1887
Volume 22, Issue 1
  • ISSN 0257-3784
  • E-ISSN: 2212-9731

Abstract

The Korean temporal system exhibits a striking discrepancy between the tense-aspect markings used in declarative sentences and those found in noun-modifying (adnominal) clauses. While contemporary declarative sentences primarily utilize - for the past and for the present, modifying clauses maintain a system where a “zero” form marks the past and marks the present. This paper argues that these discrepancies are the result of uneven historical grammaticalization. By examining 15th-century Middle Korean, this study demonstrates that noun-modifying clauses are conservative structures that preserve an older temporal system, whereas declarative sentences have undergone radical reorganization due to the emergence of the past tense marker - originating from the resultative marker --.

Available under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license.
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2026-07-10
2026-08-16
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