ON THE PARALLEL BETWEEN NEOCLASSICAL COMPOUNDS IN ENGLISH AND MODERN GREEK

Abstract

This paper investigates a group of English words consisting of bound elements of classical origin, (i.e. Ancient Greek or Latin), which are commonly known as ‘neoclassical compounds’. The aim is to examine the structure of these words i) by considering the status of their constituent elements, and ii) by drawing a parallel with certain types of compounds in Modern Greek. It is argued that the structure of neoclassical compounds in English, contrary to what is commonly argued, is greatly influenced by the idiosyncratic properties of the constituent element appearing in final position, which derive from its categorial properties in the language of origin, and impose a number of restrictions on its combinations. Two distinct types of structures have been recognized in neoclassical compounds of English, namely, deverbal compounds and determinative compounds bearing an endocentric or exocentric structure.