ABSTRACT
In recent cultural theories, certain particular aspects are very prominent. One is the view, expressed implicitly or explicitly, of cultures being represented by discrete pools of information, while another one understands culture from a semiotic perspective as sign inventories. However, both aspects can easily be integrated by a cognitive approach, as cultural elements, irrespective of whether they are interpreted as information units or as signs, are perceived by humans, and they are then cognitively represented. Be it physical objects, concepts or behaviour patterns, it is their representation in cognitive units which is relevant for the actors within cultures. This chapter comprises theoretical approaches on cultures as communication systems (Eco, 1968) and as storages of collective memory (Halbwachs, 1925), as well as those on semiotic transfer (Posner, 1989) and relations of antiquity and modernity (Anrich, 1894). Inevitably, we shall also deal with language as a constituting factor of culture (Kummer, 1990).
