In this thesis I examine the form and meaning of German verbs ending in -ern. This verbal suffix is not productive and not much has been written about it. Fleisch & Barz (2012: 430 f.) ascribe...Show moreIn this thesis I examine the form and meaning of German verbs ending in -ern. This verbal suffix is not productive and not much has been written about it. Fleisch & Barz (2012: 430 f.) ascribe a few functions to the ending -ern: The first is iterativity, for example in blickern. The second is an onomatopoeic function as in blubbern. The –(e)r(n) could also find its basis in a noun, like Bäcker. Verbs with -ern bare many similarities to verbs ending in -eln. About these latter some recent literature can be found. The -ern-verbs however remain unresearched. In grammars verbs ending in -ern, when mentioned at all, are ascribed iterativity. However, this is not always the case. In this thesis I have researched the origins of -ern of unprefixed verbs out of the CELEX corpus and determine if these are nominal, verbal or in some cases even adjectival by checking their etymology in several dictionaries (Duden Online , Kluge 2011, Pfeifer e. a. 1989). I have looked if a specific meaning can be attributed to a specific sort of -ern, by listing and comparing the semantics of the researched verbs. This meaning could be iterativity, but also attenuation, which is the case for some verbs ending in -eln (cf. Audring, Booij & Jackendoff 2017). If verbs with a nominal -ern have an iterative meaning, this could also mean that the iterative meaning is not limited to the verbal -ern. Also, it might be possible that the verbs could be assigned a certain Aktionsart.Show less
