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Universals in the usage of and attitudes to onomatopoeia

Rydblom, Oskar LU (2016) JAPK11 20161
Japanese Studies
Abstract
This study compares the usage of- and attitudes towards sound imitating expressions, onomatopoeia, in English and Japanese. It looks at previous research on onomatopoeia conducted on English and Japanese to establish a working definition for onomatopoeia and a categorization of the types of meanings each expression can have. With the help of indications provided by previous research two questionnaires, one for English speakers and one for Japanese speakers, were created.
The questionnaires featured scale-grading, alternative and open-ended questions where the informants were asked a variety of questions on their usage and attitudes towards onomatopoeia. 29 English speakers and 24 Japanese speakers completed each questionnaire and their... (More)
This study compares the usage of- and attitudes towards sound imitating expressions, onomatopoeia, in English and Japanese. It looks at previous research on onomatopoeia conducted on English and Japanese to establish a working definition for onomatopoeia and a categorization of the types of meanings each expression can have. With the help of indications provided by previous research two questionnaires, one for English speakers and one for Japanese speakers, were created.
The questionnaires featured scale-grading, alternative and open-ended questions where the informants were asked a variety of questions on their usage and attitudes towards onomatopoeia. 29 English speakers and 24 Japanese speakers completed each questionnaire and their answers were
then organized into charts and tables for analysis. Two English informants and two Japanese speakers were asked a few follow-up questions in a short interview.
The study concludes that onomatopoeia are used mainly in informal contexts for the purpose of providing a more vivid and clear picture. Informants consider them to be a bit childish yet emotive and expressive. These characteristics tend to be experienced more strongly when the meaning of the onomatopoeia is closely connected to the onomatopoeia and less so when the connection is more metaphorical. A deeper understanding of patterns like these may help facilitate learning English or Japanese as a second language more effectively. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Rydblom, Oskar LU
supervisor
organization
alternative title
A comparative study of the use of soundimitating words in Japanese and English
course
JAPK11 20161
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
usage, semantics, linguistics, Japanese, English, mimetics, sound symbolism, onomatopoeia, attitudes, meaning, metaphors, register
language
English
id
8888824
date added to LUP
2016-08-22 13:32:20
date last changed
2016-08-22 13:32:20
@misc{8888824,
  abstract     = {{This study compares the usage of- and attitudes towards sound imitating expressions, onomatopoeia, in English and Japanese. It looks at previous research on onomatopoeia conducted on English and Japanese to establish a working definition for onomatopoeia and a categorization of the types of meanings each expression can have. With the help of indications provided by previous research two questionnaires, one for English speakers and one for Japanese speakers, were created.
The questionnaires featured scale-grading, alternative and open-ended questions where the informants were asked a variety of questions on their usage and attitudes towards onomatopoeia. 29 English speakers and 24 Japanese speakers completed each questionnaire and their answers were
then organized into charts and tables for analysis. Two English informants and two Japanese speakers were asked a few follow-up questions in a short interview.
The study concludes that onomatopoeia are used mainly in informal contexts for the purpose of providing a more vivid and clear picture. Informants consider them to be a bit childish yet emotive and expressive. These characteristics tend to be experienced more strongly when the meaning of the onomatopoeia is closely connected to the onomatopoeia and less so when the connection is more metaphorical. A deeper understanding of patterns like these may help facilitate learning English or Japanese as a second language more effectively.}},
  author       = {{Rydblom, Oskar}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Universals in the usage of and attitudes to onomatopoeia}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}