Word formation processes in nineteenth and twentieth century grammars: Manuel Said Ali, Ernesto Carneiro Ribeiro and Eduardo Carlos Pereira

Abstract

Morphologic studies have undergone conceptual variations throughout their history, sometimes substantially modifying their configuration and presentation; reflections of the times and also of the individual interpretations of grammarians, this fundamental part of grammatical and linguistic studies deserves to be highlighted. In another context, the adoption of a Brazilian Grammatical Nomenclature would, in a sense, standardize the variant meanings that grammarians and eras had - at least in theory, of course. In this text, we chose to analyze and investigate the meaning of morphology in three grammars from the 19th and 20th centuries - the Secondary Grammar of the Portuguese Language, by Manuel Said Ali; the Serões Grammaticaes, by Ernesto Carneiro Ribeiro and the Grammatica Expositiva, by Eduardo Carlos Pereira. The works are significant in the Brazilian context, as will be seen in the text, which is why they were chosen. Our results point to a substantially different understanding and definition of morphology, even in post-NGB contexts.