THE PRODUCTION AND INTERPRETATION OF THE COMPOUND
WORDS
IN THE BATAK TOBA LANGUAGE
Sanggam Siahaan
Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
ABSTRACT
This article deals with a study on the production and interpretation of the compound words in the
Batak Toba language. The question to answer is what rules the native speakers of the Batak
Toba language use to produce and interpret the compound words in their language. The
objective of the study is to reveal out the rules that the native speakers of the Batak Toba
language use in the production and interpretation of the compounding words. The theoretical
framework used focused on the compounding theory discussed by Falk, 1978: 43; O‟Grady and
Dobrovolsky, 1996: 127; and Jackson and Amvela, 2000:79-86. The research method follows
the qualitative inquiry design with a descriptive approach to view the compounding phenomena.
Key words:
Production, interpretation, compounding, Batak Toba language
I. INTRODUCTION
The total set of the vocabulary of a language does not merely include the words
whose forms and meanings are not of other words. However, the native speakers of a
language systemically put more new vocabulary to increase the number by subjecting
themselves to a set of rules called the morphological process (Bauer, 1988:100). This
article concerns with the morphological process as a systemic linguistic phenomena in
the Batak Toba language. The question posted as the research problem to answer is:
What rules do the native speakers of the Batak Toba language use to produce and
interpret the compound words in their language? The objective of the study is to
disclose the rules that the native speakers of the Batak Toba language use in the
production and interpretation of the compounding words. The findings of this study
can be very important for the development of the theoretical concept of the
morphological process of the production and interpretation of the compound words in
the Batak Toba language. In addition, the findings can also be practically important
for those who intend to comprehend the production and interpretation of the
compounding phenomena of the language.
II.THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
Linguistics is a hierarchical branch of science investigating a language. One of its
branches is morphology which investigates the knowledge of the native speakers of a
language in the production and interpretation of words and their formation to carry
meanings (Fasold and Linton, 2006: 59). Compounding is one of the objects of the
study of morphology. Accordingly, Falk (1978: 43) observes compounding from the
view point of the word class of two roots which combine to form a compound word. It
is argued that it can be made up of an adjective and a noun, such as in Englishman,
but not Germanman and greenhouse, two preposition, such as in upon and into but not
inthrough, a verb and a preposition, such as in put on and take over but not jump into,
and a noun and a verb such as in sunbathe and earthquake but not rainstand. In
morphology a root is usually a simple word which does not undergo affixation.
The words book, box, put, take, sharp, clever, to, and on are words which do not
undergo a process of affixation. They are categorized into simple words.
Morphologically, they cannot be analyzed into two smaller parts which have meaning.
The Production and Interpretation of the Compound Words
In the Batak Toba Language_by Sanggam Siahaan and Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
_Program Pascasarjana Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris_Universitas HKBP Nommensen
Page 1 of 8
Falk (1978) also says that words such as text book, classroom, and matchbox (matchbox or match box—not necessarily written as one word) are compound words.
Although her concept can cop lots of compound words, but it can not definitely
govern the native speakers to produce and interpret the whole evidences of
compounding in a language.
According to O‟Grady and Dobrovolsky (1996: 127), compounding differs from
language to language, while the practice in English deals with the combination of
some lexical categories, such as noun, adjectives, verbs, or preposition in which the
right most morpheme is called as the head that determines the category of a
compounding. This concept reveals the ease of the native speakers to identify the
class type of the compound they produce. They are specified to the possible
combination of the lexical categories they can produce as mentioned in the following.
In English there are four types of compound words in which all lexical categories can
combine, which are: noun and noun such as street light, camp side, and bookcase,
adjective and noun such as bluebird, happy hour, and high chair, verb and noun such
as swearword, washcloth, and scrub lady, and preposition and noun such as overlord,
outhouse and in-group. O‟grady and Dobrovolsky (1996: 121). The lexical categories
between Both Falk (1978:43) and O‟grady and Dobrovolsky (1996: 127) are different
in their combinations. Falk mentions no combination of verb and noun, and
preposition and noun, while O‟Grady and Dobrovolsky mention no combination of
preposition and preposition, verb and preposition, and noun and preposition.
Assuming the reality of the compound words in English, so the potential lexical
categories which can combine are as follows: NN, AN, PP, VP, NP, and PN.
Jacson and Amvela (2000:79-86) formulate a clear and simple proposition of the
English native speakers‟ knowledge on the process of compounding by saying that
“Compounds may be defined as stems consisting of one root”. For example, betside,
black market, car-wash, waste paper basket. Some are written as one word, while
others are written as two or more words in some cases, one of the roots of a
compound may be modified by an inflection as in “bird‟s-eye, driving license, and
homing pigeon”. They further say that in English compounds may be distinguished
from phrases on phonological, syntactic, and semantic grounds. This means that in
some process that compounding can resemble the other process of syntactic
construction like phrases such as in black board and hard cover. Nonetheless, they can
be distinguished from each other in their phonological, syntactic, and semantic
ground.
A compound word is not an interruptible unit, such as the form of overripe cannot be
interrupted. To illustrate, dividing it into two units such as in over ripe will not result
a compound word anymore. As the opposite a phrase can be interrupted to make it
smaller or bigger. For example, the form a good book can be divided into “a” and
“good book”, or another lexical category can be added into the form such in a good
new book. The third rule which governs them to differentiate the interpretation
between the two is by distinguishing their semantic properties. A compound word
tends to acquire a specialized meaning. It resembles an idiom very much. For
instance, the meaning of blackboard is not necessarily be black and made of wood. Its
color and material can be anything else. However, a phrase always acquires the
meaning of its head word and modified by all its potential modifiers.
III. RESEARCH METHOD
The design of the study conducted in this research is the type of the qualitative inquiry
(Lincoln and Guba, 1985). It is qualitative since the object of the study deals with the
The Production and Interpretation of the Compound Words
In the Batak Toba Language_by Sanggam Siahaan and Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
_Program Pascasarjana Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris_Universitas HKBP Nommensen
Page 2 of 8
unconscious knowledge of the native speakers of the Batak Toba language on the
rules of the production and interpretation of the compound words. The study follows
the descriptive approach (Botha, 1981) to view the production and interpretation of
those speakers on the compounding as linguistic phenomena. The subject of the study
is the Batak-Toba speakers and the object is the rules used by the native speakers to
produce and interpret the compound words. The research data is the corpus including
a collection of the transcripts of the linguistic behavior taken as a swadesh list
recorded from the subject in the city of Pematangsiantar. The technique of the data
analysis is based on the orientation of the theoretical framework, they are Fasold and
Linton, 2006: 59; Falk, 1978: 43; O‟grady and Dobrovolsky, 1996: 127; and Jacson
and Amvela, 2000:79-86.
IV. DATA ANALYSIS
4.1. Noun Head Word
In Batak Toba language, the modifier of a noun can be a noun or an adjective or a
verb as in the followings.
a. Noun Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a noun head
compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a noun into the previous
noun.
Examples:
1. anak „child‟ + mata „eye‟ → anak mata „beloved child‟
2. juara „ supervisor‟ + bagas „home‟ → juara bagas „top supervisor
3. hudon „rice cooking pan” + tano „soil‟ → hudon tano „rice sooking pan which
is made made of soil‟
4. inanta „wife‟ + soripada → inanta soripada „wife of man‟
5. jabu „home‟ + bona „bottom‟ → jabu bona „right part of a living room‟
6. roha „mind‟ + sisean „desciple” → roha sisean
7. mata „eye‟ + guru „teacher‟
b. Adjective Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a noun head
compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) an adjective into the
previous noun.
Examples:
1. hata „word‟ + sopisik „discarted‟ → hata sopisik „the word that is a secret‟
2. barita „news‟ + nauli „good‟ → barita nauli „good news‟
3. roha „mind‟ + naias „clean‟ → roha naias „sincere mind‟
4. ulaon „job‟ + nadenggan ‟good‟ → ulaon nadenggan „good job‟
c. Verb Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a noun head
compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a verb into the previous
noun.
Examples:
1. udan „rain‟ + manggurguri „to boil‟ → udan manggurguri „the rain to fertilize‟
2. ulos „ traditional woven cloth‟ + herbang „uncover‟ → ulos herbang „the
traditional cloth to deliver to a certain person‟
The Production and Interpretation of the Compound Words
In the Batak Toba Language_by Sanggam Siahaan and Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
_Program Pascasarjana Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris_Universitas HKBP Nommensen
Page 3 of 8
3. togutogu „rope‟ + ro „datang‟ → togutogu ro „a very small portion taken from
the dowry given to friends or relatives used as a symbol for a strong invitation
to attend one‟s daughter‟s wedding‟
4.2. Adjective Head Word
In Batak Toba language, the modifier of an adjective can a noun or an adjective or a
verb as in the following.
a. Noun Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret an adjective
head compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a noun into the
previous adjective.
Examples:
1. hansit „sick‟ + ateate „levers‟ → hansit ateate „hurt feeling‟
2. hansit „sick‟ + mata „eye‟ → hansit mata „terrible mess‟
3. tobok „ humble‟ + roha „mind‟ → tobok roha „naïve mind‟
4. ginjang „high‟ + roha „mind‟ → ginjang roha „high profile/snobbish‟
b. Adjective Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret an adjective
head compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) an adjective into the
previous adjective.
Examples:
1. ias „clean + tutu „true‟ → ias tutu „truly clean‟
2. bottar „white‟ + hian „so‟ → bottar hian „so white‟
3. burju „kind‟ + tobok „serious‟ → burju tobok „truely kind‟
4. ias „clean‟ + tutu „true‟ → ias tutu „so clean‟
c. Verb Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret an adjective
head compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a verb into the
previous noun.
Examples:
1. tangkas „clear‟+ marroha „to think‟ → tangkas marroha „to think clearly‟
2. denggan „good‟ + marpambahenan‟ → denggan marpambahenan „to behave
well‟
3. manat „careful‟ + mangkatai „talk‟ → manat mangkatai „to talk carefully‟
4. sintong „true‟ + paboa → sintong paboa „to truly tell‟
5. hansit „painful‟ + mangolu → hansit mangolu „to live painfully‟
6. ias „clean‟ + marroha „to think‟ → ias marroha „to think purely‟
4.3. Verb Head Word
In Batak Toba language, the modifier of a verb can a noun or an adjective or a verb as
in the following.
a. Noun Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a verb head
compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a noun into the previous
verb.
Examples:
The Production and Interpretation of the Compound Words
In the Batak Toba Language_by Sanggam Siahaan and Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
_Program Pascasarjana Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris_Universitas HKBP Nommensen
Page 4 of 8
1. tangko „to steal‟ + raja ‟king‟ → tangko raja „to steal innocently for
understood real emergency needs‟
2. tingkir „to visit‟ + tangga „hause stair‟ → tingkir tangga ‟to visit the family of
one‟s daughter some while after her wedding‟
3. mangalapit „to fold‟ + hata „word‟ → mangalapit hata „to have have a
permission‟
b. Verb Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a verb head
compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a verb into the previous
verb.
Examples:
1. mambaen „to make‟ + mardalan „to walk‟ → mambaen mardalan „to make to
walk‟
2. mangontang „to invive‟ + ro „ro‟ → mangontang ro „to invite to come‟
3. modom „to sleep‟ + jongjong „to stand‟ → modom jonjong „sleeping by
standing‟
4. manghatai „to speak‟ + manghojoti „to hurry‟ → manghatai manghojoti „ to
speak hurriedly‟
c. Adjective Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a verb head
compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) an adjective into the
previous verb.
Example:
1. Mambaen „to make‟ + guntur „noisy‟ → mambaen guttur „to make noisy‟
2. mambaen „to make‟ + ias „clean‟ → mambaen ias „to make clean‟
3. marpingkir „to think‟ + roa „bad‟ → marpingkir roa „to think badly‟
4. mambaen „to make‟ + peol „wrong‟ → mambaen peol „to make wrong‟
4.4. Preposition Head Word
In Batak Toba language, the modifier of a preposition can be a noun or an adjective or
a preposition as follows:
a. Noun Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a preposition
head compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a noun into the
previous preposition.
Examples:
1. tu „to‟ + bagas „hause‟ → tu bagas „to get inside the house‟
2. di „at‟ + roha „mind‟ → di roha „to keep in mind‟
3. sian „from‟ + roha „mind‟ → sian roha „to do honestly‟
4. sian „from‟ + hata „word‟ → sian hata „on a deal or by a promise or gentlemen
agreement‟ ditonga „between‟ + ari „day‟ → ditonga ni ari „at noon‟
5. ditonga‟between‟ + borgin „night‟ → ditonga borngin „at mid night‟
6. dibalian ni „out side of ‟ + huta „village‟ + dibalian ni huta „out side of the
village‟ ditonga „between‟ + ari „day‟ → ditonga ni ari „at noon‟
7. ditonga‟between‟ + borgin „night‟ → ditonga borngin „at mid night‟
8. dibalian ni „out side of ‟ + huta „village‟ + dibalian ni huta „out side of the
village‟
The Production and Interpretation of the Compound Words
In the Batak Toba Language_by Sanggam Siahaan and Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
_Program Pascasarjana Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris_Universitas HKBP Nommensen
Page 5 of 8
b. Verb Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a preposition
head compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a verb into the
previous preposition.
Examples:
1. sian „from‟ + mardalani „to go around‟ → sian mardalani „from going around‟
2. to „to‟ + marende „to sing‟ → to marene „to sing‟
3. di „in‟ + martangiang‟ → di martangiang „in praying‟
c. Preposition Modifier
The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a preposition
head compound word by adding (symbolized by this arrow „+‟) a preposition into the
previous preposition.
Examples:
1. sian „from‟ + duru „out side‟ → sian duru „from out side‟
2. sian „from‟ + bagas „in side‟ → sian bagas „from inside‟
3. tu „to‟ + duru „out side‟ → tu duru „to out side‟
4. tu „to‟ + bagas → tu bagas „to out side „
4.6. Findings
Based on the data analysis, the findings on the production and interpretation of the
compounds in the Batak Toba language include these rules:
1. The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a noun
head compound word by adding a noun or adjective or verb as a modifier to
the previous noun.
2. The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret an
adjective head compound word by adding a noun or adjectively or verb to the
previous adjective.
3. The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a verb
head compound word by adding a noun or verb or adjective to the previous
verb.
4. The native speakers of the Batak Toba language produce and interpret a
preposition head compound word by adding a noun or a verb or a preposition
to the previous preposition.
V. CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
5.1. Conclusion
In the Toba Batak Language, the combination of some lexical categories, like noun,
adjectives, verbs, or preposition in which the left most morpheme is called as the head
that determines the category of a compounding. The potential lexical categories which
can combine are as follows: Noun + Noun; Noun +Adjective; Noun + Verb; Adjective
+ Noun; Adjective + Adjective; Adjective + Verb; Verb + Noun; Verb + Verb; Verb
+ Adjective; Preposition + Preposition; Preposition + Noun; Preposition + Verb; and
Preposition +Adjective
In the Batak Toba language, a compound word is not an interruptible unit, such as the
form of overripe can not be interrupted. For instance, dividing it into two units such as
in over ripe will not result a compound word anymore. A compound word tends to
The Production and Interpretation of the Compound Words
In the Batak Toba Language_by Sanggam Siahaan and Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
_Program Pascasarjana Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris_Universitas HKBP Nommensen
Page 6 of 8
acquire a specialized meaning. It resembles an idiom very much. For instance, the
meaning of blackboard is not necessarily be black and made of wood.
5.2. Suggestion
It is suggested the others to conduct a replication research to have the possibility of
the new information for a more valid and reliable findings.
The Production and Interpretation of the Compound Words
In the Batak Toba Language_by Sanggam Siahaan and Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
_Program Pascasarjana Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris_Universitas HKBP Nommensen
Page 7 of 8
REFERENCES
Bauer, Laurie.(1988). Introducing Linguistic Morphology. Edinburg: Edinburg
University Press.
Botha, Rudolf P. (1981). The Conduct of Linguistic Inquiry: A Systematic
Introduction to the Methodology of Generative Grammar. New York: Mouton
Publishers.
Falk. Julia S. Linguistics and Language: A Survey of Basic Concepts and
Implications. New York: John Wiley & Sons. 1978.
Jackson, Howard & Ampella, Etienne Ze‟. Words, Meaning and Vocabulary. Cassel:
Wellington House, 2000.
Lincoln, Yvonna S. and Guba, Egon G. Naturalistic Inquiry. Beverly Hills California:
Sage Publication, Inc.
O‟Grady, William and Dobrovolsky, Michael. (1996). Contemporary Linguistic
Analysis: An Introduction. Toronto: COP CLARK LTD.
The Production and Interpretation of the Compound Words
In the Batak Toba Language_by Sanggam Siahaan and Rumondang Miranda Marsaulina
_Program Pascasarjana Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris_Universitas HKBP Nommensen
Page 8 of 8