A Linguistic Study of Noun and Verb Derivation in the Gadhi Language

Abstract

No one can say exactly how the history of the Rodi people began. To any human belonging to any nation or tribe, language is essential in expressing their thoughts. Accordingly, the Gadi people have built their own language tradition. They have used this language as a secret communication method, and in the history of the Sri Lankan language, it is known as the Gadi or Rodi language. The purpose of this research is to linguistically study how nouns and verbs are formed in the Gadi language, to investigate them according to word formation theory, and to identify the peculiarities of the formation of Gadi words. The research question addresses how nouns and verbs are formed in the Gadi language and whether they have occurred in accordance with word formation theories. The data for the present study was collected through qualitative research methodology using primary and secondary sources. Interviews were conducted with a few randomly selected Gardi people, and literature containing information about this language was studied. The data set was then analysed according to the linguistic word formation theory. Accordingly, it was recognised that they had used their own methods in forming the words of the Gadi language, which has a minimal vocabulary, and that those words contain certain theoretical features of word formation. There, the most pioneering feature of word formation evident is compounding. It seems that the Gadi language, which does not claim to have a written form, has been strongly influenced by the Sinhala language and due to that situation, it is threatened with extinction. The present study is important as it expands the existing knowledge of the Gadi language and recognises its word formation patterns. Thus, it can be concluded that the words of the Gadi language have been formed in a unique manner, which contains certain theoretical features of word formation.