2.4 Semantic, or Lexical, Fields
The term lexical field was first introduces by German the German linguist Jost Trier. He noted that “fields are living realities intermediate between individual words and the totality of the vocabulary; as a part of the whole they share with words the property of being integrated in a large structure and with the vocabulary the property of being structured in terms of smaller units (as quoted in Ullman, 1951, p.157; Lyons, 1977, p.253). A set of lexemes which are related in meaning share a lexical, or semantic, field; therefore, semantic fields are classifications of words associated by their meanings. Crystal defines a semantic field as “a named area of meaning in which lexemes interrelate and define each other in specific ways” (p. 157). This task may look easy, e.g., to group all the vegetables in the lexical field “vegetables”: cucumber, carrot, cabbage, etc.; to group all the pieces of furniture in the lexical field of “furniture”: stool, chair, bed, table wardrobe, sideboard, bookshelf, and others. The task is not so straightforward. Crystal notes that some lexemes belong to the fields which are difficult to define or vague, e.g., noise or difficult. Some lexemes may belong to more than one field, such as orange. Does it belong to the field of color or fruit? He admits that even if there are some difficulties in arranging the lexemes according to their semantic fields, grouping lexemes by subject matter will be beneficial to the learners of English as a second language as well as young children.
Synchronistic and Diachronistic Approaches to the Structure of the English Vocabulary
Synchronically, the structure of the English lexicon consists of common, literary, and colloquial layers. Bernhard Lipka further classifies a literary layer into scientific, foreign, and archaic words. He includes technical, slang, vulgar, and dialectal words to colloquial layer. The major part of the lexicon Lipka identifies as a common layer--lexemes, which are present in all the varieties of English. The following diagram provided by Lipka illustrates the structure of the English lexicon in the following diagram (2002, p.17). We believe this diagram should include neologisms as well; they can appear in all the layers of the vocabulary: literary, common, and colloquial.
Common words are stylistically neutral, and their stylistic neutrality makes it possible to use them in all kinds of situations. The common vocabulary is the central group of the English lexicon, its historical foundation and living core. That is why words of this stratum show a considerably greater stability in comparison with words of the other strata, especially colloquial.
The literary layer of the English vocabulary is comprised of literary terms, scientific and scholarly terms, foreign words, and archaisms. Besides general-literary (bookish) words, e.g., abdicate, harmony, aberration, accentuate, affinity, aggrandize, allege, antipathy, calamity, alacrity, equanimity, eschew, ingenuous, innocuous, etc., we may have various specific subgroups such as 1) terms or scientific words: gerocomy, genocide, nutrient, respiration, friction, hazard, laboratory, evaporation, vertebrate, cyclone, etc.; 2) literary terms: accent, acrostic, allegory, allusion, antagonist, ballad, caesura, comedy, connotation, metaphor, metonymy, denotation, irony, rhyme, epiphany, oxymoron, parable, paradox, etc.; 3) archaisms: thorp—‘village,’ whilom — ‘at times, formerly,’ aught — ‘anything, all, everything’ and ere — ‘before.’ Sometimes a clipped form of a longer word supplants the latter altogether, turning it to an archaic word. Thus, mob supplanted mobile vulgus ‘movable, or fickle, common people’; and omnibus, in the sense ‘motor vehicle for paying passengers,’ is almost as archaic as mobile vulgus, having been clipped to bus. Taxicab has completely replaced taximeter cabriolet. Bra has similarly supplanted brassiere (Algeo, 2010, p. 235); 4) foreign words: French: bon mot, camouflage, chauffeur, coupon, apropos, faux pas, and bouquet; Spanish: tamale, tortilla, jalapeno, pico de gallo, siesta, fiesta, lasso, burrito, taco, salsa, cilantro, guacamole, and enchilada; German: pretzel, streudel, dachshund, and kindergarten; Italian: confetti, crescendo, gondola, motto, pizza, regatta, lasagna, salami, and zucchini; Russian: babushka, borscht, samovar, sputnik, troika, and tundra; Hawaiian: aloha, hula, and wiki).
The colloquial layer includes technical, slang, jargon, dialectal, and vulgar words. “Slang words or phrases are typically very informal, and they are usually restricted to a particular group— typically teens and young adults— as a marker of in- group status” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 190). Most are not new words; they are usually existing words which acquired new meanings. Slang does not last long; however, the ones that stick around soon cease to be slang and join common words stratum. Mob, hubbub, and rowdy were previously slang words. Some slang words like cool, nice, awesome, yeah right, whatever, ya, and hot are used by a wide range of people. Most people do not use slang, and they view it unfavourably; however, “slang is a feature of most languages and is an indicator of the ways in which language adapts for the purposes of those who use it” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 190).
Although Lipka does not differentiate between slang and jargon, we believe there are some differences between them. Jargon is not as informal as slang is, and it is “specialized vocabulary associated with particular professions, trades, sports, occupations, games, and so on” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 190), while slang is used mostly by teens and young adults. Moreover, slang does not exist more than one generation, but jargon may travel from one generation to the other. Some medical jargon words are ailment, alleviate symptoms, allergen, benign, condition, dosage, edema, inflammation, inhibitor, lesion, syncope, intake, and vertigo. The following are university jargon words and expressions: academic advisor, term, semester, alumnus (alumni), assessment, campus, dissertation, elective, enrolment, finals, fresher, graduation, incomplete, independent student, learning outcomes, mentor, module, office hours, plagiarism, provost, sabbatical, seminar, tutor, and tutorial.
The word ‘technical’ is “a direct derivation from the Greek tekhne, an art, skill, or craft” (Murphy, 2011, p. 146). Technical terms are specialized vocabulary of various specialties. Some technical terms are binary, cache, encryption, domain, blacklist, buffer, defragment, keystroke, annealing, frit, grinder, and laminate.
Vulgar, or taboo, words are “forbidden words or expressions interpreted as insulting or rude in a particular language” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 190). Although vulgar words are forbidden, they exist in the language for hundreds years.
Dialects are mutually intelligible varieties of a language that differ in systematic ways, but these language forms are understood by speakers these varieties. “A dialect variety of a language has unique phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, and vocabulary and is spoken and understood by a particular group” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 514). Three types of dialects are identified: regional, ethnic, and social. When people are separated from each other geographically, regional dialects develop. Dialectologists list three American regional dialects: Northern, Midland, and Southern. Ethnic dialects are characterized by ethnic groups living in those areas. “The linguistic characteristics of the people who settled there are the primary influence on that dialect, and the speech of most people in that area shares similar dialect features” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 410). Social dialects reveal our educational or class status. The choice of a language variation and the speakers’ “attitudes about social class, politics, and religion all influence our linguistic choices.” Id. at 416.
Neologisms
Every year, new words appear in the English language. Some may be slangs, but most of them become permanent members of English word-stock. Some new words may appear because of cultural and technological changes, as in the case of ipad and iphone, technological advancement triggered creation of new words. “Coinings, or neologisms, are words that have been recently created” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 194). True neologisms are rare; usually new words are coined from old ones with the help of word-formation processes. Some true neologisms are bling (flashy jewellery worn especially as an indication of wealth; expensive and ostentatious possessions) that is “hip- hop slang” and googol coined by Milton Sirotta (the figure 1 followed by 100 zeros equal to 10100). Id. at 194. Tebowing (kneeling on one knee in prayer in a public place or being photographed doing this) was coined after Tim Tebow, an NFL player, “started praying, even if everyone else around [him] was doing something completely different” (Introducing ‘Tebowing,’ 2011). Some new words are coined from place names. Some examples are “oughterby, which is defined as someone you do not want to invite to a party but feel you should, and nottage, a word for the things you find a use for right after you have thrown them away” (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 194). Metrosexual is a blending from metropolitan + -sexual, coined on the analogy of heterosexual. This new words means ‘a usually urban heterosexual male given to enhancing his personal appearance by fastidious grooming, beauty treatments, and fashionable clothes’ (Merriam-Webster online).
A professional group of linguists of the American Dialect Society (ADS) hold an annual competition “A Word of the Year” to showcase new words (Denham & Lobeck, 2010, p. 192). The table shows some new words which were coined during this period. Not all the words made ‘A Word of the Year,’ but they are still in circulation. American Dialect Society (ADS) listed the following words in its website: http://www.americandialect.org/
YearWord/expressionMeaning2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2001app
hacktivism
-pad
Obamacare
refudiate
tweet
charging station
bailout (n) (v)
shovel-ready
subprime
to pluto/be plutoed
flog
lactard
truthiness
red state, blue state, purple state
(comp.noun)
phish (v)
fetch (adj)
krunked
mash-up (n)
meet-up (n)
orange revolution
facial profilingan application program for a computer or phone operating system. As in "there’s an app for that," an advertising slogan for the iPhone.
using computer hacking skills as a form of political or social activism
combining form used by iPad and other tablet computers (ViewPad, WindPad, etc.).
a pejorative term for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.
blend of refute and repudiate used by Sarah Palin on Twitter.It means ‘reject.’
a short message sent via the Twitter.com service, and verb, the act of sending such a message
a place where electric cars recharge their batteries
the rescue (to rescue) by the government of companies on the brink of failure, including large players in the banking industry
used to describe infrastructure projects that can be started quickly when funds become available
an adjective used to describe a risky or less than ideal loan, mortgage, or investment
to demote or devalue someone or something, as happened to the former planet Pluto when the General Assembly of the International
Astronomical Union decided Pluto no longer met its definition of a planet.
a fake blog created by a corporation to promote a product or a television show
a person who is lactose-intolerant
what one wishes to be the truth regardless of the facts
together, a representation of the American political map
to acquire passwords or other private information (of an individual, an account, a web site, etc.) via a digital ruse
cool or stylish, from the movie Mean Girls
cool, crazy
a blend of two songs or albums into a single cohesive musical work.
a local special interest meeting organized through a national website.
the recent Ukrainian political crisis.
using video “faceprints” to identify terrorists and criminals2. Etymological Survey of the English Word-Stock
2.1 Definition of etymology
Etymology [L. etymologia, < Gr, etymologia, <etymon (etymon-- an earlier form of a word in the same language or an ancestral language or a word in a foreign language that is the source of a particular loanword) and logia (doctrine, study)] of words is the study of the origins and history of the form and meaning of words. The Living Webster defines it as “explanation of the origin and linguistic changes of a particular word and the derivation of a word” (1977, p.337).
The term “etymology” was actually created by the Stoics, a group of Greek philosophers and logicians, at the beginning of the fourth century (Jackson & Amvela, 2004, p.6). The Stoics noticed irregularities between the form and the content of certain words. “Since they were convinced that the language should be regularly related to its content, they undertook to discover the original forms called the ‘etyma’ (root) to establish the regular correspondence between language and reality” (Jackson & Amvela, 2004, p.6). The Stoics accurately perceived the disjunction between words and their forms, and from the etymological point of view, saw the English vocabulary as anything but homogenous. The English word-stock is comprised of the native word-stock and the word- stock of borrowings from other languages, with a borrowed vocabulary much larger than the native stock of words.