Circumfix
Encyclopedia
A circumfix is an affix
, a morpheme
that is placed around another morpheme. Circumfixes (occasionally called confixes) contrast with prefixes, attached to the beginnings of words; suffixes
, that are attached at the end; and infix
es, inserted in the middle. See also epenthesis
. Circumfixes are extremely common in Indonesian
, Malay and Georgian
.
past participle (ge- -t for regular verbs). The verb spielen, for example, has the participle gespielt. Dutch
has a similar system (spelen – gespeeld in this case).
In older English, the present participle could be formed using the circumfix a- -ing : Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,// Old time is still a-flying (Robert Herrick
).
, some linguists consider o- -ni naru and o- -suru to be honorific circumfixes; for example yomu → o-yomi ni naru (respectful), o-yomi suru (humble).
has eight different circumfixes, namely per- -kan, per- -i, ber- -an, ke- -an, peN- -an, per- -an, se- -nya and ke- -i. For example, the circumfix can be added to the root adil (fair) to form keadilan (fairness).
, verbs are negated by placing the circumfix ma- -š around the verb together with all its prefixes and suffixed direct- and indirect-object pronouns. For example, Egyptian
bitgibuhum-laha ("You bring them to her") is negated as ma-bitgibuhum-lahāš ("You don't bring them to her").
In Berber languages
the feminine is marked with the circumfix t- -t. The word afus (hand) becomes tafust. In Kabyle
, θissliθ "bride" derives from issli "groom".
In Hebrew, magdelet "magnifier", for example, the root is gdl "big" (in the H-stem hagdel "to enlarge") and the circumfix is m- -et.
Negation in Guaraní
is also done with circumfixes, nd- -i and nd- -mo'ãi for future
negations.
In Czech
, as well as in Hungarian
, superlative
is formed by the circumfix (nej- -ší, resp. leg- -bb).
In Czech nejmladší "youngest", for example, the root is mladý "young" and the circumfix is nej- -ší; in Hungarian legnagyobb "biggest", the root is nagy "big" and the circumfix is leg- -bb.
Affix
An affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed. They are bound morphemes by definition; prefixes and suffixes may be separable affixes...
, a morpheme
Morpheme
In linguistics, a morpheme is the smallest semantically meaningful unit in a language. The field of study dedicated to morphemes is called morphology. A morpheme is not identical to a word, and the principal difference between the two is that a morpheme may or may not stand alone, whereas a word,...
that is placed around another morpheme. Circumfixes (occasionally called confixes) contrast with prefixes, attached to the beginnings of words; suffixes
Affix
An affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed. They are bound morphemes by definition; prefixes and suffixes may be separable affixes...
, that are attached at the end; and infix
Infix
An infix is an affix inserted inside a word stem . It contrasts with adfix, a rare term for an affix attached to the end of a stem, such as a prefix or suffix.-Indonesian:...
es, inserted in the middle. See also epenthesis
Epenthesis
In phonology, epenthesis is the addition of one or more sounds to a word, especially to the interior of a word. Epenthesis may be divided into two types: excrescence, for the addition of a consonant, and anaptyxis for the addition of a vowel....
. Circumfixes are extremely common in Indonesian
Indonesian language
Indonesian is the official language of Indonesia. Indonesian is a normative form of the Riau Islands dialect of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries....
, Malay and Georgian
Georgian language
Georgian is the native language of the Georgians and the official language of Georgia, a country in the Caucasus.Georgian is the primary language of about 4 million people in Georgia itself, and of another 500,000 abroad...
.
Germanic languages
The circumfix is probably most widely known from the GermanGerman language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
past participle (ge- -t for regular verbs). The verb spielen, for example, has the participle gespielt. Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
has a similar system (spelen – gespeeld in this case).
In older English, the present participle could be formed using the circumfix a- -ing : Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,// Old time is still a-flying (Robert Herrick
Robert Herrick (poet)
Robert Herrick was a 17th-century English poet.-Early life:Born in Cheapside, London, he was the seventh child and fourth son of Julia Stone and Nicholas Herrick, a prosperous goldsmith....
).
East Asian languages
In JapaneseJapanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, some linguists consider o- -ni naru and o- -suru to be honorific circumfixes; for example yomu → o-yomi ni naru (respectful), o-yomi suru (humble).
Austronesian languages
IndonesianIndonesian language
Indonesian is the official language of Indonesia. Indonesian is a normative form of the Riau Islands dialect of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries....
has eight different circumfixes, namely per- -kan, per- -i, ber- -an, ke- -an, peN- -an, per- -an, se- -nya and ke- -i. For example, the circumfix can be added to the root adil (fair) to form keadilan (fairness).
Other languages
In most North African and some Levantine varieties of ArabicVarieties of Arabic
The Arabic language is a Semitic language characterized by a wide number of linguistic varieties within its five regional forms. The largest divisions occur between the spoken languages of different regions. The Arabic of North Africa, for example, is often incomprehensible to an Arabic speaker...
, verbs are negated by placing the circumfix ma- -š around the verb together with all its prefixes and suffixed direct- and indirect-object pronouns. For example, Egyptian
Egyptian Arabic
Egyptian Arabic is the language spoken by contemporary Egyptians.It is more commonly known locally as the Egyptian colloquial language or Egyptian dialect ....
bitgibuhum-laha ("You bring them to her") is negated as ma-bitgibuhum-lahāš ("You don't bring them to her").
In Berber languages
Berber languages
The Berber languages are a family of languages indigenous to North Africa, spoken from Siwa Oasis in Egypt to Morocco , and south to the countries of the Sahara Desert...
the feminine is marked with the circumfix t- -t. The word afus (hand) becomes tafust. In Kabyle
Kabyle language
Kabyle or Kabylian is a Berber language spoken by the Kabyle people north and northeast of Algeria. Estimates about the number of speakers range from 5 million to about 7 million speakers worldwide, the majority in Algeria.-Classification:The classification of Kabyle is Afro-Asiatic, Berber and...
, θissliθ "bride" derives from issli "groom".
In Hebrew, magdelet "magnifier", for example, the root is gdl "big" (in the H-stem hagdel "to enlarge") and the circumfix is m- -et.
Negation in Guaraní
Guaraní language
Guaraní, specifically the primary variety known as Paraguayan Guaraní , is an indigenous language of South America that belongs to the Tupí–Guaraní subfamily of the Tupian languages. It is one of the official languages of Paraguay , where it is spoken by the majority of the population, and half of...
is also done with circumfixes, nd- -i and nd- -mo'ãi for future
Future tense
In grammar, a future tense is a verb form that marks the event described by the verb as not having happened yet, but expected to happen in the future , or to happen subsequent to some other event, whether that is past, present, or future .-Expressions of future tense:The concept of the future,...
negations.
In Czech
Czech language
Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
, as well as in Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
, superlative
Superlative
In grammar, the superlative is the form of an adjective that indicates that the person or thing modified has the quality of the adjective to a degree greater than that of anything it is being compared to in a given context. English superlatives are typically formed with the suffix -est In...
is formed by the circumfix (nej- -ší, resp. leg- -bb).
In Czech nejmladší "youngest", for example, the root is mladý "young" and the circumfix is nej- -ší; in Hungarian legnagyobb "biggest", the root is nagy "big" and the circumfix is leg- -bb.