Foundations for Metasemantics

Metasemantics studies the foundations of meaning, asking what makes it the case that certain words have the meanings that they do. But what makes metasemantic theories true? This question has been all but ignored in philosophy of language. In this book, Cohnitz and Haukioja address this issue and argue that just as in metasemantics, both internalist and externalist answers are available for this foundational question.

The authors introduce and defend meta-internalism, arguing that the foundations of reference and meaning are anchored in the individual dispositions and psychological states of language users, offering an alternative to meta-externalist views that would appeal to broader community-based or otherwise external factors. Meta-internalism is, moreover, compatible with semantic externalism as usually understood, and provides an explanation of why externalism is true. Through a critical examination of prominent theories and thought experiments, the book explores fundamental issues like reference failure, conceptual engineering, and the metaphysical implications of reference, as well as the methodology of theories of reference.

With its focus on the foundations of metasemantics, the book provides a fresh and empirically informed perspective on one of the core questions in the philosophy of language. Foundations for Metasemantics is essential reading for philosophers, scholars, and students seeking to understand the underlying principles that support our theories of meaning and reference.

Daniel Cohnitz, Professor of Theoretical Philosophy, Utrecht University,Jussi Haukioja, Professor of Philosophy, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Daniel Cohnitz holds the chair for theoretical philosophy at Utrecht University. Cohnitz studied philosophy, German literature and language, and history at the Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf. In 2005 he defended his dissertation on Thought Experiments in Philosophy (Gedankenexperimente in der Philosophie) at Düsseldorf. From 2006 to 2015 he was professor of theoretical philosophy at the University of Tartu in Estonia. Since January 2016 he is professor of theoretical philosophy in Utrecht. His research interests include metaphilosophy, epistemology, metaphysics, the philosophy of mind, language, mathematics, and logic, and related areas of philosophy and cognitive science.


Jussi Haukioja is professor of philosophy at NTNU Trondheim, Norway. Haukioja studied philosophy at the University of Turku, Finland. In 2000 he defended his dissertation on Rule-Following, Response-Dependence, and Realism. From 2001 to 2010 he was employed in research positions funded by the Academy of Finland. He joined NTNU Trondheim in 2010, and has been full professor since 2011. His research interests include philosophy of language, philosophy of mind, and metaphilosophy.