item. The same item when eaten raw may be cool, but may become hot when cooked. A example is banana when cooked is hot may when eaten raw may be cool.

• The state of the individual. The same food item may be hot for one individual but cold for another.

At first glance, the above list seems bewilderingly arbitrary. In fact, some researchers have suggested that any attempt at delineating a hot-cold semantic property space for food items may be impossible [Daniel]. However, as I will show in the subsequent discussion, recent theories in cognitive science such as the idea of graded and radial categories [Lakoff] combined with notions of systematic metonymic and metaphoric mappings that have been proposed as a foundation for Indian ethnosociology [Marriott] may shed some light on the issue. Before proceeding to that discussion, let us look at other kinds of entities that may be categorized along the hot-cold continuum.