An Analysis of French Borrowings at the Hypernymic and Hyponymic Levels of Middle English
This paper analyses a large dataset of Middle English vocabulary from nine domains which has been arranged into a semantic hierarchy. It focuses on the distribution of French-origin borrowings at various levels of technicality and at various levels of co-hyponymic density (i.e. the number of words p...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Université Jean Moulin - Lyon 3
2020-12-01
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| Series: | Lexis: Journal in English Lexicology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/lexis/4841 |
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| author | Louise Sylvester Megan Tiddeman Richard Ingham |
| author_facet | Louise Sylvester Megan Tiddeman Richard Ingham |
| author_sort | Louise Sylvester |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper analyses a large dataset of Middle English vocabulary from nine domains which has been arranged into a semantic hierarchy. It focuses on the distribution of French-origin borrowings at various levels of technicality and at various levels of co-hyponymic density (i.e. the number of words per sense). Overall, results show that French loanwords are concentrated in higher proportions at the hypernymic (or more general) level rather than at the hyponymic (or more technical) level. These findings run counter to the orthodox view that borrowings are used to fill lexical gaps for new technical terms in a semantic field. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-eb70faf76caa4330bba36be5b8a94595 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1951-6215 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2020-12-01 |
| publisher | Université Jean Moulin - Lyon 3 |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Lexis: Journal in English Lexicology |
| spelling | doaj-art-eb70faf76caa4330bba36be5b8a945952025-08-20T02:32:41ZengUniversité Jean Moulin - Lyon 3Lexis: Journal in English Lexicology1951-62152020-12-011610.4000/lexis.4841An Analysis of French Borrowings at the Hypernymic and Hyponymic Levels of Middle EnglishLouise SylvesterMegan TiddemanRichard InghamThis paper analyses a large dataset of Middle English vocabulary from nine domains which has been arranged into a semantic hierarchy. It focuses on the distribution of French-origin borrowings at various levels of technicality and at various levels of co-hyponymic density (i.e. the number of words per sense). Overall, results show that French loanwords are concentrated in higher proportions at the hypernymic (or more general) level rather than at the hyponymic (or more technical) level. These findings run counter to the orthodox view that borrowings are used to fill lexical gaps for new technical terms in a semantic field.https://journals.openedition.org/lexis/4841Frenchlanguage contactlexical borrowingMiddle Englishsemantic hierarchytechnical language |
| spellingShingle | Louise Sylvester Megan Tiddeman Richard Ingham An Analysis of French Borrowings at the Hypernymic and Hyponymic Levels of Middle English Lexis: Journal in English Lexicology French language contact lexical borrowing Middle English semantic hierarchy technical language |
| title | An Analysis of French Borrowings at the Hypernymic and Hyponymic Levels of Middle English |
| title_full | An Analysis of French Borrowings at the Hypernymic and Hyponymic Levels of Middle English |
| title_fullStr | An Analysis of French Borrowings at the Hypernymic and Hyponymic Levels of Middle English |
| title_full_unstemmed | An Analysis of French Borrowings at the Hypernymic and Hyponymic Levels of Middle English |
| title_short | An Analysis of French Borrowings at the Hypernymic and Hyponymic Levels of Middle English |
| title_sort | analysis of french borrowings at the hypernymic and hyponymic levels of middle english |
| topic | French language contact lexical borrowing Middle English semantic hierarchy technical language |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/lexis/4841 |
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