Appendix:Vietnamese reduplication

Reduplication (láy âm) in Vietnamese consists of several patterns and was/is used extensively to create từ láy (“reduplicative”). This article outlines some common patterns of reduplication and their function.

Reduplication in Vietnamese can involve some alterations of rimes, consonants (initials and finals) and tones. The six tones of Northern Vietnamese can be divided into three categories and two registers. The three categories can be conveniently referred to as A (ngang and huyền), B (sắc and nặng) and C (hỏi and ngã). The two B tones each have two allotones in complementary distribution: one in checked syllables (those that end in the stops ⟨-p⟩, ⟨-t⟩, ⟨-ch⟩, ⟨-c⟩) and one in the rest. These checked allotones can be alternatively analyzed as a separate D category; in such analysis, the Northern dialects have eight tones and four tone categories (with reduction in many dialects; for Southern dialects, seven tones due to the merger of C1 and C2, for many North Central dialects, seven tones due to the merger of B2 and C2). In traditional Vietnamese poetry, A tones are called bằng, while B and C tones are collectively grouped as trắc. The two registers are upper (1 or phù) and lower (2 or trầm), originated from the onset voicing differences.

Although terminology may differ, this category and register-based tonal system is basically identical to those of the related Vietic languages, of the Kra-Dai languages, of Middle Chinese and its descendants, and of the Hmong-Mien languages.

Full reduplication

Full reduplication is the most commonly discussed type of reduplication in Vietnamese.

In its most simple form (từ láy toàn bộ), it involves the copying of the entire root: (C)(w)V(C)T > (C)(w)V(C)T-(C)(w)V(C)T. In more complex forms, it involves tonal and coda replacement of the reduplicated syllable (the first syllable in a từ láy).

Nouns, adverbs of frequency and interrogative pronouns

These parts of speech usually only allow simple full reduplication. Its function is often augmentative. It is not productive on nouns and is (party) productive on interrogative pronouns when used non-augmentatively. As full reduplication is generally no longer productive on nouns and pronouns, the reduplicated forms can be considered lemmas. Full reduplication on nouns is literary or formal.

Terms for organisms (often small animals) and some other things were also formed by full reduplication. This process is no longer productive.

Reduplicated interrogative pronouns can be used non-augmentatively:

Nó đi đâu đâu rồi ai mà biết.

He went somewhere, who knows ?

Cái gì gì mà chị nói bữa trước đó.

The thingy that you told me the other day.

For the alternation of tones and codas, see the section for adjectives below.

Verbs

Verbs allow only simple full reduplication.

Full reduplication of verbs is colloquial and productive. As reduplication is productive, the reduplicatives are not considered lemmas.

Adjectives

Full reduplication is productive with all monosyllabic adjectives that can be used in isolation: that excludes Sino-Vietnamese compounds such as khẩn cấp or polysyllabic reduplicatives like vui vẻ, but includes those like hiền.

Simple full reduplication (C)(w)V(C)T > (C)(w)V(C)T-(C)(w)V(C)T is operative on adjectives as mentioned, but adjectives also allow alternation of tone or/and coda of the root word on the reduplicated syllable.

The function of full reduplication on adjectives is typically diminutive. As this type of reduplication is productive, reduplicatives should be entered as soft redirects using the template {{vi-rdp of}}.

If the root has the structure (C)(w)V(N)T, where N is an optional nasal and T is a tone from the trắc category, the tone change can occur on the reduplicated syllable. The tone change must be from B (sắc and nặng) or C (hỏi and ngã) (trắc tones) on the root to A (ngang and huyền, known as bằng tones) on the reduplicated syllable and the changed tone must belong to the same register as the root syllable's tone (i.e. from sắc and hỏi to ngang, from nặng and ngã to huyền).

If the root syllable is checked (i.e. it ends in ⟨-p⟩, ⟨-t⟩, ⟨-ch⟩, ⟨-c⟩) then the reduplicated syllable may be formed with a homorganic nasal.

Trisyllabic reduplication

Sometimes, trisyllabic reduplicatives can be generated from monosyllabic roots. This type of reduplication is partly productive.

The tone of first syllable is B1 (sắc) while the second syllable carries A2 (huyền) tone. If the root syllable is checked, the coda of the second syllable would be a homorganic nasal. Deviated from this is sạch sành sanh, which has become idiomatic and fixed (although the expected sách sành sạch is also attested).

-iếc reduplication

⟨-iếc⟩ reduplication is operative in almost any monosyllabic nouns and verbs that can be used in isolation. The reduplicated syllable is formed by replacing the entire rime (may or may not includes the on-glide -w-) with ⟨-iếc⟩: (C)(w)V(C)T > (C)(w)V(C)T-(C)(w)iếc. ⟨-iếc⟩ reduplication can be blocked if the rime of root is already ⟨-iếc⟩.

As reduplication is productive, the reduplicatives are not considered lemmas. Its function is dismissive, i.e. " and such petty things" or "such stupid ".

-a reduplication

⟨-a⟩ reduplication is operative in disyllabic roots (usually adjectives or verbs). There are two types of roots where this type of reduplication can be used:

• Disyllabic roots with identical rime and similar tone, i.e. the root structure is C₁RT₁-C₂RT₂ where R is an identical rime in both syllables, T₁ and T₂ belong to the same register or the same tone category. After undergoing ⟨-a⟩ reduplication, ⟨-a⟩ replaces the rime of the second syllable of the root, thus the reduplicative obtains the structure of C₁RT-C₂a-C₁RT-C₂RT. ⟨-a⟩ can take either ngang or huyền tone, depending on the register of the tones of the root.
• Disyllabic roots with identical onset and the tones of both syllables must belong to the same register, i.e. the root structure is CR₁T₁-CR₂T₂, where C is an identical onset in both syllables, T₁ and T₂ belong to the same register. After undergoing ⟨-a⟩ reduplication, ⟨-a⟩ replaces the rime of the second syllable of the root, thus the reduplicative obtains the structure of CR₁T₁-Ca-CR₁T₁-CR₂T₂. ⟨-a⟩ can take either ngang or huyền tone, depending on the register of the tones of the root.

As this type of reduplication is (generally) productive, reduplicatives should be entered as soft redirects using the template {{vi-rdp of}}. Its function is often generalizing or augmentative.

There is also a variant of -a reduplication type 1 where the rimes of both syllables of C₁RT₁-C₂RT₂ are replaced by ⟨-a⟩:

-ung reduplication

This pattern appears to be marginally productive or is only starting to become productive, since reduplicatives can be generated from recent loanwords. Reduplicatives of this kind often convey an informal tone and are somewhat diminutive but not as strongly dismissive as -iếc reduplication.

This pattern seems to be most compatible with roots with labial onset, i.e. ⟨m-, b-, ph-⟩, so mèo mủng (“cat (diminutive)"”) is attested but *chó chủng ("dog (diminutive)") does not sound "right". As with -iếc, this pattern does not seem to be subjected to tonal assimilation.

Exceptional cases like game gủng (“games and stuff”) also exist.

Reduplication of compounds

"Roots" of this pattern are time-related compounds. This pattern is of little productivity but is not completely unproductive, as some of these "compounds" are not idiomatic.

Other patterns

Vietnamese features numerous other patterns, none are currently (fully) productive.

The onset replacement patterns, aside from ⟨l-⟩ reduplication, are completely unproductive. On the other hand, the rime replacement patterns currently have low productivity, although it is likely that all (or at least most) of them never achieve full productivity in the first place and always have low productivity.

Each rime replacement "suffix" has an inherent tone that is subjected to tonal assimilation to the tone of the root. For example, in ngon nghẻ, the root ngon with upper register tone A1 (ngang) is reduplicated with the suffix ⟨-e⟩ bearing an inherent C tone, the resulted reduplicated syllable ⟨nghẻ⟩ therefore has tone C1 (hỏi), belongs to the same register as the root, while in lặng lẽ, the root lặng has lower register tone B2 (nặng), so the reduplicated syllable has C2 (ngã).

Patterns can be progressive (i.e. the root is the first syllable), such as -ang reduplication, or anticipatory (i.e. the root is the second syllable), like all the onset replacement patterns and -âp reduplication.

l- reduplication

⟨l-⟩ reduplication is probably the most commonly encountered type of onset replacement reduplication. Lemmas generated from this kind of reduplication is still used extensively in both written and spoken Vietnamese. Its function is typically generalizing.

ch- reduplication

t- reduplication

The function of this pattern appears to be intensive. For examples, mút (“tip”) > tút mút (“tip-top > very far away, almost invisible”), máy (“to touch”) > táy máy (“to be touchy-feely”).

This pattern seems to be only compatible with roots with m- onset.

b- reduplication

-eo reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a C tone.

-ang reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry an A tone.

-e reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a C tone.

-ăn reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a B tone. Reduplicatives generated from this pattern seem to carry certain "positive" connotation, denoting qualities considered good or preferable. This is noticeable especially when the root itself does not possess inherently positive connotation, such as nhỏ (“small”) > nhỏ nhắn (“tiny, petite, small and cute”), vuông (“square”) > vuông vắn (“fittingly square, appropriately square”).

một cái bàn vuông ― a square table

một cái bàn vuông vắn ― a nice and square table

-ơm reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a B tone. Reduplicatives generated from this pattern seem to carry certain "negative" connotation, denoting qualities considered bad or undesirable. This is noticeable especially when the root itself does not possess inherently negative notation, such as hay (“good, interesting”) > hay hớm (“interesting”) (with ironic connotation and used chiefly with negative constructions).

-a reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a C tone.

-âp reduplication

The reduplicated syllable is a checked syllable and therefore must carry the checked allophone of a B tone.

Reduplicatives generated from this pattern usually signify instability (thấp thoáng) or movements, especially up-and-down (nhấp nhô), left-and-right (chập choạng), inside-and-outside (thập thò).

-ap reduplication

The reduplicated syllable is a checked syllable and therefore must carry the checked allophone of a B tone. The root needs to have a labial coda (i.e. -p and -m) and carries a B/D tone.

The reduplicatives seem to imply something that is in a constant state or happens on regular basis, although these implications are often very weak if detecable at all. This can be most clearly seen with nhấm nháp and vấp váp.

-iêm reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a B tone. The roots are monosyllabic verbs.

-ui reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a C tone.

-inh reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a C tone. Some roots appear to have become obsolete or archaic as free morphemes, replaced by their reduplicated counterparts.

-o reduplication 1

The reduplicated syllable must carry an A tone.

-o reduplication 2

The reduplicated syllable must carry a B tone.

-oi reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a C tone.

-ôi reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry a B tone.

-ung reduplication

The reduplicated syllable must carry an A tone.

Many roots seem to have tone B2 or D2 (nặng).

-it reduplication

The reduplicated syllable is a checked syllable and therefore must carry the checked allophone of a B tone. This "suffix" has the allograph ⟨-yt⟩ after the labial semivowel.