German super and intensifiers in social communication

This study examines the intensifier super in German with data taken from Das Wortauskunftssystem zur deutschen Sprache in Geschichte und Gegenwart (DWDS, Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, Geyken 2020). We inspect the morphosyntactic and semantic development of super, and aim to explore its delexicalization tendency. In closing, the development of intensifiers in social communication is presented. The results show that German super enjoys morphosyntactic flexibility. The meaning of this versatile intensifier shifts freely among various magnitudes of intensification, from 'more than', 'very', to 'top most', and even has gone lower than the reference point to mean 'actually not good'. German super has advanced itself in terms of linguistic performance and is gradually losing its role as an intensifier. A diachronic inspection of the use of German super attests linguistic revival in that from a rarely used intensifier, super escalates its use in the last decades in German society. Outer world influences have put super through lexical competitions. Reports on general intensifiers reveal the inner linguistic motivation of change that intensifiers own, and sociolinguistic factors such as gender, age and education background all contribute to the variability of intensifiers in social communication.

本研究以《古今德语语词查询系统》（Das Wortauskunftssystem zur deutschen Sprache in Geschichte und Gegenwart，简称DWDS，即《德语数字词典》(Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache)，Geyken 2020）的语料为基础，考察德语强化语（intensifier）super。本研究分析super的形态句法与语义演变轨迹，并旨在探究其去词汇化（delexicalization）趋势。最后，本研究呈现了社会交际中强化语的发展脉络。研究结果表明，德语super具备较强的形态句法灵活性。这一多用途强化语的语义可随强化量级自由偏移：从“远超”“非常”直至“极致”，甚至可偏移至基准点之下，表达“实则欠佳”之意。德语super在语言表现层面不断演进，但其作为强化语的功能正逐渐弱化。对德语super使用情况的历时考察印证了语言复兴现象：原本极少使用的强化语super，在近数十年间的德语社会中使用频次大幅提升。外部环境影响使super卷入了词汇竞争之中。现有关于通用强化语的研究成果揭示了强化语自身演变的内在语言动因，而性别、年龄、受教育程度等社会语言学因素，均会影响社会交际中强化语的使用变异性。