1. Slang, definition, usage in language

In speaking and writing we have a choice between being formal or informal. For ex.: I received your letter is formal but I got your letter is informal or colloquial. The difference between ‘colloquial’ and ‘slang’ is not clear, but we may say that slang means ‘very colloquial’. While ‘colloquial’ has positive or neutral connotations, the word ‘slang’ is often used negatively. Many people do not see slang words as respectable or legitimate.

2.What is Slang?  

According to Merriam Webster Dictionary, slang is defined as “An informal vocabulary composed of invented words, arbitrarily changed words, or extravagant figures of speech.” Slang is a compilation of words that have been labeled as “unruly, unrefined, and illogical.” The word “Slang” derived, according to etymologists, obscurely.  The general consensus it that it is related to the standard word “sling” as used in archaic expressions such as “to sling one’s jaw,” meaning to “speak rowdily or insultingly.”  Others believe it to be a derivation from the French word for language, “langue.”  A word can be both slang and jargon as is seen in the use of the word “say.”  The word “say” is not slang unless it is used at the beginning of a sentence as in “tell me.”  For example, the following uses of the word “say” are considered slang:  “Say, how much does that cost?”“Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light.” 

-Jargon, on the other hand, is “technical talk.”  As stated earlier, it may be used as a barrier to keep outsiders from understanding something, but not always.  An example of how close slang and jargon are may be seen in the  use of the following medical terms: 

Bilateral probital hematoma (JARGON)  A “black eye”, or “shiner” (SLANG) 

Slang

Slang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's language or dialect but are considered more acceptable when used socially. Slang is often used as a euphemism and may use informal lexicon to identify with one's peers.

Defining slang

Few linguists have endeavored to clearly define what constitutes as slang. Attempting to remedy this, Bethany K. Dumas and Jonathan Lighter argue that an expression should be considered "true slang" if it meets at least two of the following criteria:

• It lowers, if temporarily, "the dignity of formal or serious speech or writing"; in other words, it's likely to be considered in those contexts a "glaring misuse of register."

• Its use implies that the user is familiar with whatever is referred to, or with a group of people who are familiar with it and use the term.

• "It's a taboo term in ordinary discourse with people of a higher social status or greater responsibility."

Slang is different from jargon, which is a technical vocabulary of a particular profession, and which meets only the second of the criteria given above. Jargon, like many examples of slang, may be used to exclude non–group members from the conversation, but in general has the function of allowing its users to talk precisely about technical issues in any given field.

Extent and origins of slang

Slang can be regional, but slang terms are often particular instead to a certain subculture, such as music or video gaming. Nevertheless, slang expressions can spread outside their original areas to become commonly used, like "cool" and "jive." While some words eventually lose their status as slang (the word "mob", for example, began as a shortening of Latin mobile vogues), others continue to be considered as such by most speakers. When slang spreads beyond the group or subculture that originally used it, its original users often replace it with other, less-recognized terms to maintain group identity.

One use of slang is to circumvent social taboos, as mainstream language tends to shy away from evoking certain realities. For this reason, slang vocabularies are particularly rich in certain domains, such as violence, crime, drugs. Alternatively, slang can grow out of mere familiarity with the things described. Among Californian wine connoisseurs (and other groups), for example, Cabernet Sauvignon is often known as "Cab Sav," Chardonnay as "Chard" and so on; this means that naming the different wines expends less superfluous effort; it also helps to indicate the user's familiarity with wine.

Even within a single language community, slang, and the extent to which it is used, tends to vary widely across social, ethnic, economic, and geographic strata. Slang may fall into disuse over time; sometimes, however, it grows more and more common until it becomes the dominant way of saying something, at which time it usually comes to be regarded as mainstream, acceptable language (e.g. the Spanish word caballo), although in the case of taboo words there may not be an expression which is considered mainstream or acceptable. Numerous slang terms pass into informal mainstream speech, and sometimes into formal speech, though this may involve a change in meaning or usage.

Slang very often involves the creation of novel meanings for existing words. It is common for such novel meanings to diverge significantly from the standard meaning. Thus, "cool" and "hot" can both mean "very good," "impressive," or "good-looking".

Slang terms are often known only within a clique or in group. For example, Leet ("Leetspeak" or "1337") was originally popular only among certain Internet subcultures, such as crackers and online video gamers. During the 1990s, and into the early 21st century, however, Leet became increasingly more commonplace on the Internet, and it has spread outside Internet-based communication and into spoken languages. Other types of slang include SMS language used on mobile phones, and "chat speak," (e.g., "LOL", an acronym meaning "laughing out loud" or "laugh out loud" or ROFL, "rolling on the floor laughing"), which is widely used in instant messaging on the Internet.

Some linguists make a distinction between slangisms and colloquialisms. According to Ghil'ad Zuckermann, "slang refers to informal lexical items used by a specific social group, for instance teenagers, soldiers, prisoners and thieves. Slang is not the same as colloquial (speech), which is informal, relaxed speech used on occasion by any speaker; this might include contractions such as 'you’re,' as well as colloquialisms.

A colloquialism is a lexical item used in informal speech; which the broadest sense of the term ‘colloquialism’ might include slangism, its narrow sense does not. Slangisms are often used in colloquial speech but not all colloquialisms are slangisms. One method of distinguishing between a slangism and a colloquialism is to ask whether most native speakers know the word (and use it); if they do, it is a colloquialism. However, the problem is that this is not a discrete, quantized system but a continuum. Although the majority of slangisms are ephemeral and often supplanted by new ones, some gain non-slang colloquial and even formal status

The origin of the word slang is uncertain. It has a connection with Thieves' cant, and the earliest attested use (1756) refers to the vocabulary of "low or disreputable" people. Beyond that, however, its origin is unclear. A Scandinavian origin has been proposed (compare, for example, Norwegian slengenamn, which means "nickname"), but is discounted by the Oxford English Dictionary based on "date and early associations".

Varieties and purpose of slang

Some slang was developed because of a need for secrecy, such as prison slang, believed to be derived from thieves cant, and Polari.Sometimes the purpose of slang is to cause offence, insults such as wanker or gobshite for example; and sometimes the purpose is to prevent it by substituting a slang word for the offensive one, berk (rhyming slang for cunt) for example.Sometimes a Spoonerism, is employed to make taboo speech more acceptable. For example: Cupid stunt and Betty Swallocks. Slang is also used to create an identity or sense of belonging and a number of occupations have their own slang; most notably the armed forces, referred to as Forces or Service slang; and the construction industry. A dictionary of service slang by J. L. Hunt and A. G. Pringle was published in 1943.It was reprinted in 2008. The introduction acknowledges that slang is an ever changing language with new slang terms emerging all the time. It also recognizes that some service slang has made its way into civilian use. Examples of this include the old naval terms, "Talking bilge" (nonsense) and "A loose cannon" (an unorthodox person with the potential to cause harm)

British slang is English language slang used in the UK. Slang is informal language sometimes peculiar to a particular social class or group and its use in Britain dates back to before the 16th century. The language of slang, in common with the English language, is changing all the time; new words and phrases are being added and some are used so frequently by so many, they almost become mainstream.

• Air one's dirty linen/laundry -To discuss private matters in public.

• Bizzie -Policeman

• Cheers -a sign of appreciation or acknowledgement, or a drinking toast.

• Gaff -House or flat.

• Idiot box –Television

• Lolly -money.

• Moggy –Cat

• Nuts or nutty -Crazy or insane

• Toff -Posh person

• Wind up -to tease, irritate, annoy, anger

• Wankered -1. Very drunk. 2. Exhausted

• The history of American slang words starts around the 17th century. By the 18th century, the differences between America and other English speaking countries prompted the evolution of slang. For a time, any words not used in Britain were considered slang. Originally considered to be the language of foreigners and criminals, slang began to be used by writers in the 1900s. So the history of American slang words started as America started and continues today.

• From the 1950s: boo boo - mistake; cool - alright or slow, romantic music; garbage - nonsense; hot - sexy or attractive; neck - hug or kiss

• From the 1960s: bread - money; far out - amazing; hassle - annoy; spacey - odd, eccentric; vibes - feelings

• From the 1970s: bogus - unfair; gross - disgusting; horn - telephone; no brainer - easy problem; zip - nothing

• From the 1980s: crib - where you live; go postal - go crazy; melt down - total collapse; wannabe - someone who wants to be something; wicked - excellent or very cool

• From the 1990s: bling - glitter; loot - money; po-po - police; senior moment - memory loss

• From the 2000s: buzz - shave your head; cougar - older woman dating younger man; holla - call on the phone; peep - person; tat - tattoo

• Do a snow job on-deceive

• Eat-bothering (The problem is really eating away at me.)

• Fix-dose of drugs(The addict needs another fix.)

• Glitch-defect

• Go bananas-go crazy

• Goof-fool

• Have good vibes-feel good about

• Hip-shooter-always talking without thinking

• Hustle-hurry up

• Jock-an athlete

• Kick-enjoy

• Klutz-stupid and clumsy person

• Megabucks-a lot of money

• Party-hearty-celebrate

• Slang is a way of using descriptive or figurative language. It sometimes is irreverent and humorous. Slang expressions describe activities or objects. There is a high number of slang terms associated with the activity or object if it is prevalent. In 1901, G. K. Chesterton wrote “All slang is metaphor, and all metaphor is poetry,” in Defence of Slang.

Watching the video on slang in America.

Glossary

English	Russian	Kazakh

Student's individual work:

1. Make an individual research of slang in English speaking countries.

Office Hours:

1.The difficulties of translation of slangs in speech.

Literature:

Main

1. Alan Davies. A glossary of applied linguistics. Edinburg university press.- 2005

2. Zdenek Salzmann. Language, culture, and society. An introduction to linguistic anthropology. Third editions. – Westview Press, 2004, Pp. 30-37.

Additional

3. Barry J.Blake. Secret language. Oxford University Press. -2010.

Crystal, David. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of The English Language. Cambridge University Press. 1996. It contains several examples of occupational jargons.  

Kazakh American University HAND-OUTS Discipline – Practical work on Culture of Speech Communication Academic year : 2013 - 2014 Number of credits – 2 Department “General Education and Humanities” Practical lesson14-15: «Argot in speech communication» Translation Studies Students 2-year Academic Professor- G.M. Kassymova

The outline

1.Argot, definition, usage in language

The tendency for slang to be geographically local or associated with particular group of people is epitomized in argot.This is a body of non-standard vocabulary used by a group bound by common interest, isolation, or their opposition to authority. The word argot is traditionally associated with those who live outside the law: burglars, cardsharps, highwaymen, pickpockets, racketeers, swindlers, thieves and is sometimes referred to as ‘thieves’ slang’ But argots have also been in use among others groups who tend to be itinerant: beggars, entertainers, travelling tradesmen, such as chimney sweeps, knife sharpeners, masons, window cleaners.

Prostitutes, drug dealers and gays have their own argots, as do prisoners and schoolchildren. Argot is included in what Halliday calls anty-language, which he describes as a special form of language used to maintain social structure by anti society, a society within a larger society set up as an alternative, in some cases a hostile alternative.

The author Victor Hugo was one of the first to research argot extensively.^[1] He describes it in his 1862 novel Les Misérables as the language of the dark; at one point, he says, "What is argot; properly speaking? Argot is the language of misery."

The earliest known record of argot was in a 1628 document. The word was probably derived from the contemporary name, les argotiers, given to a group of thieves at that time.^[2]Under the strictest definition, an argot is a proper language, with its own grammar and style. But, such complete secret languages are rare, because the speakers usually have some public language in common, on which the argot is largely based. Argots are mainly versions of other languages with a part of its vocabulary replaced by words unknown to the larger public. For example, the term is used to describe systems such as verlan and louchébem, which retain French syntax and apply transformations only to individual words (and often only to a certain subset of words, such as nouns, or semantic content words).^[3] Such systems are examples of argots à clef, or "coded argots."^[3]Specific words can go from argot into common speech or the other way. For example, "piaf" was a Parisian argot word for "sparrow"; after being taken up by the singer Edith Piaf, this meaning became well known in France and worldwide, and no longer serves the purpose of a secret language.

argot - a characteristic language of a particular group (as among thieves); "they don't speak our lingo" jargon, lingo, patois, vernacular, slang, cant bite - a portion removed from the whole; "the government's weekly bite from my paycheck" swiz - British slang for a swindle heist, rip-off - the act of stealing shakedown - extortion of money (as by blackmail) power trip - (slang) a self-aggrandizing action undertaken simply for the pleasure of exercising control over other people fuck, fucking, nookie, nooky, piece of ass, piece of tail, roll in the hay, screwing, shtup, ass, shag, screw - slang for sexual intercourse dekko - British slang for a look square-bashing - drill on a barracks square shakedown - a very thorough search of a person or a place; "a shakedown by the police uncovered the drugs" caff - informal British term for a cafe deck - street name for a packet of illegal drugs gat, rod - a gangster's pistol Mickey Finn - slang term for knockout drops nick - (British slang) a prison; "he's in the nick" dreck, schlock, shlock - merchandise that is shoddy or inferior legs - staying power; "that old Broadway play really has legs" soup-strainer, toothbrush - slang for a mustache bay window, potbelly, tummy, corporation, pot - slang for a paunch niff, pong - an unpleasant smell street name - slang for something (especially for an illegal drug); "`smack' is a street name for heroin" corker - (dated slang) a remarkable or excellent thing or person; "that story was a corker" hooey, poppycock, stuff and nonsense, stuff - senseless talk; "don't give me that stuff" baloney, bilgewater, boloney, bosh, drool, humbug, tommyrot, tosh, twaddle, taradiddle, tarradiddle - pretentious or silly talk or writing codswallop, folderol, trumpery, wish-wash, applesauce, tripe, rubbish, trash - nonsensical talk or writing skin flick - a pornographic movie dibs - a claim of rights; "I have dibs on that last slice of pizza" non-standard speech - speech that differs from the usual accepted, easily recognizable speech of native adult members of a speech community rhyming slang - slang that replaces words with rhyming words or expressions and then typically omits the rhyming component; "Cockney rhyming slang" bun-fight, bunfight - (Briticism) a grand formal party on an important occasion burnup - a high-speed motorcycle race on a public road nosh-up - a large satisfying meal hood - (slang) a neighborhood 'hood - (slang) a neighborhood paleface - (slang) a derogatory term for a white person (supposedly used by North American Indians) poor white trash, white trash - (slang) an offensive term for White people who are impoverished honkey, honkie, honky, whitey - (slang) offensive names for a White man slant-eye, gook - (slang) a disparaging term for an Asian person (especially for North Vietnamese soldiers in the Vietnam War) Injun, red man, Redskin - (slang) offensive term for Native Americans hymie, kike, sheeny, yid - (ethnic slur) offensive term for a Je

Glossary

English	Russian	Kazakh

Student's individual work:

1. Make an individual research of slang in English speaking countries.

Office Hours:

1. The difficulties of translation of slangs in speech.

Literature:

Main

1. Alan Davies. A glossary of applied linguistics. Edinburg university press.- 2005

2. Zdenek Salzmann. Language, culture, and society. An introduction to linguistic anthropology. Third editions. – Westview Press, 2004, Pp. 30-37.

Additional

3. Barry J.Blake. Secret language. Oxford University Press. -2010.

Crystal, David. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of The English Language. Cambridge University Press. 1996. It contains several examples of occupational jargons.