Productivity of compound tensification in Seoul Korean

• Published in: 음성음운형태론연구 Vol. 30; no. 2; pp. 225 - 248
• Main Author: Yoona Yee
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 한국음운론학회 01.08.2024
• Subjects: 언어학; compound tensification; nonce word experiments; productivity; Seoul Korean
• ISSN: 1226-8690; 2671-616X
• DOI: 10.17959/sppm.2024.30.2.225

During Korean noun-noun compound formation, the onset of the second word is often tensified. While a vast amount of research has focused mainly on its morpho-semantic aspect, it is agreed that it is a highly unpredictable phenomenon with many exceptions. It is known to be a phenomenon that cannot be explained by a single rule or constraint. Recently, a series of studies have focused on the phenomenon’s phonological aspects and have attempted to provide systematic analyses of phonological factors that govern compound tensification (Zuraw 2011, Ito 2014, Kim 2016, Kang and Oh 2016, 2019). However, no nonce word experiment has been conducted on Seoul Korean, which can directly test the productivity of compound tensification in the language. Building on and revising previous experiments, a nonce word experiment is carried out in this study, which reveals that most phonological factors found in the previous studies turn out to be present in the actual speakers’ grammar, though laryngeal co-occurrence restrictions were not observed in this research. This research shows, via the first attempted nonce word experiments on this phenomenon in Seoul Korean, that the influence of phonological factors is not limited just to existing words, but extends to novel words as well, proving the robust productivity of compound tensification. Moreover, it also reveals some newly found aspects of compound tensification, broadening our understanding of this elusive phenomenon. KCI Citation Count: 0