Search

The research presents results of classifications and analyses of alphabethisms, acronyms and their hybrid forms on a limited corpus of the English medical terms. Alphabethisms and acronyms were classified according to two criteria: narrower and broader sense, and their differences in orthographic formation were described by a set of specific descriptors. This kind of description, classification and analysis was used in examining the corpus of both English and Croatian medical terms. In the analysis of orthographic adaptation of English alphabethisms to Croatian, three degrees of their adaptation were suggested: zero orthographic change, partial/compromise adaptation and complete adaptation. Substitution and adaptation on the orthographic level is tentatively named transgraphemization.

Recent studies in English non-morphological/non-morphemic word-formation processes (e.g. López Rúa 2006 ; Fandrych 2004, 2008, 2008a ; Cannon 1989 ; Plag 2003 ; Muhvić-Dimanovski 2001 ; Brdar-Szabó, Brdar 2008 ; Marković 2009) have shown a great deal of heterogenous aspects in their formation, inconsistancies in classification, definitions and analyses. Non-morphological word-formation processes in English can be seen in the formation of abbreviations, clippings, initialisms, acronyms, blends. In our research the analysis of non-morphological word-formation types in English medical terminology will be carried out together with the description and explanation of their adaptation to Croatian language, which will be accompanied with all types and patterns of their adaptation. The analysis will be conducted on the basis of some recent non-morphological word-formation classifications and on the basis of certain characteristics observed in abbreviations, clippings, initialisms and other types of these words, i. e. transferonyms (borrowings) transferred from the English medical terminology into the Croatian medical terminology. Similarly, on a representative material of these formations, the research will present the degrees of orthographic adaptation of models in the Croatian medical terminology.