Exploring Blending in the Morphological Construction of Native Brand Names in Eastern Nigeria

Research Article Cite this paper as: Nwonu EG, Ezenwafor-Afuecheta CI. Exploring Blending in the Morphological Construction of Native Brand Names in Eastern Nigeria. 2025; 4(3): 33-46. DOI: 10.58803/jclr.v4i2.132 The Author(s). Published by Rovedar. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Rovedar JCLR Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46. DOI: 10.58803/jclr.v4i2.132 http://jclr.rovedar.com/ Journal of Contemporary Language Research Exploring Blending in the Morphological Construction of Native Brand Names in Eastern Nigeria Echezonachi G. Nwonu and Chikelu I. Ezenwafor-Afuecheta* Department of Linguistics, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nigeria * Corresponding author: Chikelu I. Ezenwafor-Afuecheta, Department of Linguistics, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nigeria. Email: [email protected] A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T Article History: Received: 25/07/2025 Revised: 18/08/2025 Accepted: 02/09/2025 Published: 30/09/2025 Introduction: This study investigates blending as a creative morphological strategy in brand name formation and examines the factors that motivate its use. Methodology: Drawing on Dressler’s (1987) Natural Morphology Theory, it highlights both the natural and innovative dimensions of blending in brand naming. Following Mathew’s 1974 model and Mattiello’s (2013) model, the analysis applies two main classification systems: word class and morphological structure. The word class classification includes brand names formed from Igbo nouns and verbs, combinations of loanwords and Igbo terms, English nouns and verbs, pseudo-morphemes, adjectives, and translated forms. The morphological classification distinguishes among morphotactical blends (total and partial), morphophonological blends (overlapping and non-overlapping), and morphosemantic blends (attributive and coordinate). Data were collected from the Onitsha Relief Market, Anambra State, Nigeria. Results: The analysis reveals that morphophonological blends are the most iconic among the identified types. Blending in the data demonstrates both creative and adaptive linguistic tendencies, reflecting natural morphological processes. The findings indicate that blending in brand naming functions primarily as a creative linguistic process rather than a productive one. Conclusion: In conclusion, the use of blending is motivated by phonological/graphological, morphological, and semantic considerations, showcasing the dynamic interplay between linguistic innovation and communicative intent in brand creation. Keywords: Blending Creativity Iconicity Igbo morphology Morphological patterns Productivity 1. Introduction A brand name is among the most vital assets a business can possess. It not only identifies a product or service but also influences how it is perceived, recalled, and referenced by consumers. As Room (1994) notes, brand names serve both a functional and promotional role, conveying information and fostering positive associations. The process of crafting an effective brand name is not arbitrary; it is deeply rooted in linguistic creativity, particularly within the field of morphology, which examines how new words are formed and evolve. Among the various word-formation processes, blending has emerged as a particularly dynamic and widely used technique in brand naming. This morphological process, defined by the fusion of parts from two or more words, has been described as both productive and creatively irregular (Panić, 2004). Here, productivity refers to the systematic and predictable application of morphological rules, while Nwonu EG. / Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46 34 creativity involves original and often unpredictable approaches. Although blending is common in global brand naming, its role in indigenous markets, particularly in Nigeria, remains underexplored. This gap underlines the need for research that examines how blending operates within the Nigerian linguistic and commercial context. Accordingly, the present study aims to investigate the morphological processes underlying brand name formation in Nigeria, with particular emphasis on blending. It seeks to identify the linguistic strategies employed, uncover the motivations for their creation, and determine whether recurring structural patterns can be observed. The theoretical foundation for this analysis is drawn from Dressler’s (1987) Natural Morphology Theory. In addition, two classificatory frameworks are employed: Matthews’ (1974) model for categorizing brand names by word class, and Mattiello’s (2013) morphological classification of blends. In this study, the term brand names is used broadly to encompass both product and business names. By addressing this gap, the study contributes to a deeper understanding of how linguistic creativity shapes commercial identity in the Nigerian market. Blending is a morphological process that combines elements from two words to form a new word with fused meaning. Despite varying scholarly definitions, blends typically involve the shortening of source words, phonological overlap, and semantic fusion. Unlike regular morphological processes, blending is extra-grammatical: it lacks consistent rules, often yields unpredictable outcomes, and produces forms that are semantically opaque. Mattiello (2013) offers a useful classification of blends, emphasizing both their structural and semantic variability. She identifies overlapping blends (e.g., sexploitation ← sex + exploitation), clipping blends (e.g., brunch ← breakfast + lunch), and hybrids, in which one source word remains intact (e.g., workaholic ← work + alcoholic). This typology illustrates that blending operates without fixed rules and allows for significant linguistic creativity. Fradin (2000) further distinguishes blending from other morphological processes by highlighting three features: (1) blends rarely preserve the lexical integrity of their source words, (2) they lack consistent patterns of compositionality, and (3) they often appear as hapaxes, isolated lexical creations that do not form part of a productive morphological series. Taken together, these perspectives underscore the complexity and irregularity of blending as a wordformation process. By examining its use in Nigerian brand naming, this study not only fills a notable research gap but also provides insights into the intersection of linguistic creativity and commercial identity. 2. Methodology The data for this study were gathered through field visits to the Onitsha Relief Market in Anambra State, Nigeria, a major commercial hub in SouthEastern Nigeria. Where relevant, oral interviews with traders and consumers were conducted to supplement the data, and additional brand names were collected from advertising jingles promoting products and services. Thus, the study draws primarily on first-hand (primary) data, complemented by contextual sources. Due to logistical constraints, the entire market could not be covered; therefore, a simple random sampling technique was employed. This approach ensured that each brand name encountered had an equal chance of inclusion, thereby minimizing researcher bias. From the data pool, 90 brand names exhibiting evidence of blending were selected for analysis. The data were analyzed using a descriptive approach. In this study, the term source words refers to the lexical units combined in the blend, while splinters denote fragments of those words. For consistency, the terms brand names and blends are used interchangeably. For classification, two models were applied: Matthews’ (1974) framework for categorizing brand names according to word class, and Mattiello’s (2013) typology for analyzing blends by morphological operation. These frameworks were chosen because they offer cross-linguistic breadth and flexibility, enabling their adaptation to Igbo brand naming. In addition to descriptive analysis, this study adopts the Natural Morphology Theory (NMT) (Dressler, 1987) as its theoretical framework. NMT highlights the relationship between word structure and meaning, and explains how morphological processes are shaped by human cognitive and communicative capacities. Processes are considered “natural” when they are frequent, cross-linguistically widespread, diachronically stable, and easily acquired (Bailey, 2007). Dressler further distinguishes between system-independent (universal) and system-dependent (languagespecific) patterns, arguing that universal preferences, such as iconicity, transparency, and biuniqueness, apply even to extra-grammatical processes like blending. One key parameter is iconicity, whereby the form of a blend reflects its meaning (e.g., smog ← smoke + fog). Other parameters, such as morphotactic transparency Nwonu EG/ Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46 35 and perceptual salience, explain why some blends are more easily recognizable (motel ← motor + hotel) while others are opaque (enshocklopedia ← encyclopedia + shock). These irregularities illustrate why blending is regarded as an extra-grammatical but cognitively motivated process. Taken together, NMT and Mattiello’s typology provide complementary lenses for analyzing Igbo brand names. While Matthews’ classification anchors them in traditional word classes, NMT explains their naturalness and markedness, and Mattiello highlights their structural variability. This combined approach allows the study to capture both the creative and systematic dimensions of blending in Nigerian brand naming. 3. Results This section presents the blend forms identified from the collected data. A total of 90 blends, comprising both Igbo and foreign-origin terms used as indigenous brand names, are listed in Table 1. These blends are then categorized according to the classification frameworks of Matthew (1974) and Mattiello (2013). Matthew classifies blends based on the grammatical categories of the source words, while Mattiello focuses on their morphological structure and formation processes. To further analyze these blends, key principles from Natural Morphology Theory (NMT), such as iconicity, figure/ground distinction, and perceptual salience, are applied to explain how these blends function within the brand names. The compiled brand names are presented in Table 1. From the above data, different types of brand names could be established on the basis of their categorial features as shown in section 3.2. Table 1. Indigenous Brand Names S/N First word Second word Brand names 1 Loyal Milk Loya Milk 2 Fresh Yoghourt Freshyo 3 Mama Dish Madish 4 Spice City Spicity 5 Cray Fish Crafish 6 Alive Gold Alivgold 7 Hannah Jacinta AnnJees 8 Precious Nathaniel PreNath 9 Sunday Olamma Sunla 10 Larry John LaJonic 11 Nutritious Chocolate Nutrichoco 12 Patrick Ndubuisi Patbuisi 13 Emmanuel Gold EmmaGold 14 Benneth Catherine Bencarty 15 Rosemary Chukwuemeka Rosemek 16 Ginika Sunday Ginisun 17 Peter Priscilia Petpriscy 18 Nutritious Milk Nutrimilk 19 Nutritious Yoghurt Nutriyo 20 Charles Emeka Charlesmek 21 Maxwell Samuel Maxsam 22 Kingsley Kanayo Kinkana 23 Nestle Cafe Nescafe 24 Vitallis Nnaemeka Vitameka 25 Helen Ejike Helejyke 26 Brother Stephen Broteph 27 Eric Christian Erichris 28 Ndubuisi Wine Nduwine 29 Sunday Tex Suntex 30 Okwuchukwu Tex Okwutex 31 Uchechukwu Tex Uchetex 32 Benneth Camel Bencamel 33 Olisaemeka Frank Olisfrank 34 Peter Joseph Pejoe 35 Joy Friday Joyday 36 Nathaniel Chisom Nathsom 37 Victor Mmaduabuchi Vicmmadu 38 Ugochukwu Frank Ugofrank 39 Emmanuel Samuel Emmasam 40 Fresh Tea Frestea 41 Vital Milk Vitamilk 42 Christopher Chukwuemeka Chrismeka 43 Paul O Paulo 44 Celestine Ikeji Celekeji 45 Sharp Co Sharpico Nwonu EG. / Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46 36 46 Fatigue Gone Fatigone 47 Donatus Kingsley Donkin 48 Jude Soap Jusoap 49 Nicholas Mmasinachi Nichochi 50 Joseph Best Jobest 51 Echezonachi Co Echeco 52 Nzubechi Peanut Nzunut 53 Arizonachi Keys Arikeys 54 Kelechi Spices Kespices 55 Kenedy Don Kendon 56 Ubasinachi God UbaGod 57 Simon God SimGod 58 Ifesinachi Roseline Rosife 59 Quick Action Kwaction 60 Rat Kill Rakill 61 Chijindu Goodluk Chigood 62 Osinachi Mmadinachi Osimma Ventures 63 Mama Precious Mama P foods 64 Spice Up Spicup 67 The Fresh D’ fresh 68 Rat Die Radie 69 Christian Chinaza Chrizza 70 Family Juliana Familiana 71 Nnabuike It Nabit 72 Sylvester Florence Sylflora 73 Carbonated Fresh C-Fresh 74 One Touch Ontouch 75 Simple - X Simplex 79 Early Morning Earlimorn 80 Akachukwu Chips Akachip 81 Chibueze Co Ezeco 82 Emmanuel Co Emmaco 83 Kelechi Sons Kelesons 84 David Son Davison 85 Amaka Special Amaspecial 86 Kanayo Onisha Kanayosha 87 Innocent Provision Innoprovision 88 Oluchi Store Olistore 89 Faith Soap Fasoap 90 Mmasinachi Chin-chin Mmasichichin 3.2. Classification of blend words according to word class Based on the collected data, the indigenous brand names fall into different categories, with some originating from a blend of English and Igbo morphology. In other instances, brand names are entirely derived from foreign words. This section aims to provide a descriptive overview of these categories. However, their detailed analysis is addressed within their classification into different word categories. Some brand names appear in the form of nouns, nominals, verbs, adjectives, and pseudo-morphemic-based blending forms. Consider the following groupings: From the data, two brand names involving Igbo nominals are identified. The brand names Osimma and Kanayosha are coined from the merging and clipping of two personal names. In other words, these blend forms occur when splinters from two nouns are merged to give another new form of noun, either in the form of companies’, products’, or couples’ business name (see 62 and 86 in Table 1). In particular, Osimma is formed from the personal names Osinachi and Mmadinachi. The initial parts of both names are merged to form a brand name. Kanayosha, as a brand name, is also formed from two source words Kanayo and Onisha. The first source word is fully retained while the second source word is clipped. Brand names involving loan words and Igbo nominals appear to be the most common, with 30 of them attested in our data. A loanword is a term borrowed from another language and used without translation, often to express a concept or meaning that lacks a direct equivalent in English. In this context, the category includes words of Igbo origin as well as those borrowed from other languages, predominantly English. Owing to the close interaction between Igbo and English, brand creators often engage in code-mixing during the formation of brand names. Below are some examples: Loan word Igbo nominal Blend form a store Oluchi Olistore b sons Kelechi Kelesons c Sunday Olamma Sunola d Vitalis Nnaemeka Vitamek e Kingsley Kanayo Kinkana f Keys Arizonachi Arikeys The third class comprises brand names that are Nwonu EG/ Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46 37 formed from the splinters of verbs and common nouns of English origin. Some of the resulting blends such as rakill and radie are brand names for products used in the pest control of rodents. Below are some examples: Noun Verb Blend a rat kill rakill b rat die radie c fatigue gone fatigone Brand names that involve Igbo nominals and pseudo morphemes are characterized by blending in which Igbo personal names are clipped and subsequently combined with a pseudo morpheme in form of a suffix to form a new word. A Pseudomorpheme (a quasi-morpheme) is a morpheme which has a differential and a distributional meaning but does not possess any lexical or functional meaning. Pseudo morphemes/suffixes commonly used in brand naming include: -co, as in Echeco, Emmaco, Ezeco, -tex as in Uchetex, Okwutex, and O as in Paulo, Kendo etc suggest an aura of business. Noun Pseudo morpheme Blend a Chibueze -co Ezeco b Uche -tex Uchetex c Okwuchukwu -tex Okwutex Similarly, non Igbo personal names, particularly of English origin, are also clipped and combined with pseudo morphemes to form brand names as illustrated below: Noun Pseudo morpheme Blend a Emmanuel -co Emmaco b Sunday -tex Sunnytex c Kennedy -o Kendo Lastly, a subset of brand names identified consists of noun+noun combination (see 95a-c), as well as adjective + noun splinters (see 96a-c). The source words are of English origin while the products named are of local origin. Below are some examples: First word (Noun) Second word (Noun) Blend (brand names) a spice city spicity b Jude soap jusoap c Larry John Lajonic First word (Adjective) Second word (Noun) Blends (brand names) a loyal milk Loyamilk b fresh yoghourt Freshyo c nutritious chocolate nutrichoco 3.3. Morphological classification and analysis of blended brand names This study views blending as an unpredictable and irregular morphological process that involves a conscious coinage of a new word by fusing at least two source words which resulting in a partial loss of the orthographic and/or phonological material of either of the source words or both, or resulting in an overlap. In the Igbo language, as well as other languages, particularly English, both of which contribute to the brand names found within the study area, blending serves as a significant morphological process in brand naming (Table 2). This section classifies blends into three main categories based on their morphological characteristics, following Mattiello’s (2013) framework: a. Morphotactical blends: (i) Total blends and (ii) Partial blends. b. Morphophonological blends: (i) Overlapping blends and non-overlapping blends. c. Morphosemantic blends: (i) Attributive blend and (ii) Coordinate blends 3.3.1. Morphotactical blends Morphotactical blends comprises total and partial blends. Total blends are those in which all source words are reduced to splinters. Splinter is used in this work to describe “bits” from the truncated source words that appear in the blends. 3.3.1.1. Total blends Total blends appear in different forms: i) Where the initial part of one word is followed by the final part of another. Consider the examples in Table 3. All the blends of this subtype are nouns. Most of the brand names that fall into this category are personal names of Igbo origin, code-mixed with loanwords, or personal names of foreign origin. These are good examples of hybridization (the act of combining two parts of words which etymologically belong to two separate languages to form a new word). This act of linguistic operation of hybridization in the Igbo parlance is indicative of the speakers’ high level of codeswitching and code-mixing. Table 2. Classification of blend words according to word categories Different Classes of Brand Names Token Brand names involving Igbo nominals 2 Brand names involving loanwords and Igbo nominals 30 Brand names involving English verbs and nouns 4 Brand names involving Igbo nominal and pseudo-morpheme 4 Brand names involving loan words and pseudo-morpheme 6 Brand names involving loanwords (nouns) 26 Brand names involving adjectives and nouns 17 Nwonu EG. / Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46 38 Table 3. Brand name formation using word initial and word final parts of source words Blends Constituents and process 97a. Rosemeka Rose(Mary) + (Chukwue) meka b. Chrizza Chri(stian) + (China)za c. Familiana Fami(ly) + (Ju)liana d. Chrismeka Chris(topher) + (Chukwue)meka e. Celekeji Cele(stine) + (I)keji f. Nichochi Nicho(las) + (Mmasina)chi g. Nzunut Nzu(bechi) + (Pea)nut h. Patbuisi Pat(rick) + (Ndu)buisi i. Natsom Nath(aniel) + (Chi)som The first notable morphological operation is that all the source words undergo clipping either on the front or back before the splinters (the fragments of larger words used in the formation of new words) are merged. All the source words are personal names except in number (97g.) where a common noun, ‘peanut’ occurs as the second source word. The splinter ‘meka’ at the end of Rosemeka and Chrismeka respectively, appears productive. The splinter suggests a productive mechanism in personal names for brand naming. In the two brand names, the clipping on the first source words occurs immediately after the first syllables are taken, while the clipping on the second source words occurs when the first two syllables, chukwu (chu + kwu), have been deleted. Between family and Juliana, the (ly) and (li) overlapped resulting to the brand name, Familiana, a family product name. As can be seen in Table 3, there is a reduction in the degree of iconicity of the source words (inputs) contextually, but the blend words are more iconic in that the fusion of the source words results in the fusion of meaning. ii) Where both splinters used in brand name formation originate from the initial parts of source words. See some examples in Table 4. Table 4. Splinters used in brand name formation are initial parts of source words Blends Constituents and Process 98a. Hanjay Han(nah) + Ja(cinta) b. Prenath Pre(cious) + Nath(aniel) c. Sunola Sun(day) + Ola(mma) d. Nutrichoco Nutri(tious) + choco(late) e. Bencarty Ben(neth) + Cathe(rine) f. Ginisun Gini(ka) + Sun(day) g. Petpricy Pet(er) + Presci(lia) h. Nutriyo Nutritious + Yoghourt i. Maxsam Max(well) + Sam(uel) j. Kinkana Kin(gsley) + Kana(yo) k. Helejyk Hel(en) + Ejik(e) l. Brosteph Bro(ther) + Steph(en) m. Erichris Eri(c) + Chris(tian) n. Sylflora Syl(vester) + (Flor)ence o. Pejoe Pe(ter) + Jo(seph) p. Vicmadu Vic(tor) + Mmadu(abuchi) q. Emmasam Emma(nuel) + Sam(uel) r. Donkin Don(atus) + Kin(gsley) s. Chigood Chi(jindu) + Good(luck) t Osimma Osi(nachi )+ Mma(duabuchi) From the above table, it is evident that the morphological operations of clipping and merging are involved in the formation of the blends such as in Bencarty, Petpricy, Helejyk, Erichris, Sylflora, and Pejoe. In Bencarty, (from Benneth and Cathrine), the blending operations involve clipping off of neth and rine in both words respectively and subsequent suffixation of /y/ as also seen in Sylflora where /a/ was introduced. It should be noted that the suffixation of /y/ to Cathy and /a/ to Flora emanates from the shortened form of these names in isolation. In the Eastern part of Nigeria where the data are obtained, Joe is to Joseph what Flora is to Florence. In Petpricy (from Peter and Prescilia), there is clipping followed by the substitution of /i/ with /y/, a form of transliteration. In Erichris (Eric + Christian), /c/ and /ch/ overlapped whereas in Helejyk, /e/ in Helen and /e/ in Ejike overlapped accordingly. There is also transliteration of /i/ in Ejike with /ai/ written as (y). The overlapping of /e/ in Helejyk could be because both Igbo and English have the vowel /e/. The blend word, Osimma, is a family business coined from names of identical twins, Mma(dinachi) and Nwonu EG/ Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46 39 Osi(nachi) to have (Osimma Ventures). Other blend forms in the above table follow this kind of clipping and merging without further morphological operations. 3.3.1.2. Partial blends Partial blends are those blends in which only one source word is reduced. Partial blends occur in diverse ways in; the first source word is either followed a splinter (see Table 5), or preceded by a splinter (see Table 6). See the examples below: All the blend forms above have their full words followed by splinters but in Earlimorn, there is a phonological transliteration occurring on Early where /y/ was transliterated to /i/. Another blend form with peculiar morphological process in this group is Mama.p (Mama + Precious), a full word with a period followed by an acronym /p/. Table 5. Source word before splinter Brand Names Constituents and Process 99a. Freshyo Fresh + Yo(ghurt) b. Charlesmeka Charles+ (E)meka c. Earlymorn Early + Morn(ing) d. Joysday Joy + (Fri)day e. Mama. P Mama +P(recious) Table 6. Source word after splinter Brand names Constituents and Process 100a. Loyamilk Loya(l) + Milk b. Madish Ma(ma) + Dish c. Crafish Cra(y) +Fish d. Alivgold Aliv(e) +Gold e. Nduwine Ndu(buisi) +Wine f. Akachips Aka(chukwu) + Chips g. Ontouch On(e) + Touch h. Ugofrank Ugochukwu +Frank i. Frestea Fres(h) + Tea j. Fatigone Fati(gue) + Gone k. Jusoap Ju(de) + Soap l. Jobest Jo(seph) + Best m. Arikeys Arizonachi+ Keys n. Kespices Ke(lechi) + Spices o. Kwaction Qu(ick) +Action p. Rakill Ra(t) +Kill q. C-Fresh C(arbonated) + Fresh r. Spicity Spi(ces) + City This specific category of partial blends is rich in complexity and subtle variations. From the table provided earlier, one less common blend example is C-fresh, which combines carbonated and fresh. Another notable blend in this group is Madish, derived from Mama and Dish. In the case of Mama, the blend may use either the first syllable "ma" or the second. Similarly, the term Spicity is a fusion of spices and city. Most of the brand names in this category result from noun + noun combinations, with a few exceptions like Loyamilk, Rakill, and Radie. The name Rakill blends rat (a noun) with kill (a verb), indicating a rodenticide designed to exterminate rats. It is manufactured and distributed by Azubuike Business Enterprises. Likewise, Radie comes from rat and die, also referring to a rodent poison targeting rats and similar pests.Another unique brand name is Alivgold, which combines alive (an adjective) and gold (a noun). This brand is known for producing powderbased products. Jobest is another interesting case, formed from the proper noun Joseph and the adjective best. It represents a trading company that deals in various soft drinks. The word Kwaction blends quick (adjective) and action (noun). In this case, the blending process involved a form of loan translation, where the morpheme "qu" was translated into Igbo as "kw." When a word is borrowed into another language, it typically goes through a process of adaptation, where it’s phonetic, morphological, and syntactic features are modified to align with the rules of the target language. Spelling changes are also common in borrowed words, particularly in Igbo, where English terms are often respelled to match Igbo phonology. Kwaction is an insecticide used against cockroaches, mosquitoes, wall geckos, centipedes, and other harmful crawling insects. It is produced and distributed by Ukachukwu Business Ventures. The third type of partial blending is one in which the beginning of the source word is followed by a pseudo morpheme as illustrated in Table 7. Nwonu EG. / Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46 40 Table 7. Partial blend type-beginning of source word followed by a pseudo morpheme S/N Constituents and Process Pseudo morpheme Brand names 101a. Okwu(chukwu) Tex Okwutex b. Uche(nna) Tex Uchetex c. (Chibu)eze Co Ezeco d. Eche(zonachi) Co Echeco e. Sun(day) Tex Sunnytex f. Emma(nuel) Co Emmaco g. Sharp Co Sharpico h. Paul -O Paulo i. Ken(nedy) -O Kendo j. Simple -X Simplex As can be seen in Table 7, a range of pseudomorphemes are used to complement root words in creating blends. These include groups like Tex, Co, -O, and –X. For example, Echeco is derived from Echezonachi with the addition of the pseudocommercial suffix -Co. As mentioned earlier, this suffix is considered a commercial morpheme, often interpreted by scholars to imply a company or enterprise. Echeco is a business involved in selling groceries such as flour, semolina, rice, and related products. Similarly, Sharpico is a blend of sharp and co. This brand name represents an insecticide formulated to eliminate mosquitoes. The use of sharp in the name is deliberate, highlighting the product’s quick-acting effect. Another brand, Kendo, is formed from Kennedy by clipping and appending the suffix – O. Kendo is a company known for selling waterproof materials, including nylon, leather, canvas, mesh, and cotton fabrics. Comparing total blends with partial blends, partial blends are generally more iconic due to their morphotactic transparency. That is, they contain an entire word, which helps users easily identify the components of the blend. Examples include Loyamilk (from loyal and milk), Freshyo (from fresh and yoghurt), and Crafish (from crayfish). However, there is high morphotactic opacity (i.e. difficulty in identifying the constituent parts) of some total blends, for example, Nichochi from (Nicholas + Mmasinachi) can be said to be coined from (Nichloas + Chinasa, Chiamaka, Chinaza etc), Chigood from (Chijindu + Goodluck) can be said to be a fusion of either (Chiemerie, Chika, Chisom etc + Goodness, Goodnews etc), Osimma from (Osinachi + Mmaduabuchi) can be said to be a blend from combining any of these first words: Osita, Osinadi, Osite etc with any of the second words: Olamma, Adamma, etc. It can be observed that the most distinctive cases are ambiguous formations, where a single form can originate from multiple source words. In other words, these are marked (i.e., unique or unusual) formations in which the same blend word (signata) can be derived from two or more different source words (signans), or where multiple different source words could potentially produce the same blend word. According to the principle of perceptual salience, both total and partial blends tend to favor the use of the initial and final segments of source words when forming new blends. This tendency is evident in the examples discussed across the various morphotactic categories. The principle also explains why certain blends shown in Example (1a-d) are more commonly accepted, while those in (2) are generally considered unacceptable. (1) a. Ginisun ← Ginika + Sunday b. Osimma ← Osinachi + Mmaduabuchi c. Kinkana ← Kingsley + Kanayo d. Maxsam ← Maxwell + Samuel, But the end of certain words cannot be the beginning of a blend (2) a. *uelwell ← Samuel + Maxwell b. *sleyayo←Kingsley+Kanayo 3.3.2. Morphophonological blends As the name suggests, this classification focuses on the interaction between morphological and phonological elements in the process of blending. Two categories of morphonological blends are identified: the overlapping and non-overlapping blends. 3.3.2.1. Overlapping blends This morphophonological process manifests in various forms, where the constituent parts of the blend share similarities in both spelling (graphically) and sound (phonologically), without any significant shortening. For example: 3.3. Overlapping blend Blends Constituents and Process Constituent overlap Spicity Spice + City /s/ written as ce/c From Table 3.3, we can observe that all the source words are nouns. Additionally, the extent of constituent overlap does not appear to vary phonologically. The overlapping segments between the source words primarily consist of phonemes with similar characteristics, most notably, the /s/ sound. For instance, spicity is a blend formed from spice and city. Nwonu EG/ Journal of Contemporary Language Research. 2025; 4(3): 33-46 41 A similar type of blend involves overlap both graphically and phonologically, typically with at least one of the source words being shortened (Table 8). 3.3.2.2. Non overlapping blends These are blends in which the constituent parts do not overlap either phonologically or graphically. They typically include brand names or coined terms that are formed without any shared segments between the source words. Examples of such blends are included, but not limited to, those presented in Table 9. Table 8. Overlapping blend with shortened source word S/N Blends Constituents and Process Constituent Overlapped 106a. Mmasichi Mmasinachi + Chin-chin /ʧi/ written as chi/ b. Helejyk Helen + Ejike /e/ written as e c. Erichris Eric + Chris /k/ written as c/ch d. Rosife Roseline + Ifesinachi /i/ written as e or i e. Familiana Family + Juliana /li/ written as ly or li f. Kanayosha Kanayo + Onisha /ọ/ written as e Table 9. Non overlapping blends S/N First word Second word Blend 107a. Benneth Catherine Bencarty b. Mama Dish Madish c. Cray Fish Crafish d. Hanna Jacinta Annjay e. Larry John Lajonic f. Peter Priscilla Petpriscy g. Maxwell Samuel Maxsam h. Brother Stephen Brosteph i. Benneth Camel Bencamel j. Sylvester Florence Sylflora As shown in Table 9, some of the source words are shortened—unlike the example in Table 7 where the constituents overlap both graphically and phonologically without any shortening, are more marked (i.e., rarer) and more transparent in structure. In contrast, the blends in Table 8, which also involve both graphical and phonological overlap but include shortening of at least one source word, are somewhat less marked and less transparent. Meanwhile, the non-overlapping blends found in Table 9 are the least marked (more common) and the least transparent of all. 3.3.3. Morpho-semantic blends This type of blend takes into account the semantic relationship between the source words. Within this category, blends are classified into attributive blends and coordinate blends. Attributive blends resemble endocentric compounds, where one component functions as the head and the other as a modifier. Two subcategories can be identified within attributive blends: leftheaded and right-headed attributive blends. Rightheaded attributive blend is a subtype in which the head appears on the right, while the preceding element serves as the modifier. Consider the following examples: In Table 10, the source words are nouns; the first set comprises proper nouns (personal names), while the second set includes common nouns. Morphosemantically, the proper nouns function as modifiers (grounds) to the common nouns (figures). This structure effectively forms a blend resembling an adjective + noun construction. Syntactically, the heads of these blends determine their word class. For instance, the brand name Akachips is a blend of Akachukwu (a personal name) and chips, indicating a type of chip. In (108c), the brand name Madish is derived from Mama (a personal name) and dish, referring to a type of dish. In example (108f), Arikeys combines Arizonachi (a personal name) and keys, denoting a business specializing in household keys. Lastly, in example (108g), the brand name Kespices involves a fusion of Kelechi (a personal name) and spices, representing a blend of spices used in local dishes like banga soup or ofe-akwu. These blends illustrate how personal names can be creatively combined with common nouns to form unique brand names, with the proper noun serving as a modifier to the common noun.