PREFACE

In 1993 the project "Automatic morphological analysis of Estonian" started at the Institute of the Estonian Language. The purpose of the Project is to create an open system of morphology for the Estonian language, that would be capable of processing new words that are not contained in input dictionaries. The indispensable prerequisite for creating an open system of morphology is the use of linguistic regularities, the intrinsic rules of the language as the basis.

The present collection reports the major intermediate results achieved by the research group by spring 1994. By that time the group had elaborated the theoretical principles and the basic algorithms for an automatic morphology of the Estonian language (Ü. Viks), and developed three central program packages: synthesis of morphological paradigms (E. Kuusik), morphological analysis of word forms (I. Hein), phonological analysis of word structure (P. Lind). The programs are all connected by their using the same data and partly common procedures.

The versions of programs for morphological analysis and synthesis developed up to now support A Concise Morphological Dictionary of Estonian and work correctly within its lexicon, using the morphotactical and allotactical rules embodied in the morphological classification.

However, by that the possibilities of the segmentation-agglutination strategy for the processing of Estonian morphology are exhausted which calls for the transformation and recognition strategies to be included in the system next. The program of phonological analysis is preliminary work to this aim.

In the current stage our work is focused on linguistic rules (word formation, stem changes, type recognition) the application of which is expected to make redundant a big lexicon and to lead to an open system of morphology.

The Project is sponsored by The Open Estonia Foundation and The Estonian Science Foundation.

September 28, 1994
Ülle Viks
Head of the Project