On hypocoristic formation in Basque

Abstract

This article deals with the different procedures for hypocoristic formation which have existed and still exist in the Basque language. There are three: palatalisation (phonetic symbolism), the use of suffixes (amplification) and reduction or condensation. These procedures, however, are normally combined. For example, the shift Maria → Txariako reveals palatalisation and also contains a suffix; in the shift Domingo → Txomin, both palatalisation and reduction are used; and Josefina → Finatxo is a product of both reduction and a suffix. The use of palatalisation as an expressive resource is an old phenome non, as can be observed from evidence dating from the Middle Ages onwards. Neither is the use of suffixes a modern resource. Some of the suffixes still used today appear in the Aquitaine inscriptions. However, proof of name reduction is, for the most part, modern