https://www.ted.com/talks/john_mcwhorter_txtng_is_killing_language_jk
Jean Aitcheson Metaphors:
- Crumbling Castle
- Language was once in a perfect stae, but is gradually decaying
- Infectious Disease
- Language decay is infectious and is rapidly spreading- metaphorical 'epidemic
- Prescriptivists believe 'cure' for this disease, is perservation of Standard Englis
- Damp spoon syndrome
- Sloppy langugae is gradually polluting wider language
BUT J.Aitcheson critiques METAPHORS, John McWhorter highlights flaw in Crumbling Castle:
English language, in form of literacy and spekaing been full of errors: social divide
Abnormalities and slang language coined by Shakespeare- forms SE of today
English language, in form of literacy and spekaing been full of errors: social divide
Abnormalities and slang language coined by Shakespeare- forms SE of today
Anne Curzan of University of Michigan
The empathetic marker 'Lol' has displayed a semantic shift from being an acronym for 'Laughing out loud', to a device used to establish understanding: often in non-comical circumstances as shown via the transcript in "lol that'smad mate". Notably, this particle has emerged from exclusively being used in textspeak, as a means of conveniently expressing a comical response, to being a pragmatic particle used in spoken language. This implies that spoken language is evolving to incorporate features of online and multi-modal communication.
David Crystal
-Recorgnises importance of Standardisation- common ground ot which everyone can udnerstand
-Notes importance of internet and technology- accelerating language change
"Langauge is only a reflection of the people who use it"
Uses Functionalist Arguments to support his beliefs:
Lifestyle change has brought neologisms, but equally caused archaism
OED
-Recorgnises importance of Standardisation- common ground ot which everyone can udnerstand
-Notes importance of internet and technology- accelerating language change
"Langauge is only a reflection of the people who use it"
Uses Functionalist Arguments to support his beliefs:
Lifestyle change has brought neologisms, but equally caused archaism
OED
Instrumental power of Oxford English Dictionaries influence our perception of which words are 'real'
-Ann Curzan, linguist of Univesiry of Michigan, argues
French Academy: Rule out slang words, keep French langugae 'pure' prescriptivist relative to attitudes of modern English, which is a hybrid of dialects and languages, influenced by uk HISTORY
Descriptivism:
Regulating language to a perceived 'Standard'- deemed essential for infleunce, power wtihin society:
-Frnech Academy
-North London School, banned the use of Afro-Caribbean slang; students- cleansing of 'ethnic minority' influence' on language- racial; fear of losing "British" aspect of language- DESCRIPTIVISM favoured by right-wing parties
Slang influenced by Shakespeare- forefront of linguistic innovation, influencial figure in history of literature- counteract prescriptivist arguments; 'swagger'
Political language: usually formal, casual use converges with general public- easier to relate to:
Language must EVOLVE to meet technological needs: proper nouns 'Google', 'WhatsApp'
transformed to verbs- descirbe activity withtechnology. Helped to speicfy FUNCTIONLAITY of English, filled in generic voids in the langugae, previosuly used a generic verb,
Allows more consice, specific, conveinent conversationm
Functional Theory: language evolves to meet needs of users; equally phrases have died out, no longerr in use
Blend words: ', using prefix 'man' ('mansplaining'), 'he' ('hepeated'), 'bro' ('broflake'), and the standard verb/noun as the suffix
Broflake: [derogatory, informal] a man who is readily upset or offended by progressive attitudes that conflict with his more conventional or conservative views
Social change= increase in feminism and gender equality, become socially acceptable to critique men for unfair behaviour
Mx- gender-neutral title
Non-binary: adjective to describe the gender between male and female - neutral ground
Repurposing: shifting the semantic meaning of a word is heavily CONTEXT-DRIVEN, helped us to accommodate local needs
Stephen Fry takes a descriptivist approach to language change: "Being a guardian of language is enjoying and understanding [...] that language is constantly evolving".
-Ann Curzan, linguist of Univesiry of Michigan, argues
French Academy: Rule out slang words, keep French langugae 'pure' prescriptivist relative to attitudes of modern English, which is a hybrid of dialects and languages, influenced by uk HISTORY
Descriptivism:
Regulating language to a perceived 'Standard'- deemed essential for infleunce, power wtihin society:
-Frnech Academy
-North London School, banned the use of Afro-Caribbean slang; students- cleansing of 'ethnic minority' influence' on language- racial; fear of losing "British" aspect of language- DESCRIPTIVISM favoured by right-wing parties
Slang influenced by Shakespeare- forefront of linguistic innovation, influencial figure in history of literature- counteract prescriptivist arguments; 'swagger'
Political language: usually formal, casual use converges with general public- easier to relate to:
Language must EVOLVE to meet technological needs: proper nouns 'Google', 'WhatsApp'
transformed to verbs- descirbe activity withtechnology. Helped to speicfy FUNCTIONLAITY of English, filled in generic voids in the langugae, previosuly used a generic verb,
Allows more consice, specific, conveinent conversationm
Functional Theory: language evolves to meet needs of users; equally phrases have died out, no longerr in use
Word of the Year 2017, OED
Gender Identity:
Using marked language to critique patriarchal norms- marked term targets male behaviourBlend words: ', using prefix 'man' ('mansplaining'), 'he' ('hepeated'), 'bro' ('broflake'), and the standard verb/noun as the suffix
Broflake: [derogatory, informal] a man who is readily upset or offended by progressive attitudes that conflict with his more conventional or conservative views
Social change= increase in feminism and gender equality, become socially acceptable to critique men for unfair behaviour
Mx- gender-neutral title
Non-binary: adjective to describe the gender between male and female - neutral ground
- Led to EnBy (pronounced NB as an abbreviation for non-binary)
Changing social attitudes on gender= big influence on language change
Race
White Privilege: Social advantages of living as a white person, place them above ethnic minority citizens in certain circumstances; often taken for granted.
"Once we have language about racial issues, we can have dialogue"- issues are no longer invisible"
White fragility: [mass noun] discomfort and defensiveness on the part of a white person when confronted by information about racial inequality and injustice
Woke: Associated with 'black culture' to signify social consciousness of current issues- i.e. civil movements
Culturejacking/ Newsjacking: the practice of taking advantage of current events or news stories in such a way as to promote or advertise one's product or brand
Political language
Corbynista- describe supporter of Jeremy Corbyn- used both positively and negatively
Paigon: [derogatory noun, informal] Jamaican Creole derived to describe a two-faced person, or a 'snake' who you dislike. Used in Afro-Caribbean slang, Stormzy has now popularised its use across youth culture.
Youthquake = winner of Word of the Year 2017, used to describe the powerful youth support for the Labour party in General Election
Oxford Dictionaries (e.g. of instrumental power) definition: ‘a significant cultural, political, or social change arising from the actions or influence of young people
Key Language Change Terms:
Amoleriation
Pejoration
Archaism- death of words,
Semantic shift- 'literally'- heavily context-dependent, ironically adopted a hyperbolic: expansion of language, s
Neologism: new
Repurposing: shifting the semantic meaning of a word is heavily CONTEXT-DRIVEN, helped us to accommodate local needs
Stephen Fry takes a descriptivist approach to language change: "Being a guardian of language is enjoying and understanding [...] that language is constantly evolving".
1 Derivation
The commonest method of creating a new word is to add a prefix or suffix to an existing one. Hence realisation (1610s), democratise (1798), detonator (1822), preteen (1926), hyperlink (1987) and monogamish (2011).
The commonest method of creating a new word is to add a prefix or suffix to an existing one. Hence realisation (1610s), democratise (1798), detonator (1822), preteen (1926), hyperlink (1987) and monogamish (2011).
2 Back formation
The inverse of the above: the creation of a new root word by the removal of a phantom affix. The noun sleaze, for example, was back-formed from “sleazy” in about 1967. A similar process brought about pea, liaise, enthuse, aggress and donate. Some linguists propose a separate category for lexicalisation, the turning of an affix into a word (ism, ology, teen), but it’s really just a type of back formation.
The inverse of the above: the creation of a new root word by the removal of a phantom affix. The noun sleaze, for example, was back-formed from “sleazy” in about 1967. A similar process brought about pea, liaise, enthuse, aggress and donate. Some linguists propose a separate category for lexicalisation, the turning of an affix into a word (ism, ology, teen), but it’s really just a type of back formation.
3 Compounding
The juxtaposition of two existing words. Typically, compound words begin life as separate entities, then get hitched with a hyphen, and eventually become a single unit. It’s mostly nouns that are formed this way (fiddlestick, claptrap, carbon dating, bailout), but words from other classes can be smooshed together too: into (preposition), nobody (pronoun), daydream (verb), awe-inspiring, environmentally friendly (adjectives).
The juxtaposition of two existing words. Typically, compound words begin life as separate entities, then get hitched with a hyphen, and eventually become a single unit. It’s mostly nouns that are formed this way (fiddlestick, claptrap, carbon dating, bailout), but words from other classes can be smooshed together too: into (preposition), nobody (pronoun), daydream (verb), awe-inspiring, environmentally friendly (adjectives).
4 Repurposing
Taking a word from one context and applying it to another. Thus the crane, meaning lifting machine, got its name from the long-necked bird, and the computer mouse was named after the long-tailed animal.
Taking a word from one context and applying it to another. Thus the crane, meaning lifting machine, got its name from the long-necked bird, and the computer mouse was named after the long-tailed animal.
5 Conversion
Taking a word from one word class and transplanting it to another. The word giantwas for a long time just a noun, meaning a creature of enormous size, until the early 15th century, when people began using it as an adjective. Thanks to social media, a similar fate has recently befallen friend, which can now serve as a verb as well as a noun (“Why didn’t you friend me?”).
Taking a word from one word class and transplanting it to another. The word giantwas for a long time just a noun, meaning a creature of enormous size, until the early 15th century, when people began using it as an adjective. Thanks to social media, a similar fate has recently befallen friend, which can now serve as a verb as well as a noun (“Why didn’t you friend me?”).
6 Eponyms
Words named after a person or place. You may recognise Alzheimer’s, atlas, cheddar, alsatian, diesel, sandwich, mentor, svengali, wellington and boycott as eponyms – but did you know that gun, dunce, bigot, bugger, cretin, currant, hooligan, marmalade, maudlin, maverick, panic, silhouette, syphilis, tawdry, doggerel, doily and sideburns are too? (The issue of whether, and for how long, to retain the capital letters on eponyms is a thorny one.)
Words named after a person or place. You may recognise Alzheimer’s, atlas, cheddar, alsatian, diesel, sandwich, mentor, svengali, wellington and boycott as eponyms – but did you know that gun, dunce, bigot, bugger, cretin, currant, hooligan, marmalade, maudlin, maverick, panic, silhouette, syphilis, tawdry, doggerel, doily and sideburns are too? (The issue of whether, and for how long, to retain the capital letters on eponyms is a thorny one.)
7 Abbreviations
An increasingly popular method. There are three main subtypes: clippings, acronyms and initialisms. Some words that you might not have known started out longer are pram (perambulator), taxi/cab (both from taximeter cabriolet), mob (mobile vulgus), goodbye (God be with you), berk (Berkshire Hunt), rifle (rifled pistol), canter (Canterbury gallop), curio (curiosity), van (caravan), sport (disport), wig (periwig), laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation), scuba (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus), and trump (triumph. Although it’s worth noting that there’s another, unrelated sense of trump: to fabricate, as in “trumped-up charge”).
An increasingly popular method. There are three main subtypes: clippings, acronyms and initialisms. Some words that you might not have known started out longer are pram (perambulator), taxi/cab (both from taximeter cabriolet), mob (mobile vulgus), goodbye (God be with you), berk (Berkshire Hunt), rifle (rifled pistol), canter (Canterbury gallop), curio (curiosity), van (caravan), sport (disport), wig (periwig), laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation), scuba (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus), and trump (triumph. Although it’s worth noting that there’s another, unrelated sense of trump: to fabricate, as in “trumped-up charge”).
8 Loanwords
Foreign speakers often complain that their language is being overrun with borrowings from English. But the fact is, English itself is a voracious word thief; linguist David Crystal reckons it’s half-inched words from at least 350 languages. Most words are borrowed from French, Latin and Greek; some of the more exotic provenances are Flemish (hunk), Romany (cushty), Portuguese (fetish), Nahuatl (tomato – via Spanish), Tahitian (tattoo), Russian (mammoth), Mayan (shark), Gaelic (slogan), Japanese (tycoon), West Turkic (horde), Walloon (rabbit) and Polynesian (taboo). Calques (flea market, brainwashing, loan word) are translations of borrowings.
Foreign speakers often complain that their language is being overrun with borrowings from English. But the fact is, English itself is a voracious word thief; linguist David Crystal reckons it’s half-inched words from at least 350 languages. Most words are borrowed from French, Latin and Greek; some of the more exotic provenances are Flemish (hunk), Romany (cushty), Portuguese (fetish), Nahuatl (tomato – via Spanish), Tahitian (tattoo), Russian (mammoth), Mayan (shark), Gaelic (slogan), Japanese (tycoon), West Turkic (horde), Walloon (rabbit) and Polynesian (taboo). Calques (flea market, brainwashing, loan word) are translations of borrowings.
9 Onomatopeia
The creation of a word by imitation of the sound it is supposed to make. Plop, ow, barf, cuckoo, bunch, bump and midge all originated this way.
The creation of a word by imitation of the sound it is supposed to make. Plop, ow, barf, cuckoo, bunch, bump and midge all originated this way.
10 Reduplication
The repetition, or near-repetition, of a word or sound.
The repetition, or near-repetition, of a word or sound.
11 Nonce words
Words pulled out of thin air, bearing little relation to any existing form. Confirmed examples are few and far between, but include quark (Murray Gell-Mann), bling (unknown) and fleek (Vine celebrity Kayla Newman).
Words pulled out of thin air, bearing little relation to any existing form. Confirmed examples are few and far between, but include quark (Murray Gell-Mann), bling (unknown) and fleek (Vine celebrity Kayla Newman).
12 Error
Misspellings, mishearings, mispronunciations and mistranscriptions rarely produce new words
Misspellings, mishearings, mispronunciations and mistranscriptions rarely produce new words
13 Portmanteau (BLEND WORD)
Combining the words and meanigns of two words to create a new one, e.g. iPod and broadcast = podcast
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