〜学(がく)

〜学(がく) is a productive suffix meaning "-ology" or "study of," attached to a topic to form the name of an academic discipline.

Common fields

• 科学(かがく): science
• 数学(すうがく): mathematics
• 物理学(ぶつりがく): physics
• 化学(かがく): chemistry
• 生物学(せいぶつがく): biology
• 心理学(しんりがく): psychology
• 経済学(けいざいがく): economics
• 言語学(げんごがく): linguistics
• 医学(いがく): medicine
• 法学(ほうがく): law

Usage

Highly productive — you can form new academic fields by attaching 学(がく) to a subject: 環境(かんきょう)学(がく) (environmental studies), 情報(じょうほう)学(がく) (information science). Words like 科学(かがく) and 数学(すうがく) are so common that the 学(がく) feels like part of the word rather than a suffix.

Related suffixes

• 〜者(しゃ): person (adding to field: 科学者(かがくしゃ) scientist)
• 〜部(ぶ): department (文学部(ぶんがくぶ) literature department)