Re: THEORY: derivation question

dunn patrick w wrote:
>
> My lack of linguistic knowledge is showing *tugs his shirt down*.  How
> exactly does one go about deriving a word from a root?  Is there a system,
> or does one just make sound changes until it looks right?
I'm not entirely sure what you mean.  Derivation is usually based on
affixes, for instance, -al can make nouns into adjectives, as in
_nation_ --> _national_, -ize can make verbs (nationalize) de- can
reverse meaning (denationalize), -ation can make abstract nouns
(denationalization), etc.  Notice how the simple root _nation_ has given
long words like _denationalization_.  Keep in mind that natural
languages tend to have restrictions on the use of affixes, for instance,
*nationish doesn't exist, even tho -ish is a legitimate suffix.  And you
can't say *coloral, even tho -al is a legitimate suffix.  Frequently,
origin has to do with it.  -al is a Latin ending, and color is not
Latin.  But, these are rarely completely consistent.  Racial is a
legitimate word, even tho _race_ is Anglo-Saxon (I think), and -al is
Latin.  The word _trusteeship_ is a perfect example.  Trust is of Norse
origin, -ee is French, and -ship is Anglo-Saxon.  The wonders of
linguistic evolution make for this complication, suffixes are often
either broadened in usage, much like how -ation can sometimes be applied
to English roots (starvation, for example), while -ness can be added to
foreign roots, as in plainness, or suffixes can be lost, as for- has
been, surviving only in a few words like _forgive_, _forlorn_, _forbid_,
but it's not productive.  One cannot use it to make new words.

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