한국어와 몽골어의 긍정극어 비교 연구

comparative study on positive polarity items between Korean & Mongolian

In both Korean and Mongolian, positive polarity items are adverbial phrases that are used primarily with affirmative elements to intensify or maximize the degree of affirmation. Both languages have in common that these particular adverbial phrases almost never appear in sentences that do not contain affirmative elements. To date, studies by Korean and foreign scholars have not treated positive polarity items in Korean and Mongolian as a distinct research subject, and few polarity items have been discussed in research into adverbs of degree in both languages. Regarding studies into Korean positive polarity items, those which are widely discussed are as follows: Joo (1910) study on definitions and types of adverb of degree, and studies by Kang (2009), Kim (2004), Seo (1978, 1994), Lee (1999), and others into the properties of word meaning and modifying relations in Korean. Scholars have argued that the dearth of studies into polarity items in both languages stems from difficulties in identifying differences or similarities due to heterogeneous aspects in the two languages. Therefore, the objectives of this study are as follows: in Chapter 1, I review previous studies and concepts; in Chapter 2, I investigate the distribution patterns of polarity items in both languages; and in Chapter 3, I compare polarity items in both languages to determine what distribution patterns are evident and whether they possess discriminatory distribution functions. To this end, from a syntactic perspective, I determine which sentence elements co-occur with the polarity items of both languages by examining the co-occurrence relationship with modifiers. From a semantic perspective, I compare the two languages to examine what meanings other than shared meanings these polarity items exhibit. In terms of studies into positive polarity items in Korean and Mongolian, it has been confirmed that partial discussions have taken place in, amongst others, studies by Seo (1999), who discussed polarity items and pragmatic assumptions in the Korean language, and Lee (1999) and Progovac (1994), who examined the properties of word meanings, modifying objects, and modifying relations. As mentioned above, relatively little attention has been paid to studies on positive polarity items in Korean and Mongolian, despite the fact that such studies can provide important data to uncover the genealogy of the two languages. Therefore, this study aims to review previous studies and concepts in the following way: polarity items in both languages will be compared to determine what distribution patterns these items demonstrate and whether they possess discriminatory distribution functions. To this end, from a syntactic perspective, I determine which sentence elements co-occur with the polarity items of both languages by examining the co-occurrence relationship with modifiers. From a semantic perspective, I compare the two languages to examine what meanings other than shared meanings these polarity items exhibit.