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Numericals and Classifiers in Korean and English

Lee Young-Ok 1

1경희대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Because the difference between Korean and English is so wide in almost every aspect of the language structure including phonology, syntax, and semantics the translation between the two languages raises lots of problems. Wilhelm von Humboldt (1836, 1988:54) has claimed that thought and language are one and inseparable from each other and on the basis of this Sapir-Whorf's hypothesis of linguistic relativity has developed. Thus, the study of language phenomena should be accompanied with the study of the background culture covering the social, historical, political, and economical aspects of the culture that may serve as the basis of the culture's value system. The culture's value system in turn works as a crucial factor for particular patterns of cognition and perception that lead to the establishment of the particular language structure. In this study, we will consider the cultural differences between Korean and English reflected in the structural differences of numericals and classifiers, the basic elements to be considered in almost every structure of nominals that should be counted in numbers and classified along with a certain system of categories. Classifiers and noun categorization systems have long been a particular focus of interest in functional typology because they provide a unique insight into how people categorize various entities of the world through their language. The human language shows both universality and uniqueness in accordance with the characteristics of the language itself. The two languages have similarities and differences in the structure and use of them and we will show what element of cultural differences triggers such differences. The study will shed light on the desirable direction of translation or intercultural communication including the two languages.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.