A STUDY OF HAUSA COMPOUND WORDS – AN ONOMASIOLOGICAL APPROACH

Abstract

This paper presents an analysis of Hausa compound words using an
onomasiological approach. The study seeks to investigate the
semantic relation of compound words in naming concepts. The main
aim of this paper is to analyse the semantic relationship between the
constituents of compound words in the Hausa language. Data for this
study were drawn from both primary and secondary sources. Being a
native Hausa and surrounded by Hausa people, it becomes easier for
the researcher to obtain the desired and accurate data. The finding
shows that compound words, in Hausa, can be analysed by an
onomasiological approach using their tripartite terms: the base, the
mark and the conceptual meaning. This paper seeks to fill an
academic gap and concludes that compound words in Hausa are
productive and are composed of a base and a mark.