Appendix:Middle Korean h-final nouns

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Middle Korean had a number of nouns and numerals that ended in /-h/, which is believed to arise from Old Korean */-k/.

When following a sonorant (a vowel or nasal or liquid consonant), /-h/ did not appear in isolation but surfaced when followed by a vowel- or plosive-initial suffix. When following an obstruent, /-h/ fused with the preceding consonant to form an aspirate consonant. However, because /h/-initial consonant clusters also surfaced as an aspirate, it is impossible to distinguish between /-hC/ clusters and /-Ch/ clusters. Accordingly, aspirate-final nouns are not included in this list.

The /h/-final nouns have been the focus of particular attention by linguists because not only are they a distinctive feature of Middle Korean lost in the modern dialects, /h/ appears to be clustered around the single semantic field of nouns for places. This raises the possibility that it stems from a fused place suffix. Both Alexander Francis-Ratte and Martine Robbeets, who believe in a genetic relationship between Korean and Japanese, suggest a connection to Japanese () (ko, place). Both Korean and non-Korean scholars have also suggested a potential link to Proto-Turkic *-ag as in *ōtag (fireplace).

The list below combines those of Heo 1975, Yi 2010, and Park 2018, excluding compound words. The three lists differ slightly in what words are included. As final /-h/ was being lost even in the mid-fifteenth century, during the time of the earliest Hangul sources, many forms below are also attested without the coda. Due to the conditioned surfacing of the /h/-coda, it is impossible to determine whether /-h/ existed or not for many nouns attested only a few times in the surviving corpus.

Native words in at least two lists

Nouns for places

English Middle Korean Modern Korean Notes
road 긿〮 (Yale: kílh) (gil)
shade, shaded place ᄀᆞᄂᆞᆶ〮 (Yale: kònólh) 그늘 (geuneul)
town ᄀᆞ옳 (Yale: kòwòlh) 고을 (go'eul)
country 나랗〮 (Yale: nàláh) 나라 (nara) Possibly reflected in Old Japanese Naraku, an older version of the name for the city of Nara. See also the etymology at 奈良.
stream 냏〯 (Yale: nǎyh) (nae)
back 뒿〯 (Yale: twǔyh) (dwi) (Yale: àlph) "front" has an aspirate coda
field, plain, meadow 드릏〮 (Yale: tùlúh) (deul)
mountain 묗〯 (Yale: mwǒyh) (me)
village ᄆᆞᅀᆞᆶ (Yale: mòzòlh) 마을 (ma'eul)
wild field ᄆᆡᇂ〮 (Yale: móyh) N/A (Yale: pàth) "cultivated field" has an aspirate coda
sea 바닿〮 (Yale: pàtáh) 바다 (bada)
cliff (Yale: pyelh) 벼랑 (byeorang)
court, garden ᄠᅳᆶ (Yale: ptùlh) (tteul)
capital; Seoul 셔〯욿 (Yale: syĕwùlh) 서울 (seoul)
provinces, countryside 스〮굻 (Yale: súkwùlh) 시골 (sigol)
land, earth ᄯᅡᇂ〮 (Yale: stáh) (ttang) See also (Yale: mwuth) "mainland" with an aspirate coda
inside 않〮 (Yale: ánh) (an) 바ᇧ (Yale: pàsk) "outside" has coda /-sk/; coda /-sh/ is not possible in Middle Korean
hill 얺〮 (Yale: énh) 언덕 (eondeok) Also attested without /-h/
pit, pit-house 우ᇡ〮 (Yale: wúmh) (um)
top, above (Yale: wùh) (wi) 아래 (Yale: alay) "under" has a coda -j,[1] but (Yale: mìth) "bottom" has an aspirate coda
source of a river ᄎᆞᆶ〮 (Yale: chólh) N/A
site (for a building) 텋〮 (Yale: théh) (teo)
sky 하ᄂᆞᆶ〮 (Yale: hànólh) 하늘 (haneul)

Numerals

English Middle Korean Modern Korean
one ᄒᆞ낳〮 (Yale: hònáh) 하나 (hana)
two 둟〯 (Yale: twǔlh) (dul)
three 셓〯 (Yale: sěyh) (set)
four 넿〯 (Yale: něyh) (net)
ten 엻〮 (Yale: yélh) (yeol)
twenty 스〮믏 (Yale: súmùlh) 스물 (seumul)
several 여렇〮 (Yale: yèléh) 여럿 (yeoreot)

Other forms

Middle Korean had a diminutive suffix (Yale: -ak) / (Yale: -ek) which was not extremely productive by the fifteenth century but may have been more productive earlier, and which is seen as a source for some of these forms.

English Middle Korean Modern Korean
knife, sword (Yale: kàlh) (kal)
winter 겨ᅀᆞᆶ〮 (Yale: kyèzólh) 겨울 (gyeoul)
nose 곻〮 (Yale: kwóh) (ko)
loop in a knot 곻〮 (Yale: kwóh) (go)
tree stump 그릏 (Yale: kùlùh) 그루 (geuru)
string, thread (Yale: kình) (kkeun)
autumn ᄀᆞᅀᆞᆶ (Yale: kòzòlh) 가을 (ga'eul)
age 낳〮 (Yale: náh) 나이 (nai)
evening 나좋 (Yale: nàcwòh) N/A
forehead 니맣〮 (Yale: nìmáh) 이마 (ima)
owner 님〯잫 (Yale: nǐmcàh) 임자 (imja)
edible greens ᄂᆞᄆᆞᆶ (Yale: nòmòlh) 나물 (namul)
blade ᄂᆞᆶ〮 (Yale: nólh) (nal)
stone, pebble 돓〯 (Yale: twǒlh) (dol)
circumference of a round object 드릏 (Yale: tùlùh) N/A
plain plural suffix ᄃᆞᆶ〮 (Yale: -tólh) / 듫〮 (Yale: -túlh) - (-deul, “-deul”)
stake 맗〮 (Yale: málh) 말뚝 (malttuk)
yam 맣〮 (Yale: máh) (ma)
shape 모얗 (Yale: mwoyah) 모양 (moyang)
corner (Yale: mwòh) (mo)
arm ᄇᆞᆶ (Yale: pòlh) (pal)
formwork 솧〮 (Yale: swóh) N/A
male 숳〮 (Yale: swúh) (su)
flesh, meat ᄉᆞᆶ〮 (Yale: sólh) (sal)
egg (Yale: àlh) (al)
female 아ᇡ〮 (Yale: ámh) (am)
hemp (Yale: yèlh) N/A
this year (Yale: wòlh) 올해 (olhae)
fence 욿〮 (Yale: wúlh) 울타리 (ultari)

Native words given in only one list

Only in Heo 1975

English Middle Korean Modern Korean
head 머맇 (Yale: melih) 머리 (meori)

Only in Yi 2010

English Middle Korean Modern Korean
rope 밯〮 (Yale: páh) (ba)
this 잏〮 (Yale: íh) (i)

Only in Park 2018

English Middle Korean Modern Korean
hypocaust 구듫 (Yale: kwutulh) 구들 (gudeul)
vines 더ᇰ욿 (Yale: tengwulh) 덩굴 (deonggul)
kernel ᄆᆞᇰᄋᆞᆶ (Yale: meng.olh) 망울 (mang'ul)

Nativised Chinese words

The reason for the pitch realization differences is unclear. It is often suggested that these reflect a borrowed layer from a non-standard variety of Middle Chinese, rather than being nativised from Sino-Korean (based primarily on the late Tang prestige dialect). For many of these words, it is disputed whether they are truly of Chinese origin or are native words that coincidentally resemble Chinese. The wordlist is from Yi 2010.

With Middle Chinese /-k/

Whether the /-h/to /-k/ correspondences here reflect an indigenous Korean weakening of the latter, or whether the Chinese source variety was a late form of Middle Chinese that had already weakened coda stops to /ʔ/ (Modern Mandarin lacking coda stops altogether), is disputed.

English Middle Chinese Middle Korean Standard Sino-Korean reading
foot (unit of measurement) (MC tsyhek) 잫〮 (Yale: cáh) 쳑〮 (Yale: chyék)
flute (MC dek) (Yale: tyèh) 뎍〮 (Yale: tyék)
wrapping cloth (MC puwk|bjowk) (Yale: pwòh) 복〮 (Yale: pwók)
layman (MC zjowk) (Yale: syòh) 쇽〮 (Yale: syók)
millet (MC sjowk) (Yale: cwòh) 속〮 (Yale: swók)
candle (MC tsyowk) 춓〮 (Yale: chyóh) 쵹〮 (Yale: chyók)
bedding (MC nowk|nyowk) ᅀᅭᇂ (Yale: zyòh) ᅀᅭᆨ〮 (Yale: zyók)

Without Middle Chinese /-k/

English Middle Chinese Middle Korean Standard Sino-Korean reading
warehouse (MC khuH) 곻〮 (Yale: kwóh) (Yale: kwòh)
pond (MC tsyewX) (Yale: swòh) 쇼〯 (Yale: syǒh)
thicket (MC suwX) 숳〮 (Yale: swúh) 수〯 (Yale: swǔ)
net (MC la) (Yale: nwòh) (Yale: )
oar (MC luX) 놓〮 (Yale: nwóh) 노〯 (Yale: nwǒ)
vinegar (MC tshuH) (Yale: chwòh) 초〯 (Yale: chwǒ)

Perhaps from Old Chinese

English Old Chinese Middle Korean
wheat (OC *mrɯːɡ) 밇〮 (Yale: mílh)

Notes

  1. ^ An innovation because the compound form "above and below" is 아라웋 (Yale: ala-wuh)

References

  • 허웅 [heoung] (1975) 우리옛말본—15세기 국어 형태론 [uriyenmalbon-15segi gugeo hyeongtaeron, Historical Korean Grammar: The Morphology of the Fifteenth-century Language], Saemmunhwa
  • 이준환 [ijunhwan] (2010) “중세국어 ㅎ말음 체언의 음운론 [jungsegugeo nmareum cheeonui eumullon, The phonology of Middle Korean /h/-coda substantives]”, in Gugyeol yeon'gu, volume 24, pages 163—199
  • 박용찬 [bagyongchan] (2018) “ㅎ 말음 체언의 역사적 변화 [h mareum cheeonui yeoksajeok byeonhwa, The diachronic change of Middle Korean /h/-coda substantives]”, in Urimalgeul, volume 78, pages 51—77