Stratifying the Compound Words

Compounds have long been closely studied by many linguists. One reason for this especially in Persian language is probably the high productivity rate of this process. Since these kinds of words are both composed by the lay people in their daily speech and at the same time by the experts, the Persian language can benefit from this possibility and fulfill its needs with regard to finding appropriate equivalents for foreign words and scientific expressions. This study is an attempt to provide a description of compounds and delve into its intrinsic nature to demonstrate its place in morphological hierarchy. To this end, the researchers of the study have resorted to different theoretical approaches. Finally, after introducing a number of different ways of classifying the compounds, the most comprehensive one is proposed based on consistent criteria which is hoped to be universally valid too.