Synesthesia it is a neurological phenomenon which consists in the production of two sensations of different nature by a single stimulus.
It is a term that characterizes the sensory experience of certain individuals in which sensations corresponding to a certain sense are associated with another sense.
Synesthesia is a word that comes from the Greek synaisthesis, Where syn means "union" and esthesia means "feeling", so a possible literal translation would be "simultaneous sensation".
Synesthesia is a neurological condition that implies that the brain interprets sensations of a natural nature. different at the same time, that is, a sound can represent a color or an aroma (feelings that are not hearing aids). There is a kind of crossing of sensations in a single stimulus. So a color can have a taste or a sound can have a shape.
Contrary to what many people think, synesthesia it's not a disease, and so there is no treatment for it. It is simply a different way for the brain to process information gained through the senses. Synesthesia is an inherited feature and is more likely to happen if there are cases within a family. Some scholars claim that people who have this characteristic have an above-average memory and a highly developed creativity.
About one in 300 people have synesthesia.
Synesthesia examples
Synesthesia is present when, for example, a color is linked to an auditory impression (color hearing, pics) or sounds are linked to a visual impression (phonisms).
In the vocabulary of the Portuguese language there are several expressions that refer to synesthesia phenomena, such as bright red, hot colors. The expression "sweet voice" is another case of synesthesia, as there is a combination of an auditory sensation (voice) and a taste sensation (sweet).
Figure of speech
Within linguistics, synesthesia is also a figure of speech similar to metaphor or simile comparison, because it combines elements from different universes. In the concrete case of synesthesia, the distinct elements that are combined are the human senses.
I remember that summer night, and the sweet scent of your hair.
In this example, synesthesia as a figure of speech is present in the expression "sweet aroma", as there is a combination of two different sensations: olfactory and gustatory.