공시적 분석과 통시적 해석: 복수형이 [-vz]로 끝나는 영어 불규칙 명사를 중심으로

Rhee, Seok-Chae & Park, Sunyang. 2003. Synchronic Analysis and Diachronic Interpretation: Focusing on the English Irregular Nouns Ending in [-vz], English Language and Linguistics 16, 65-84. This paper reveals that the synchronic analyses of voice agreement in English irregular noun plural forms ending in [-vz] (such as knives, thieves, wolves, ... etc.) are at odds with the widely held diachronic interpretation. Upon diachronic serutiny, it is found that the so-called irregular nouns of our interest are mostly of Old English origin, whereas the regular nouns such as cliffs, gulfs, chiefs are all loanwords in Middle and Modern English period. Based on the fact that's' plural was borrowed during the Middle English period and other considerations of historical English phonology, it is suggested that the [+voice) agreement between the stem-final consonant and the inflectional suffix in such forms as irregular knives[vz] is fulfilled via progressive assimilation, not regressive assimilation, and that the English plural suffix is underlyingly specified as [-voice], diachronically and synchronically.