Gothic derivations

Abstract

This paper investigates Gothic productivity via nominalizations of both weak and strong verbs. Productivity is defined as “the possibility to coin new complex words according to the word formation rules of a given language” (

: 6). While considering productivity in this light, the current paper studies these nominalizations according to their predictability in terms of form (i.e., reproducibility of word-formations) and whether there are or were cognates in other Germanic languages. Following the two metrics above, the paper finds that Gothic weak verbal abstracts were likely productive forms in comparison to strong verbal abstracts, which were likely unproductive forms.