Grammaticalization in Japanese and Korean

In this chapter, we try to present typical processes of grammaticalization in Japanese and Korean, and investigate which processes may particularly contribute to the discussion of theoretical aspects of grammaticalization. The processes introduced in some detail are the grammaticalization of converbs, of deverbal postpositions, and of nouns marking categories in the verb phrase as typical processes. We then discuss the morphological properties of grammaticalization in the two languages, and the high frequency of grammaticalization into interpersonal domains. Both features support extant ideas about grammaticalization rather than contradicting them. In contrast, a third point—that grammaticalizations may enter the language through writing rather than conversation—may be a challenge for ideas about grammaticalization that seek the source of grammaticalizations solely in speaker–hearer interaction.