Hapax legomena and the productivity of the Old English weak verb suffixes

  1. Alonso, R.T. 1
  2. Villalta, G.M. 2
  1. 1 Universidad de La Rioja
    info

    Universidad de La Rioja

    Logroño, España

    ROR https://ror.org/0553yr311

  2. 2 Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia
    info

    Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia

    Madrid, España

    ROR https://ror.org/02msb5n36

Revista:
Nordic Journal of English Studies

ISSN: 1502-7694

Ano de publicación: 2014

Volume: 13

Número: 3

Páxinas: 188-211

Tipo: Artigo

SCOPUS: 2-s2.0-84919760883 GOOGLE SCHOLAR

Outras publicacións en: Nordic Journal of English Studies

Repositorio institucional: lock_openAcceso aberto Editor

Resumo

The aim of this article is to measure the productivity of the Old English weak verb suffixes-ettan, -læcan, -sian, -nian, -lian, -erian and -cian from a synchronic point of view by taking into account the role played by hapax legomena. Productivity in the narrow sense P and global productivity P∗ are measured and frequency is calculated in terms of type and token. Three types of hapax legomena are distinguished, namely absolute hapaxes (unique formations that appear in one text), relative hapaxes (formations that appear in different texts, but only once in each text) and mixed hapaxes (a subsumption of both types). This typology of hapaxes puts the focus on -sian, -erian, -lian and -cian, which range between very low and zero productivity.