A Cognitive Account of the Korean Spatial Particles -ey and -eyse

Abstract

The purpose of the paper is to provide an empirical cognitive account of the two Korean particles, -ey and -eyse. In favor of the cognitive approach, this paper has reached a few conclusions. First, the difference between -ey and -eyse can be explained with the principle of relative prominence. The partcles also differ in the subsuming notions of proximity and contact. Second, this paper shows that the speakers' choice of the particles is not arbitrary, but is determined by the interaction of multiple semantic factors. The Korean speakers make a clear conceptual distinction between -ey and -eyse. The interaction of verb types and the particle choice might be interpreted as characteristics of a verb-framed language. Finally, the judgment test reveals that the spatial distribution of -ey and -eyse is not a matter of dichotomy, but is on the continuum.