므슴

Early Modern Korean

Etymology

From Middle Korean 므슴〮 (mùsúm).

Determiner

므슴 (musum)

1. (in interrogatives) what...?
2. (in declaratives) a certain...

Alternative forms

• 무슴 (mwusum), 므슨 (musun), 무슨 (mwusun)

Descendants

• Korean: 무슨 (museun)

Middle Korean

Etymology

This is one of four related Middle Korean interrogatives all beginning with /mɨsɨ-/: 므스 (musu), 므슥 (musuk), 므슴 (musum), and 므슷 (musus). The precise etymological relationship between the four remains unclear.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɨsɨm/

Pronoun

므슴〮 (mùsúm)

1. (interrogative) what
   • 1475, Queen Insu, 內訓 / 내훈 [Instructions for Women]‎^[1], page 1:43a:

     孝(효)道(도) 아니 ᄒᆞ면 너를 어더 므슴ᄒᆞ료

     HYWO.TWO ani homyen ne-lul ete musum holywo

     If you do not practice filial piety, what would be the point of having you?

   • 1496, 六祖法寶壇經諺解 / 육조법보단경언해 [Korean Translation of the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch], page 中:7a:

     定(뎌ᇰ)慧(혜)ᄂᆞᆫ 므슴과 ᄀᆞᆮᄒᆞ뇨

     TYENG.HYEY-non musum-kwa kot-honywo

     What do certitude and wisdom resemble?

Usage notes

• 므스 (musu) is used before the interrogative particle 고 (-kwo).
• 므슴 (musum) is used before other consonant-initial particles, and before the verb ᄒᆞ다〮 (Yale: hò-tá) "to do".
• 므슥 (musuk) is used before vowel-initial particles.
• In the Early Modern period, the pronouns are ultimately supplanted by the new pronoun 므엇 (mwues), whence modern 무엇 (mueot), 뭐 (mwo).

Determiner

므슴〮 (mùsúm)

1. (interrogative, often rhetorical) what

   Synonym: 어느 (enu)

   • 1447, 釋譜詳節 / 석보상절 [Seokbo sangjeol], page 6:6:

     일〮로〮 혜〯여〮 보〮건덴〮 므슴〮 慈(ᄌᆞ)悲(비) 겨〯시〮거뇨〮

     í-llwó hyěy-é pwókèntéyn mùsúm CO.PI kyěsíkènywó

     When one considers this, what compassion could he [possibly] have?

   • 1481, “野老 / 야로”, in 分類杜工部詩諺解 / 분류두공부시언해, page 7:3:

     므슴〮 ᄠᅳ〮드로〮 琴(금)臺(ᄃᆡ)ᄅᆞᆯ〮 바랫〮ᄂᆞ니〮오

     mùsúm ptút-ùlwó KUM.TOY-lól pàláysnòníwò

     With what intention did it linger at the Zither Pavilion?

Usage notes

• 므스 (musu) is used only for the semantically weak nouns 것 (kes, “thing”) and 일 (il, “work, event”).
• 므슴 (musum) is used generally, but typically in rhetorical questions.
• 므슷 (musus) is used primarily for 일 (il, “event”) but is rarely attested elsewhere.
• 므슷 fails to survive into Early Modern Korean, while 므스 vanishes near the end of the eighteenth century. The default Early Modern interrogative determiner is 므슴, which loses its rhetorical sense and becomes a general interrogative determiner.
• 므슨 (meuseun), probably a hypercorrection of 므슴 motivated by the adnominal ending 은 (eun), is first attested in 1637 and becomes more widespread than 므슴 around 1850, producing Modern Standard Korean 무슨 (museun).

Descendants

• ⇒ Early Modern Korean: 므슨 (musun, “what”)
  • Korean: 무슨 (museun, “what”)

Adverb

므슴〮 (mùsúm)

1. (interrogative, rhetorical) how is it...

   Synonym: 엇〯뎨〮 (ěstyéy)

   • 1481, “君不見簡蘇徯 / 군불견간소혜”, in 分類杜工部詩諺解 / 분류두공부시언해, page 19:46a:

     묏〯 가온〮ᄃᆡ 이슈〮믈 므슴〮 슬흐〮리오〮

     mwǒy-s kàwóntòy ìsywúm-ùl mùsúm sùlhúlìwó

     How is it that you grieve from being amid the mountains?

   • 1517, 飜譯老乞大 / 번역노걸대 [The Old Cathayan], page 63a:

     므슴〮 쇽졀업〯시〮 겻고〮료〮

     mùsúm sywòkcyèl-ěpsí kyèskwólywó

     How is it that we should fight pointlessly?

References

• 이광호 (Yi Gwang-ho) (2009) “'므스'와 '므슥/므슴/므슷'의 의미특성 및 형태변화 [meuseu wa meuseuk/meuseum/meuseut ui uimiteukseong mit hyeongtaebyeonhwa]”, in Gugeo gungmunhak, volume 151, pages 35—57
• 장요한 (Jang Yo-han) (2013) “중세국어 의문사 '므스'류의 교체 양상과 단일화 [jungsegugeo uimunsa meuseu ryuui gyoche yangsanggwa danilhwa]”, in Eoneowa jeongbo sahoe, volume 20, pages 235—259
• 장요한 (Jang Yo-han) (2017) “중세 국어 의문사 '므슴'의 품사 발달과 그 원리 [jungse gugeo uimunsa meuseum ui pumsa baldalgwa geu wolli]”, in Urimalgeul, volume 75, pages 29—50