izace

Izace is a Czech linguistic term for the derivational suffix -izace, used to form nouns that denote the process, result, or state of an action described by a verb or occasionally an adjective. The suffix corresponds to English -ization or -isation and is productive in Czech, appearing in a wide range of terms from everyday language to technical vocabulary.

In use, -izace attaches to verb stems (and sometimes to adjectives) to create abstract nouns that name the process of making, becoming, or undergoing a change. Common examples include modernizace (modernization), digitalizace (digitalization), industrializace (industrialization), legalizace (legalization), and specializace (specialization). The resulting nouns are typically feminine in gender, as in modernizace or digitalizace.

Etymology and cross-linguistic notes: the Czech izace suffix is part of a broader Slavic pattern for forming nouns of process or result. Similar suffixes exist in related languages, such as izacja in Polish and izacija in some other contexts, serving a parallel function to express the act or result of a transformation.

In linguistics and lexicography, izace is an important concept for understanding word formation and the systematic production of new terms. It helps explain how speakers coin terms to describe new processes, technologies, or organizational changes by extending existing verbs into nouns.

See also: derivation (linguistics), morphology, Slavic word formation, suffix.