The Comparative Syntax of Korean and Japanese

Abstract

Abstract This work provides a detailed survey of Korean/Japanese linguistics from a comparative perspective and attempts to take the reader through most of the major issues in Korean/Japanese linguistics in a generative grammar way. The two languages exhibit remarkably similar morpho-syntactic features, e.g., similar sets of particles for specific linguistic functions and similar patterns of relativization (pertaining to a syntactic issue of movement vs in-situ operation for realization). Particularly, this work also introduces often overlooked aspects of these languages, i.e., how they behave differently in constructions with a genitive marker, sentence negation, multiple occurrences of Negative Polarity Items, formation of causatives, ranges of passivization, and other morpho-syntactic constructions. This work also depicts such topics related to pragmatics and sociolinguistics as differences between Korean and Japanese in perception and realization of ‘givenness’ as a topic marker and the influence of relationships of power and distance on the use of honorifics. Before the discussion of these morpho-syntactic issues, it illustrates the phonological systems of the two languages and refers to phonological issues such as the status of the obstruent series in a manner useful and comprehensible to a student conversant with the basics of phonological description. In addition, this work refers to the typological perspectives of the two languages in relation to the surrounding languages (e.g. Ainu, Chinese, and Altaic languages) and socio-cultural and historical backgrounds regarding the adoption and adaptation of a script (e.g., Chinese characters for writing).