Sekundärform

Sekundärform refers to a phenomenon in linguistics where a word or grammatical form arises not from the primary or original formation, but from a secondary process. This often involves reanalysis or analogy based on existing forms. For instance, a word might be reinterpreted as being derived from another word or suffix, leading to a new form that is not etymologically direct.

A common example is the formation of new verbs from nouns or adjectives through the addition of suffixes that suggest an action or state. This is a secondary process because the original noun or adjective itself was not inherently an action verb. Another instance occurs when irregular forms are regularized through analogy. For example, if speakers consistently apply a regular pluralization rule to a word that historically had an irregular plural, the new regular form is a secondary formation.

Sekundärform can also be observed in semantic shifts where a word's meaning evolves. While this is a semantic change, the resulting new meaning can be considered a secondary semantic form of the original word. Understanding Sekundärform is crucial for tracing linguistic evolution and analyzing how languages adapt and change over time. It highlights the dynamic nature of language, where new patterns and structures emerge from existing ones through various cognitive and social mechanisms.