Verb Formation of Derivational Sasak Prefix: Morphological Study

This study aims to explore the morphological process of verb formation through derivational prefixes in the Sasak language, focusing on the Meno-Mene dialect spoken in Kuripan village, Lombok Island. The research has two primary objectives: first, to identify the kinds of prefixes in Sasak that can form verb categories in terms of derivation, and second, to determine the types of base morphemes that can be combined with each prefix to form verbs. This study use descriptive qualitative method. The result of this study identifies 4 (four) prefixes, including /be-/ (consist of /be-/ and /ber-/ as allomorph), /m-/, /peN-/ (consist of /pe-/ and /per-/ as allomorph), and /N-/ (consist of /n-/, /ng-/, and /ny-/ as allomorph). The findings indicate that these prefixes attach to specific categories of base morphemes to produce verbs. For instance, the prefix /be-/ can combine with nouns, adjectives, and adverbs, while /peN-/ has a broader range, attaching to noun, adjective, adverb, and number of word category. The prefix /m-/ is limited to noun category, and /N-/ is exclusively affixed to noun category. This study provides valuable insights into the derivational morphology of the Sasak language, contributing to the understanding of verb formation processes in Austronesian languages. The findings highlight the systematic nature of prefixation and its role in expanding the verb lexicon within the Sasak language.