Rendaku
Encyclopedia
is a phenomenon in Japanese
morphophonology
that governs the voicing
of the initial consonant
of the non-initial portion of a compound or prefixed word. In modern Japanese, Rendaku is common but unpredictable.
Rendaku can be seen in the following:
In some cases, rendaku varies depending on syntax. For instance, the suffix 〜通り ("road, following"), from 通る tōru "to go, to follow", is pronounced as 〜とおり -tōri following the perfective verb tense, as in 思った通り omotta-tōri "as I thought", but is pronounced as 〜どおり -dōri (with rendaku) when following a noun, as in 予定通り yotei-dōri "as planned, according to schedule" (or, semantically differently – more concretely – 室町通 Muromachi-dōri, "Muromachi Street
").
. This was later modified to state that rendaku does not occur when the second element of the compound contains a voiced obstruent in any position (see third example below). This is considered to be one of the most fundamental of the rules governing rendaku.
While this law is named after Benjamin Smith Lyman
, who independently discovered it in 1894, it is really a re-discovery. The Edo period
linguists Kamo no Mabuchi
(1765) and Motoori Norinaga
(1767–1798) separately and independently discovered the law during the 18th century.
items, rendaku does not manifest itself if there is a voiced obstruent near the morphemic
boundary, including preceding the boundary.
Some lexical items tend to resist rendaku voicing regardless of other conditions, while some tend to accept it.
Rendaku also occurs infrequently in Sino-Japanese words (Japanese words of Chinese
origin) especially where the element undergoing rendaku is well integrated ("vulgarized"). The second example demonstrates that rendaku hardly manifests in most words of foreign origin:
value of "X and Y" (so-called dvandva
or copulative compounds):
Compare this to [yama] + [kawa] > [yamagawa] "mountain river".
but + [washi] > [ojirowashi] ({"tail" + "white"} + "eagle" > "white-tailed eagle")
s, where rendaku occurs or fails to occur often without obvious cause. In many cases, an identically written name may either have or not have rendaku, depending on the person. For example, may be read in a number of ways, including both and .
Japanese 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...
morphophonology
Morphophonology
Morphophonology is a branch of linguistics which studies, in general, the interaction between morphological and phonetic processes. When a morpheme is attached to a word, it can alter the phonetic environments of other morphemes in that word. Morphophonemics attempts to describe this process...
that governs the voicing
Phonation
Phonation has slightly different meanings depending on the subfield of phonetics. Among some phoneticians, phonation is the process by which the vocal folds produce certain sounds through quasi-periodic vibration. This is the definition used among those who study laryngeal anatomy and physiology...
of the initial consonant
Consonant
In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract. Examples are , pronounced with the lips; , pronounced with the front of the tongue; , pronounced with the back of the tongue; , pronounced in the throat; and ,...
of the non-initial portion of a compound or prefixed word. In modern Japanese, Rendaku is common but unpredictable.
Rendaku can be seen in the following:
- [hito] + [hito] > [hitobito] ("person" + "person" → "people")
- [toki] + [toki] > [tokidoki] ("time" + "time" → "sometimes")
- [te] + [kami] > [tegami] ("hand" + "paper" → "letter")
In some cases, rendaku varies depending on syntax. For instance, the suffix 〜通り ("road, following"), from 通る tōru "to go, to follow", is pronounced as 〜とおり -tōri following the perfective verb tense, as in 思った通り omotta-tōri "as I thought", but is pronounced as 〜どおり -dōri (with rendaku) when following a noun, as in 予定通り yotei-dōri "as planned, according to schedule" (or, semantically differently – more concretely – 室町通 Muromachi-dōri, "Muromachi Street
Muromachi Street
is a north-south street in Kyoto, Japan. It was originally a path called of the ancient capital of Heian-kyō, which is now Kyoto. It lies to the west of where the subway Karasuma Line runs. It extends from running through Kita-ku in the north to running through Minami-ku in the south...
").
Properties blocking rendaku
Research into defining the range of situations affected by rendaku has largely been limited to finding circumstances which cause the phenomenon not to manifest itself.Lyman's Law
The most famous of the conditions affecting rendaku is known as Lyman's Law, which stated that rendaku does not occur if the second consonant of the second element is a voiced obstruentObstruent
An obstruent is a consonant sound formed by obstructing airflow, causing increased air pressure in the vocal tract, such as [k], [d͡ʒ] and [f]. In phonetics, articulation may be divided into two large classes: obstruents and sonorants....
. This was later modified to state that rendaku does not occur when the second element of the compound contains a voiced obstruent in any position (see third example below). This is considered to be one of the most fundamental of the rules governing rendaku.
- [yama] + [kaji] > [yamakaji], not *[yamagaji] ("mountain" + "fire" > "forest fire") (* indicates a non-existent form)
- [hitori] + [tabi] > [hitoritabi], not *[hitoridabi] ("one person" + "travel" > "traveling alone")
- [tsuno] + [tokage] > [tsunotokage], not *[tsunodokage] ("horn" + "lizard" > "horned lizard")
While this law is named after Benjamin Smith Lyman
Benjamin Smith Lyman
Benjamin Smith Lyman was an American mining engineer, surveyor and amateur linguist and anthropologist.-Biography:Benjamin Smith Lyman was born in Northampton, Massachusetts. He graduated from Harvard University in 1855...
, who independently discovered it in 1894, it is really a re-discovery. The Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
linguists Kamo no Mabuchi
Kamo no Mabuchi
was a Japanese poet and philologist of the Edo period.Mabuchi conducted research into the spirit of ancient Japan through his studies of the Man'yōshū and other works of ancient literature...
(1765) and Motoori Norinaga
Motoori Norinaga
was a Japanese scholar of Kokugaku active during the Edo period. He is probably the best known and most prominent of all scholars in this tradition.-Life:...
(1767–1798) separately and independently discovered the law during the 18th century.
Lexical properties
Similar to Lyman's Law, it has been found that for some lexicalLexicon
In linguistics, the lexicon of a language is its vocabulary, including its words and expressions. A lexicon is also a synonym of the word thesaurus. More formally, it is a language's inventory of lexemes. Coined in English 1603, the word "lexicon" derives from the Greek "λεξικόν" , neut...
items, rendaku does not manifest itself if there is a voiced obstruent near the morphemic
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,...
boundary, including preceding the boundary.
Some lexical items tend to resist rendaku voicing regardless of other conditions, while some tend to accept it.
Rendaku also occurs infrequently in Sino-Japanese words (Japanese words of Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
origin) especially where the element undergoing rendaku is well integrated ("vulgarized"). The second example demonstrates that rendaku hardly manifests in most words of foreign origin:
- [kabushiki] + [kaisha] > [kabushikigaisha] ("stock" + "company" > "corporation")
- [aisu] + [kōhī] > [aisukōhī], not *[aisugōhī] ("ice" + "coffee" > "iced coffee")
Semantics
Rendaku also tends not to manifest itself in compounds which have the semanticSemantics
Semantics is the study of meaning. It focuses on the relation between signifiers, such as words, phrases, signs and symbols, and what they stand for, their denotata....
value of "X and Y" (so-called dvandva
Dvandva
A dvandva or twin or Siamese compound refers to one or more objects that could be connected in sense by the conjunction 'and', where the objects refer to the parts of an agglomeration described by the compound...
or copulative compounds):
- [yama] + [kawa] > [yamakawa] "mountains and rivers"
Compare this to [yama] + [kawa] > [yamagawa] "mountain river".
Branching constraint
Finally, rendaku is also blocked by what is called a "branching constraint". The process is blocked in the second element of a right-branching compound:- [mon] + ([shiro + chō]) > [monshirochō], not *[monjirochō] ("family crest" + {"white" + "butterfly"} > "cabbage butterfly")
but + [washi] > [ojirowashi] ({"tail" + "white"} + "eagle" > "white-tailed eagle")
Further considerations
Despite a number of rules which have been formulated to help explain the distribution of the effect of rendaku, there still remain many examples of words in which rendaku manifests in ways currently unpredictable. Some instances are linked with a lexical property as noted above but others may obey laws yet to be discovered. Rendaku thus remains partially unpredictable, sometimes presenting a problem even to native speakers, particularly in Japanese nameJapanese name
in modern times usually consist of a family name , followed by a given name. "Middle names" are not generally used.Japanese names are usually written in kanji, which are characters of usually Chinese origin in Japanese pronunciation...
s, where rendaku occurs or fails to occur often without obvious cause. In many cases, an identically written name may either have or not have rendaku, depending on the person. For example, may be read in a number of ways, including both and .