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Invigorative and hermetic innovations in English in Yaoundé
Author(s) -
MBANGWANA PAUL
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
world englishes
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.6
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1467-971X
pISSN - 0883-2919
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-971x.1991.tb00136.x
Subject(s) - slang , variety (cybernetics) , linguistics , meaning (existential) , battle , entertainment , euphemism , sociology , psychology , computer science , history , art , philosophy , visual arts , artificial intelligence , archaeology , psychotherapist
This study seeks to demonstrate that a certain type of new speech is developing among the students of the University of Yaoundé. It examines the linguistic processes of word formation and the meanings expressed by these linguistic innovations. This investigation reveals that for most of the time the meaning of these words is highly metaphorical, playful and hermetic as words come from a variety of sources and are reassigned different meanings or given a refreshing slant. The resurgence of such a variety of speech cuts outsiders off as users distort the forms of the words, coin colourful expressions, blend words from two or three different sources, and articulate them in a certain jocular manner. This usage is a highly coded one, so that only insiders can really be at home with it. In fact this slang, being impenetrable by outsiders, gives the users a certain sense of security and a certain measure of entertainment which animates their difficult conditions of life where success is a constant battle to achieve.