Hrvatski cirkumfiks jo–…–n´
The Croatian circumfix jo–…–ń

Summary/Abstract: In the paper a language game in the Zagreb Croatian slang is described and analyzed that combines syllable metathesis and adding the circumfix jo–…–ń. For example, a trisyllabic word konobar [ko.no.bar] ‘waiter’ becomes jonobarkonj. This language game is viewed in the light of similar language games in different languages from Australia and Mainland Southeast Asia through Western Europe to Mesoamerica. The paper confirms three claims. The first claim is that in language games around the world there are identical patterns of adding, dropping and transposing syllables. The simplest ones are those with adding syllables, e.g. Cr. ja te volim ‘I love you’ → ja.pa te.pe vo.po.li.pim. The omission of syllables is much less common, especially at the beginning of words, e.g. Cr. kolega ‘colleague’ → lega. More complex syllable word games include metathesis, e.g. Cr. ku`i{ ‘you know’ → `i{.ku. The most complex word games combine metathesis and affixation, e.g. Cr. kurac ‘cock’ → jo–rac.ku–ń. The second claim is about the importance of the syllabic Maximal Onset Principle. In the course of the described language game it is shown to be more important than the Sonority Sequencing Principle. For example, in monosyllabic words like moj ‘my’ the coda is transposed to the beginning of the word despite the fact that this violates the sonority sequencing (j being more sonorant than m), in order to make the final form acceptable: moj → jmo → jo–jmo–ń [joj.moń]. The third claim is that in language games one finds atypical affixes, the ones which otherwise do not exist in the language in question or are generally rare in the languages of the world. For example, in the Croatian language game we find the circumfix jo–…–ń. The paper argues that it is an empty morph, a morph without meaning, which would not be a unique case of an empty morph in Croatian (cf. –ov– in plural form morf–ov–i ‘morphs’).

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