A Study On The Constructionalization Of Loan Quasi-affixes In Modern Chinese

As a linguistic unit of daily communication,Chinese loan quasi-affixes(hereafter referred to as loan quasi-affixes)are a kind of morphemes between roots and affixes produced through language contact,which has a tendency to affixation,but their semantics have not been completely weakening.Previous studies on loan quasi-affixes in Chinese have mainly focused on the "result" of them,but few have systematically investigated the "reason" of the formation of loan quasi-affixes.We find that the process of loan affixes formation can be addressed by the concept of constructionalization,because the cross-language contact variation of loan quasi-affixes and their localization process coincide with the concept of constructionalization.Accordingly,this study aims to explore the formation process of loan quasi-affixes by using the theory of language contact and constructionalization.Language contact triggers the replication of the features of foreign words’ forms and meanings which enter into the Chinese verbal communication system and their subsequent further localization.They first exist as micro-construction in Chinese,and through the high frequency of use by language users in the synchronic network,the micro-construction begin to localize and produce a large number of semi-schema constructions centered on foreign words.In the process of loan quasi-affixes constructionalization,the meaning and form of loanwords have changed,and the process is accompanied by grammaticalization and lexicalization.Through our research,we found that: firstly,as a product of constructional change,loan quasi-affixes is a cause-and-effect relationship,i.e.,phonic or semantic replication is the cause in the process of language contact,and the further localization of the replicated components through high-frequency use by language users is the result and the localization of loan quasi-affixes is a deep development of the form and meaning of the given construction,which involves the grammaticalization and lexicalization,a continuum in which both occur simultaneously in the constant use of the constructions.Secondly,loan quasi-affixes constructions are the product of the interaction of multiple factors(e.g.,metaphor,metonymy,pragmatics,frequency,etc.),i.e.,the constructionalization of loan quasi-affixes are the result of the interaction of multiple potential factors.The findings of this thesis have the following significance:On one hand,the research findings of this study not only enrich the previous studies on the ontological study of Chinese vocabulary,but also clarify and outline the causality chain and the grammatical characteristics of the further localization of loan words from another perspective and reveal the essence of usage-based changes of Chinese vocabulary.On the other hand,the study considers the production of loan quasi-affixes as a result of the interaction of multiple factors in the internal and external environment of Chinese lexical change,revealing the explanatory power of the combination of language contact and constructionalization.In practice,for one thing,the research results will directly serve the science of language policy by taking a scientific and rational view of the impact of foreign words on the Chinese language system.For another thing,the results of this study,besides providing theoretical support and inspiration for the definition of words,will be of great help to the compilation of Chinese dictionaries or the teaching,learning and translation of Chinese vocabulary.