H. Wissemann, Untersuchungen zur onomatopoiie, I. teil: Die sprachpsychologischen versuche. Heidelberg 1954, C. Winter

Abstract

This publication, which is to be followed by a second volume containing the application of the theoretical and methodical consequences of the research described and the principles embodied here, constitutes a new approach to the partial solution of one of the oldest problems of linguistic science. Abstaining from both linguistic theory and an analysis of existing onomatopoeias - since these methods have not led to leading principles in etymological research concerned with the expressive constituents of tile vocabulary - the author, following a previous publication of D. Usnadzes ("Ein experimenteller Beitrag zum Problem der psychologischen Grundlagen der Namengebung", Psychol. Forsch. 5, 1924) instituted experiments in order closely to ascertain how words denoting sounds (Gerauschbenennungen) come into existence.