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Greek vocabulary acquisition using semantic domains
Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, Jun 2003 by Wilson, Mark
R. U. Maiguashca also argues for the use of semantics-based approaches in L2 vocabulary acquisition, but her arguments differ from those of Crow. She claims that the type of passive vocabulary that Crow promotes (e.g. key word associations) is insufficient, because it does not teach the student the total semantic range of the word. According to Maiguascha, there should be within a semantic field a cluster of words that is individually defined in order to reveal the "meaning and use of each term."24 She concludes that the use of semantic fields will not only accomplish discernment of terminology but also provide the L2 student with a systematic, organized system of vocabulary-which is how grammar and phonology have been taught for many years.25 Maiguascha sees at least two advantages to using a semantics-based methodology. First, it helps students to build solid lexical competence. Second, its holistic-relational concept of lexicon better accords with the way lexical elements are retained and stored, the so-called "semantic memory" or "mental lexicon." She cites a 1973 study by Hennings that "advanced learners store words primarily according to meaning links and semantic associations of various types." The use of semantic fields would "facilitate the mnemonic retention of the vocabulary learnt."26 Her conclusions would hold true not only for modern languages, but for ancient languages as well.
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III. SEMANTIC DOMAINS AND GREEK VOCABULARY ACQUISITION
The use of semantic domains as a tool for vocabulary acquisition is new within the discipline of biblical Greek. Yet seventy years ago Walter Ripman, in his Handbook of the Latin Language, organized Latin vocabulary into domains and subdomains. Words with similar meanings were grouped together, and words with various meanings were dispersed throughout different domains.27 The noted NT scholar I. Howard Marshall, himself a student of Latin, claims that Ripman's reference was "an extremely useful way of organizing the material for a student learning Latin vocabulary."28
1. Louw and Nida's semantic domains lexicon and vocabulary acquisition. The NT Greek lexicon of Louw and Nida has been a useful resource for Greek lexicography for over a decade, aiding translators, scholars, and students. Louw and Nida's lexicon contains 93 semantic domains arranged according to a certain genus of words: entities or objects (D 1-12), events or activities (D 13-57), abstracts or characteristics (D 58-88), relations (D 89-90), discourse markers (D 91), discourse referentials (D 92), and proper names (D 93), and the majority consist of subdomains that distinguish the words even further.29 The principles of classification are:30
a. The existence of shared features between lexemes, e.g. size, shape, time, movement, number, importance, etc.
b. The close association of entities and activities, e.g. "eyes" with "sight" or "hands" with "tools."
c. The grouping of meaning that reflects the "world view" of the native speakers (the primary criterion),
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