This paper investigates the grammatical status of the adposition/postposition ‘-eykey’ and its multiple functions in synchronic and diachronic perspectives. We first argue, using the diagnostics employed by Urushibara (1991), that ‘-eykey’ is not a case marker but a postposition. We then examine the historical development of ‘-eykey’, finding that it is historically derived from a morphologically complex form consisting of ‘-uy (Genitive particle) + -ku(demonstrative) + -ey (adverbial particle)’. Since an animate noun cannot be directly suffixed with the adverbial particle, it has the demonstrative (pronoun) added before it. We move on to argue that though ‘-eykey’ is composed of the locative or place particle ‘–ey’, the former diverges from the latter in its functions, especially in its use as a goal or source marker. We attribute this asymmetry to the morphological complexity of ‘-eykey’, relative to ‘-ey’. But this asymmetry is not attested in its use as a recipient marker in transfer-denoting verbs like ‘cwu-’ (give) or ‘ponay-’(send). Meanwhile, we also argue that its use as an actor/effector marker in the passive construction comes from its use in the causative construction since in Korean, the former construction is derived from the latter.
1. 서론
2. ‘-에게’의 사용 양상
3. ‘-에게’의 통사적 위상: 부치사 혹은 격표지 요소
4. ‘-에게’의 다기능: 통사부 혹은 의미/화용부
5. 결론