Word-formation Mechanisms Research Articles

Restructuring Russian Christian Personal Names in the Pre-National Period: Names in -y

This article is the concluding part of a series of articles investigating the derivation of the geographically limited system of Christian personal name forms during the pre-national period. Drawing on anthroponyms from Tver business texts of the 16th–17th centuries, it explores the structural reorganization of full male personal names in colloquial speech. The focus of the analysis is on the productive paradigmatic class *-jŏ, specifically full forms of anthroponyms with a soft base (ending in -y) in different variants: -iy, -ey, -ay, -oy. During the period studied, these colloquial full forms were highly diverse, with numerous phonetic and morphological variants. These variants primarily emerged from fictitious segmentation and formal alteration of the anthroponymic bases. At the same time, preference in documents is given to colloquial rather than canonical forms, which were used mainly by clergymen. The article identifies the word-formation mechanisms that facilitated the integration of foreign personal names into the Russian onomastic system, leading to the development of numerous colloquial full forms of names, particularly through structural reorganization and formal-associative relationships involving modifications to the final segment of the name. These structural transformations, combined with phonetic changes, create a unique anthroponymic pattern specific to each territory. The analysis reveals that in the 16th–17th centuries Tver documents, two forms of Christian personal names were particularly stable and frequently recurring: consonant-final truncated forms (e.g., Vlas, Nazar, Taras, Fedos) and forms ending in -ey (e.g., Vlasey, Nazarey, Tarasey, Fedosey).

An Analysis of Inflectional and Derivational Affixes on Psalms Chapters 1-10 From the Bible King James Version

The objective of this study is to identify the inflectional and derivational affixes present in Psalms chapters 1-10 of the King James Version, and to examine the manner in which these affixes are processed. This study employs a qualitative research approach characterized by a descriptive design. When examining the data, the author emphasizes the inflectional and derivational affixes found in the King James translation of the Bible, as outlined by Katamba's theory (1993:40) that states "derivation and inflection are two distinct methods of constructing words." The word formation mechanisms mentioned here can be categorized into two primary types of affix morphemes: derivational affixes and inflectional affixes. The study identified a total of 49 derivational affixes, consisting of 10 prefixes (8.20%), 39 suffixes (31.59%), and 73 inflectional affixes (59.84%). According to the findings of this study, the processing of inflectional affixes is more prevalent than that of derivational affixes when examining the text of Psalms in the King James translation, namely chapters 1-10. The dominance of the suffixes -ed/-d/-ied is due to the prevalence of past tense sentences in the text. This study can serve as a valuable resource for lecturers, particularly those teaching morphology, since it provides clear differentiation between roots and affixes, enabling a comprehensive understanding of the word formation process and the significance of affixes. This study can assist other scholars in analyzing the formation of derivational and inflectional affixes and their processes. This study can serve as a valuable resource for studying vocabulary and word building. Additionally, the study has broader implications, serving as a foundational reference for morphology education, linguistic analysis, and interdisciplinary studies. It enriches our understanding of the linguistic characteristics of the King James Bible, offering insights into the intricate dynamics of word formation within religious texts.

Алгоритм инвентаризации синонимов французского молодежного арго (на материале рэп-произведений)

The aim of the study is to develop an algorithm for the systematisation of synonyms in French youth argot. The study has recorded denotations around which synonymous series of various lengths were formed. Special attention is paid to the characteristics of such a systemic word-formation mechanism as synonymic substitution. The analysis carried out using the material of modern rap works by the French artists Assassin, Booba, Guizmo, GLK, Jul, La Fouine, MC Solaar, Mister You, Sexion d’Assaut made it possible to systematise the units of the synonymic stock of youth argot. The article also presents the ratio of semantic fields by the number of argotisms incorporated into the rap works by the above-mentioned artists and their usage. The study is novel in that it is the first to present the systematisation of synonymic resources and lexico-semantic characteristics of non-conventional units using the material of the works by the above-mentioned rap artists. As a result, it has been found that the semantic field “Drug Addiction / Alcoholism” prevails by the number of synonymic groupings, as well as by the number of argotisms used in the musical works.

Способы обозначения оттенков цвета в казахском и южносибирских тюркских языках

The article reveals the mechanism of word formation in the Turkic languages in a comparative aspect by considering the Kazakh and Altai languages. Their genetic closeness determines the similarity in the organization of color naming systems due to their common historical roots. However, this closeness does not deny the differences that arose during their independent cultural and historical development. The morphological method is basic in the word formation process of color designations of the languages under study. A number of parametric values are formed, in particular, the sufficiency or insufficiency of color, the degree of color intensity and saturation (high or low), and the gradation of features. The word formation mechanism also includes compounding and reduplication (full and partial), syntactic and comparative constructions. Each of the methods is intended to express specific semantics, with the morphological expressing a weak degree, reduplication demonstrating high-degree features, and compounding designating mixed colors. The word-formation analysis of color designation allows a conclusion to be drawn that the Kazakh and Altai languages possess a significant potential for expanding and enriching the lexical-semantic group of color designations.

Word-formation mechanisms of linguistic expressiveness in German-language media texts

Word-formation mechanisms of linguistic expressiveness in German-language media texts

A Cognitive Study on the Semantic Category of “cold(冷)” and the Word Formation Mechanism of “cold(冷)+X” Word Family

This paper probes into the semantic category of the temperature word “cold(冷)”, and analyzes the semantic extension mechanism of “cold (冷)” and the word formation mechanism of “cold(冷)+X” word family. The conclusions are as follows: “cold(冷)” has other abstract meanings besides the prototypical meaning of “low temperature”. Metonymy and metaphor are important cognitive models, which are the origin of new linguistic meanings. Through the process of metaphor and metonymy, these concepts are mapped onto more complex conceptual domains beyond the temperature perception domain, forming a variety of meanings. On the basis of these extended meanings, many new words are constructed by conceptual blending, and finally these words combine into a regular and systematic “cold(冷)+X”word family.

СЛОВООБРАЗОВАТЕЛЬНЫЕ И ВЫРАЗИТЕЛЬНЫЕ ВОЗМОЖНОСТИ ЯЗЫКА СОВРЕМЕННОЙ ПОЭЗИИ

Statement of the problem. Particular interest to the study of derivational and expressive means of the language of modern poetry at the turn of 20th – 21st centuries is explained by lack of detailed studies of the issue and rise of the personal principle and expressive means in belles-letters. The purpose of this article is to analyze the dynamics of productive word-building types and models with the meaning of an agent and the representation of figurative and expressive potential of derivatives with neutral suffixes in poetic texts of modern word-painters. Materials. The research is based on literary texts of Igor Melamed, Oleg Chukhontsev, Natalia Gorbanevskaya, David Samoylov, Vladimir Strochkov, and Aleksandr Levin. Methodology. A descriptive-analytical method was used in the study, including observation, generalization, and interpretation, as well as methods of systematization and classification. Research results. The study of derivational and expressive means of the language of modern poetic texts helped to identify the most active parts of the word-formation mechanism in the sphere of proper names; to show the real and potential possibilities of traditional derivational means to generate new units and meanings.

Complex Words of the Coronavirus Era in Russian and Chinese: Word-formation Aspect

The object of the study is the changes occurring in the vocabulary of the Russian and Chinese languages in the era of coronavirus, and the subject is complex words describing new realities during the pandemic of the new coronavirus infection COVID–19, and the mechanisms of their creation. The material for the analysis was scientific sources in Russian and Chinese, from which 48 complex words formed in various ways were selected by the method of target sampling. Among them are 34 Russian words formed by addition, as well as addition or fusion in combination with suffixation; 14 Chinese lexemes formed by methods of addition, definition using suffixation and control. The purpose of the work is to determine the regularities of the formation of complex words of the type under study in two typologically different languages and to identify their similarities and differences. Special attention is paid to the comparison of word-formation mechanisms and the description of their similarities and differences in the two languages. In the work, along with general scientific methods of observation, analysis and synthesis, the following research methods were used: descriptive method, lexico-grammatical commentary, method of component analysis and comparative analysis. The results of the study show that due to the pragmatic needs for the designation of new phenomena, objects, actions, feelings, etc. A number of words have appeared in Russian and Chinese, which is currently defined as "coronalexica". The main conclusions of the study are the revealed phonetic, morphological and syntactic differences in the mechanisms of formation of complex words in two languages. The novelty of the research lies in the fact that for the first time a comparative analysis of the vocabulary of the coronavirus era in the word-formation aspect is carried out on the material of the Russian and Chinese languages, while the interpretations of new words are given.

유추 유형에 따른 신어 형성 양상

The purpose of this study is to categorize analogy, which is a word formation mechanism, and to quantitatively examine the formation patterns of new words according to the type of analogy. For this purpose, this paper deals with new words data. This is because new words use the form and meaning of existing words, but they are often formed in a way that partially modifies the form of existing words, so they can show various patterns of word formation by analogy. The type of analogy can be divided according to the criteria of the model of analogy, the similarity between the model word and the target word, and the fixed element that is the axis of the analogy. It is confirmed that the types of analogy that predominate in the formation of new words are essentially closely related to the schema of analogy. Considering that the formation of words ultimately starts from representing meaning, it can be interpreted that the fixed elements shared by model words and target words and the 'meaning' of the schema of analogy based on them act as the most important factor in the formation of new words.

Анализ словообразовательных механизмов формирования сленговых выражений молодежной среды в китайском языке

The paper aims to identify the specificity of the word-formation mechanisms of creating slang expressions by young people in the Chinese language. The article analyzes the definitions of the notion “slang” in the Chinese linguistics. The scientific originality of the research lies in the fact that it considers and analyzes new slang expressions which came from the popular video platform TikTok, as well as identifies the Internet slang development tendencies in the modern Chinese language. The results of the research show the creation sources and the word-formation means of the modern slang units in the Chinese language which are characterized by social and cultural connotations.

Coronajerga, covidioma, coronalengua: acerca de los cambios lingüísticos en tiempos de la pandemia

The aim of this paper is to present how the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has changed our language and the way we communicate. The article focuses on the recent Spanish neologisms that have appeared during the pandemic year 2020 and attempts to analyze their word-formation process. The theoretical framework of this study is based on the classification of neologisms proposed by M.T. Cabré Castellví (2006). Firstly, the paper highlights semantic innovations, that is, neologisms which are formed through broadening, narrowing or change of the meaning of the base form. Secondly, different types of word formation mechanisms, such as affixations, compounding, conversion or shortening are discussed. The paper also gives new insights into the most creative ways that vocabulary related to coronavirus (COVID-19) has expanded (lexical borrowing, wordplay). The data were collected from articles, books, dictionaries, social media and various websites.

Когнитивные механизмы номинации растений в английском языке

The article deals with cognitive models underlying the process of plant categorization by the speakers. Having analyzed 200 names of herbs and flowers in English, the authors differentiated three cognitive models, which the phytonyms categorization is based on: metaphoric, metonymic and propositional. It is shown that "the codes of culture", or in other words, well-known realia, are used as sources for nomination; on their basis typical cognitive models are formed. Since the names of flowers and herbs in the English language are mostly compound words, the identified cognitive models are described taking into account the action of the cognitive word-formation mechanisms of proverse and reverse. The first mechanism structure of a phytonym presupposes the direct order of compound-word components as a result of the initial word-combination integration. This word building mechanism is typical of the compound structures "adjective / verb + noun". The reversive mechanism represents the inner structure of a phytonym as a result of reverse transformation of the word-combination initial components. This type of mechanism is characteristic of the phytonyms created on the basis of the structures "noun + noun", "noun + ' + noun". The article describes the models of proverse and reverse structuring, which are typical of English phytonyms. The prospects of the research are to study the cognitive models and mechanisms underlying plant nomination in a comparative aspect based on the material of several languages.

The fine line between compounds and portmanteau words in English: A prototypical analysis

The current paper investigates two productive morphological processes, namely compounds and portmanteau words (or blends). While compounds, a productive, regular and predicable morphological process, have received much attention in the literature, little attention was paid to portmanteau words, a creative, irregular and unpredictable word formation process. The present paper aims to find the commonalities and differences between these morphological devices, using Rosch et al.’s (1975; 1976) theory of prototypes and basic-level categories to achieve this goal. This theory will also be employed to discuss the literature on the word formation mechanisms under investigation and propose a new categorization approach to these neologisms. The analysis suggests that compounds and blends compare and contrast and that the distinctions between them are blurry. The analysis confirms that a prototypical approach is well suited to compounds and blends in English. This has implications for future research into English word-formation processes in general and compounds and blends precisely.

ЕЗИКОВАТА КОНДЕНЗАЦИЯ КАТО ТЕНДЕНЦИЯ В МЕДИЙНИЯ ДИСКУРС / LANGUAGE CONDENSATION AS A TREND IN MEDIA DISCOURSE

The paper discusses cases of language condensation (language economy) caused by social changes in media electronic texts created during the pandemic. Special emphasis is placed on lexical and syntactic condensation. The following major cases of lexical condensation have emerged: participle adjectivization and substantivisation, new biaspectual verbs with the suffix -iram/-iziram, nouns formed by means of suffixation from motivating biaspectual verbs, abbreviation and composition as word-formation mechanisms, appositive collocations. The following cases of syntactic condensation are observed: monocomponential subjectless sentences with personal indefinite reference containing the predicate karantiniram (to quarantine) and the omission of the phrase de-noting the active subject in passive constructions. The study also highlights the relation-ship between the tendency towards linguistic condensation and other interlingual trends of development in grammar. Conclusions are drawn about the reasons for language condensation in texts related to the coronavirus, which are determined not only linguistically but also pragmatically. Keywords: language condensation (language economy), social changes, lexical condensation, syntactic condensation, adjectivization, substantivization, biaspectual verbs, Bulgarian language

SYSTEM MECHANISMS OF ARGOT WORD-FORMATION (BASED ON THE LATEST SYNCHRONIC STRATUM OF THE FRENCH YOUTH ARGOT)

The purpose of this article is to systematize the most frequent word-formation mechanisms of the French youth argot. The authors analyzed a glossary compiled on the basis of materials from six printed lexicographic works and two online dictionaries. The paper presents the classification of word-formation techniques of French argotologists. The analysis showed that users of the modern French youth argot actively resorted to such methods of replenishing the lexical fund as verlanization and metaphor. At the same time, it should be noted there is a striving for saving linguistic means, as a result of which a significant layer of truncated lexemes is formed. The characteristic of the convergence of the argot word-formation methods deserves a separate mentioning. The specified glossary has more than two thousand lexical units, which makes it possible to make a conclusion about the representativeness of the sample and the introduction of new empirical material into scientific circulation.

On twittizens and city residents

Abstract The present study analyses native speaker perceptions of the differences in the semantic structure of compounds and blends to specify whether the formal differences between compounds and blends are reflected on the semantic level. Viewpoints on blending vary, with some researchers considering it to be an instance of compounding (Kubozono, 1990), while others identify blending as an interim word formation mechanism between compounding and shortening (López Rúa, 2004). The semantic characteristics of English determinative blends and N+N subordinative compounds are compared by evaluating the differences in native speakers’ perceptions of the semantic relationships between constituents of the analysed structures. The results of two web-based experiments demonstrate that readers’ interpretations of both compounds and blends differ in terms of lexical indicators of semantic relations between the elements of these units. The experimental findings indicate that language users’ interpretation of both compounds and blends includes information on semantic relationships. The differences in the effect of the semantic relations on interpretations is likely to be connected to the degree of formal transparency of these units.

ON THE DESCRIPTION OF ARGOGRAPHIC SOURCES BASED ON THE NEWEST FRENCH YOUTH ARGOT

The article is devoted to the vocabulary work of the French journalist Vincent Mongaillard, in which units of the French youth argot are inventoried. The purpose of the article is to analyze the thematic sections of the indicated argographic work, grouped on the basis of word-conversion techniques, on the one hand, and systematization of argot-attractive concepts, on the other hand. The lexicographic publication, created on the basis of the latest synchronous slice of specific vocabulary, is presented according to five criteria, such as the volume of the lexical fund, sources and word formation mechanisms, semantic dominants, synonymous series and metaphor. In the course of the study, systemic methods of argotic word-making were revealed. This confirms the frequency of using such a specific word-formation tool as verlan: argotisms formed through verlanization are included in all semantic macro fields presented in the work. Of the non-specific mechanisms for replenishing the argot fund, metaphorics should be called first of all. Special attention is paid to the description of borrowings. The work provides numerous examples with translation into Russian.

Word-Formation Categories in “The Tale of Bygone Years” (With a Focus on Nominal Suffixed Derivatives)

The article looks at word-formation categories in the “Tale of Bygone Years” from the cogni-tive perspective, specifically focusing on nominal suffixed derivatives as one of the most pro-ductive groups of derivative lexemes in the text of the manuscript. The author makes a num-ber of observations on the “internal form of the language” — i. e. specific forms of expression of thought and their grammatical realization as well as the creative and intellectual activity of human thinking. The primary purpose of the article is to determine the ratio of derivative and non-derivative nouns, to identify the most productive means of word formation, primary word-formation categories and their conceptual structure, and to analyze word-formation models that guide the process of cognition. We used content analysis to categorize common nouns in terms of their productivity/non-productivity and to determine word-formation mechanisms that are characteristic for the text. The statistical method was used to identify key word-formation methods and categories of nominal derivatives, while the descriptive-analytical method was used to describe their conceptual structure. In the course of the study, we identified primary word-formation categories which gave us a better idea of the medieval language consciousness which seems to have been characterized by an extensive system of word-formation suffixes. In particular, the word-formation act reveals a close interweaving of sensory and speculative perception and an interdependence of the structures of knowledge and evaluation of the world. In addition, the study revealed a high generative potential of core non-derivative concepts that underly the ancient Slavic language picture of the world. The results of the study confirm the hypothesis that the ancient man had developed abstract think-ing, and exteriorization of its conceptual system at all stages of its development was largely realized by original linguistic means. The theoretical significance of this research project lies in the synchronous study of word-formation processes as well as in applying axiological methods to the study of the linguistic picture of the world. Its practical conclusions throw fresh light at language as activity and demonstrate the high potential of original word-formation means of the Old Slavonic language. The results of this research can be used in theoretical courses in anthropo- and ethnolinguistics as well as in teaching Russian as a foreign language for advanced students.

Semantic Groups of Swiss German Lexemes and Peculiarities of Their Word Formation

The main objective of this paper is to describe semantic diversity of nationally labeled lexemes and peculiarities of their word formation mechanisms on the example of the Swiss German language. One of the central concepts is the concept of «the
 national variant of the language». The article briefly describes the most important stages of literary and linguistic works on the stage of fixing and studying the basic dialect of Switzerland – Alemannic. The Dictionary of Variability of the German
 Language is accepted as the main source of the research material. The methodological basis comprises the method of comparative analysis, the method of component
 analysis, the method of continuous sampling, the method of statistical data processing.The study has confirmed the working hypothesis that the nationally marked
 vocabulary is manifested in all thematic blocks, but its use for naming the national cultural realities of Switzerland is the most typical case. Word-formation models, while maintaining the constancy of the word formation general methods, demonstrate
 a wide variability found in the quantitative filling of the component composition of compound words. For the lexemes of the suffix model, a typical postfix segmental morpheme – the suffix –li – is identified. The future research may expand the empirical base of the language and reconstruction of fully aspectual communication model of the polycode space of Swiss
 German discourse.

On the Analogical Suffixation of Paired Antonyms: The Case of English innie and outie

In English, there are a series of paired antonyms ending with the same suffix, particularly in slang or colloquial speech—stardom, regulardom/unknowndom; friendship, enemyship; singlehood, marriedhood, etc. This article looks into the tenets of the analogical suffixation of paired antonyms (ASPA), which is the process that is thought to underlie the mechanisms of morphological analogy and semantic complementation in the structuring of same-suffixed antonymic pairs (APs). In the study of ASPA, the AP innie/outie is used to explore the interconnection of antonymy, suffixation and analogy in the twenty-nine senses identified in the corpora (News on the Web Corpus and Lexis Nexis Academic). This case study shows that the semantic composition of the AP is the result of overlapping categories that involve the bases (in-, out-), the attached suffix (-ie/y), the complementary and coalescent nature of the pairs and the morphological adaptation undergone by the etymons to fit into the pairing markedness. The process of ASPA is a universal and scalar property that depends on the semantic opacity of bases, the sociolinguistic value of the word stock and the concept of lexical creativity. The examination of the morphological analogy of paired antonyms can shed more light on the predictability and performance (profitability) of word-formation mechanisms in both mainstream and peripheral lexis.