단어 ‘뜻바꿈’ 연구의 변화 = A Study on the Change in Research on Tteut-bakkum

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study examines the historical development of research on tteut-bakkum (meaning change), tracing its trajectory from Ju Si-gyeong (1910) to modern grammar textbooks. By applying the criteria of part of speech, meaning, and form, it investigates the formation, expansion, and eventual decline of the bakkum (change) theory in the early 20th century. The concept of gi-tteut-bakkum, which initially emerged with the single example of doljil in Ju Si-gyeong (1910), was expanded through morphological criteria in Gim Du-bong (1916), where it was systematized into tteut-bakkum (meaning change) and mom-bakkum (functional change).
Subsequently, Choe Hyeon-bae (1937) reclassified ssigaji (affixes) and geodeupssi (compound words) as types of meaning change, maximally expanding the bakkum theory with the proposition that “a word’s kkol-bakkum (form change) is entirely its tteut-bakkum.” This evolution demonstrates a conceptual shift from a focus on function and meaning toward form. Notably, Choe Hyeon-bae (1930) served as a decisive turning point, grounding abstract semantic discussions in the specific mechanics of form change. As form-centered analysis intensified, the category of tteut-bakkum was eventually replaced by modern concepts of word formation and conjugation after the 1960s. In conclusion, the trajectory of tteut-bakkum research provides essential insights into the historical foundations of word formation theory in modern Korean linguistics.