The Role of Analogy in Romanian Noun System. With Regard to the Analogical

Influence of the Plural Forms on the Singular Ones

Abstract

Analogy represents one of the main causes that determined the reorganization of the grammatical system
in its evolution from Latin to Romanian. A special case of analogy within the nominal system is represented by the influence of the plural forms on the singular ones. Thus, following a certain inflexional model, well represented in language, a whole series of nouns brought forth new singular forms under the influence of the plural ones and also changing their declension type. On the one hand, as far as the singular – plural opposition is concerned, the speaker aimed at the uniformization and normalization of the paradigms, where the differences between the forms were too obvious, and on the other hand, their distinction was taken into consideration in instances where there was a minimum difference or even an identity of the morphemes.