Variation in Japanese Word Formation
Wenchao Li
Zhejiang University
The Japanese language is phonologically moraic and morphologically agglutinative. It is unique, with (a) a transitive/unaccusative verb alternation system rendered by morpheme; (b) split intransitivity; and (c) split subjectivity that is displayed in all part of speech (suffixes and prefixes, adjectives, particles, auxiliaries, nouns, adnominals, adverbs and transitive/intransitive verb pairs). Word formation in Japanese is an issue of phonology, morphonology and semantics. This book is composed of 10 chapters, which address formation in phonology and morphonology (nominal compounding, Chapter 5); formation in morphosyntax (verb compounding, Chapter 3); formation in morphonology (derivation, Chapter 4); formation in syntax (middles, Chapter 6; split intransitivity, Chapter 8); and formation in semantics (split subjectivity, Chapter 7). Investigating word formation (particularly compounding and derivation) brings to light the interrelationship between grammaticalisation and lexicalisation: orthogonal.
ISBN 9783969390153. LINCOM Studies in Japanese Linguistics 09. 252pp. 2020.
