-우-

From Middle Korean 우〮 (Yale: -Gwú-), from Old Korean 友 (*-(G)wu-), from older <*-kwú->.

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):
• Phonetic hangul:

우 • (-u-)

1. Derives certain causative verbs, especially for stems ending in ㅣ (i). No longer productive.

   Synonyms: 이 (-i-), 히 (-hi-), 리 (-ri-), 기 (-gi-), 구 (-gu-), 추 (-chu-)

   ‎비다 (bida, “to be empty”) + ‎우 (-u-) → ‎비우다 (biuda, “to empty”)

   ‎지다 (jida, “to bear”) + ‎우 (-u-) → ‎지우다 (jiuda, “to burden”)

Although still very common in Korean, the causative/passive suffixes are no longer productive for forming new verbs. Verbs that do not already have a morphological causative or passive must employ auxiliaries:

• 게 하다 (-ge hada) for causatives
• 어지다 (-eojida) for passives

From Old Korean 乎 (*-wo, modulator suffix).

• IPA^(key): /ú/

우〮 (-wú-)

1. A very common verbal suffix in fifteenth-century Middle Korean, sometimes called the "modulator" in English. The meaning of this term is uncertain. Possibilities include:^[1][2]
   • 14th century?, “動動 (Dongdong)”, in 樂學軌範 (Akhak Gwebeom)‎:

     德(덕)이여 福(복)이라 호ᄂᆞᆯ 나ᅀᆞ라 오소ᅌᅵ다

     TEK-iye PWOK-ila hwon-ol nazola woswongita

     I have come to present which they call virtue and fortune.

   • 14th century?, “西京別曲 (Seogyeong byeolgok)”, in 樂章歌詞 (Akjang gasa):

     괴시란ᄃᆡ 우러곰 좃니노ᅌᅵ다

     kwoysilantoy wulekwom cwosninwongita

     If you only loved me, I would chase after you as I wept

   • 1449, Sejong the Great, 月印千江之曲 (Worin cheon'gang ji gok):

     보ᄇᆡ ᄭᅮ뮨 술위예 象(샤ᇰ)이 메더니

     pwopoy skwumywun sulGwuy-yey SYANG-i meyteni

     The elephant was bearing a cart which they had decorated with treasures

   1. Heo Ung (1958) believed that this was not a single suffix, but three different suffixes:

      1) in the main clause, a suffix marking a first-person subject

      • 1459, 月印釋譜 / 월인석보 [Worin seokbo], page 2:34b:

        右(우ᇢ〯)手(슈ᇢ〯) 左(장〯)手(슈ᇢ〯)로〮 天(텬)地(띵〮) ᄀᆞᄅᆞ치〮샤〮 ᄒᆞ오ᅀᅡ〮 내〮 尊(존)호〮라 ᄒᆞ〮시니〮

        WǓW.SYǓW CǍ.SYǓW-lwó THYÈN.TTÍ kòlòchísyá hòwòzá ná-y CWÒN-h-wó-là hósìní

        With his right and left hands, he pointed at heaven and earth, saying, "I alone am honored."

      2) in an adnominal verb, a suffix marking the noun as a direct or indirect object of the verb

      • 1459, 月印釋譜 / 월인석보 [Worin seokbo], page 10:9b:

        누ᄫᅮᆫ 자리〮예〮 겨〯샤〮 合(ᅘᅡᆸ〮)掌(쟈ᇰ〯)ᄒᆞ〮샤〮 […]

        nwùW-wùn còlí-yéy kyěsyá HHÁP.CYǍNG-hósyá

        Being at the place where he had lain down, he put his hands together

      3) in nominalized or gerund verbal constructions, simply an integral part of the nominalizing or gerund suffix (equivalent to English "-ing")

      • 1459, 月印釋譜 / 월인석보 [Worin seokbo], page 23:99b:

        比(삥〮)丘(구ᇢ)를〮 뫼호〮시니〮 比(삥〮)丘(구ᇢ) 우루〮믈〮 말〯라 ᄒᆞ〮시니〮 […]

        PPÍ.KWÙW-lúl mwòyhwó-sì-ní PPÍ.KWÙW wùl-wú-m-úl mǎllà hósìní

        He gathered together the bhikkhu, and the bhikkhu said, "Stop your crying"

   2. The basic framework of Heo's theory remains the most influential today. Examples difficult to explain in Heo's basic theory include:
      • 13th century, “翰林別曲 (Hallim byeolgok)”, in 樂章歌詞 (Akjang gasa):

        羊(야ᇰ)鬚(슈)筆(필) 鼠(셔)鬚(슈)筆(필) 빗기 드러 위 딕논 景(겨ᇰ) 긔 엇더ᄒᆞ니ᅌᅵᆺ고

        YANG.SYU.PHIL SYE.SYU.PHIL piski tule wuy tiknwon KYENG ku-y este-honingiskwo

        Raising slantedly the sheep-hair brush and rat-hair brush, yea, how is the scene when they dip them !

        The adnominal construction with the verb "to dip" is describing the noun "scene", which is not the object of the verb, but the modulator appears.

      • 14th century?, “動動 (Dongdong)”, in 樂學軌範 (Akhak gwebeom)‎:

        二(ᅀᅵ)月(월)ㅅ 보로매 아으 노피 현 燈(드ᇰ)ㅅ블 다호라 萬(만)人(ᅀᅵᆫ) 비취실 즈ᅀᅵ샷다

        ZI.WEL-s pwolwom-ay au nwophi hyen TUNG-s pul tahwola MAN.ZIN pichwuysil cuz-isyasta

        By the full moon of the second month, oh, are like a lamplight lit on high! Your appearance is one to illuminate a myriad men.

        The subject of the verb "to be like" is the beloved in the second or third person, but the modulator appears.

   3. Yi Sung-nyeong (1959) believed that this was a single aspectual suffix, called the "volitive", that conveyed the desire of the verb's subject to carry out the action. This remains a minority theory, Examples difficult to explain in Yi's theory include:
      • 1459, 月印釋譜 (Worin seokbo), pages 10:24a, 21:55a:

        내... 아ᄃᆞ〮ᄅᆞᆯ〮 나호〮니〮 […] 婢(비) ᄒᆞᆫ 아ᄃᆞ〮ᄅᆞᆯ〮 나ᄒᆞ니〮

        na-y... àtól-ól nàhwóní PI hòn àtól-ól nàhòní

        I... gave birth to a son The slave-girl gave birth to one son.

        This contrast is difficult to explain under the volitive hypothesis.

      • 1461, 楞嚴經諺解 (Neung'eomgyeong eonhae), page 5:43a:

        내... 두〯 누〮늘〮 일후〮니〮

        na-y... twǔ nwún-úl ìlhwúní

        I... have lost my two eyes.

        Contextually, this cannot have been desired by the subject of the verb.

   4. Examples clearly incompatible with Heo's theory led Heo himself to propose that the suffix could be used for non-first-person subjects to convey a sense of rapport in which the speaker speaks from the perspective of the verb's subject. A refined version of Heo's hypothesis, moving away from an Indo-European notion of person-marking, analyzes the suffix as conveying empathy or a close emotional tie between the speaker and the subject of the verb (in both main and adnominal clauses) in addition to its object-marking function in adnominal constructions and its integral function in verbal gerunds. It is currently the most popular interpretation of the modulator, though it is still not unanimously agreed upon. Both examples given above of the exceptions to Heo's hypothesis can be explained by this theory:
      • 13th century, “翰林別曲 (Hallim byeolgok)”, in 樂章歌詞 (Akjang gasa):

        羊(야ᇰ)鬚(슈)筆(필) 鼠(셔)鬚(슈)筆(필) 빗기 드러 위 딕논 景(겨ᇰ) 긔 엇더ᄒᆞ니ᅌᅵᆺ고

        YANG.SYU.PHIL SYE.SYU.PHIL piski tule wuy tiknwon KYENG ku-y este-honingiskwo

        Raising slantedly the sheep-hair brush and rat-hair brush, yea, how splendid is the scene when they dip them !

        The modulator is used to express the speaker's empathy and self-identification with the scholars who are dipping their brushes.

      • 14th century?, “動動 (Dongdong)”, in 樂學軌範 (Akhak gwebeom)‎:

        二(ᅀᅵ)月(월)ㅅ 보로매 아으 노피 현 燈(드ᇰ)ㅅ블 다호라 萬(만)人(ᅀᅵᆫ) 비취실 즈ᅀᅵ샷다

        ZI.WEL-s pwolwom-ay au nwophi hyen TUNG-s pul tahwola MAN.ZIN pichwuysil cuz-isyasta

        By the full moon of the second month, oh, are like a lamplight lit on high! Your appearance is one to illuminate a myriad men.

        The modulator is used to express the speaker's emotional rapport with the beloved.

• By the late sixteenth century, the suffix had become obsolete and does not survive in the modern dialects.

• 요〮 (-ywó), 유〮 (ywú) — after vowel stem with final -i
• 로〮 (-lwó) — after copula 이 (i-)
• Changes the pitch to rising, but the suffix itself is lost (after CV verb stems not ending in a minimal vowel)
• The suffix is conserved but causes loss of the minimal vowel of the verb stem (after CV verb stems ending in a minimal vowel)
  • Except for ᄒᆞ다〮 (hò-tá, “to do”), which usually irregularly takes the form ᄒᆞ요〮다〮 (hòy-wó-tá), although 호〮다〮 (hwó-tá) is also attested.

• Combined forms:
  • 거 (-ke-, subjective) + 우 (-wu-) > 가 (-ka-)
  • 더 (-te-, imperfect) + 우 (-wu-) > 다 (-ta-)
  • 시 (-si-, subject honorific) + 우 (-wu-) > 샤 (-sya-)

Lenition of earlier <*-kwú-> in voiced environments.^[3]

• IPA^(key): /(ɣ)ú/

우〮 (-(G)wú-)

1. A causative-deriving suffix attached to verb and adjective stems.

   ‎일〯다〮 (ǐl-tá, “to occur”) + ‎우〮 (-Gwú-) → ‎일우〮다〮 (ìl-Gwú-tá, “to create; to accomplish ”)

   ‎퓌〮다〮 (pwúy-tá, “(of a fire) to be kindled”) + ‎우〮 (-Gwú-) → ‎퓌우〮다〮 (pwùy-Gwú-tá, “to kindle”)

• 후〮 (-hwú), 호〮 (-hwó-), 구〮 (-kwú-), 고〮 (-kwó-) — less common