Comparative study of the structural and semantic features of youth slang in German and English

Nesterenko Sof'ya Alexandrovna Lecturer; Department of Foreign Languages and Russian Philology; Nizhny Tagil State Socio-Pedagogical Institute; branch of the Russian State Vocational Pedagogical University 57 Krasnogvardeiskaya str., Nizhny Tagil, Sverdlovsk Region, 622031, Russia sofya.nesterenko.00@inbox.ru

Yuzhaninova Elena Vladimirovna ORCID: 0000-0001-7623-0214 PhD in Pedagogy Associate Professor; Department of Foreign Languages and Russian Philology; Nizhny Tagil State Socio-Pedagogical Institute; branch of the Russian State Vocational Pedagogical University 57 Krasnogvardeiskaya str., Nizhny Tagil, Sverdlovsk Region, 622031, Russia elena-yuzh@yandex.ru

This article is devoted to the problem of studying youth slang in German and English. The subject of the study is the structural and semantic features of German- and English-speaking slang units. The research material was a sample of 100 German slang units taken from the texts of the German–language media – Deutsche Welle, Der Spiegel, Stuttgart Nachrichten and 100 English slang units from the texts of the English-language media - The Guardian, Daily Mail, Times Live.

The scientific novelty of the study lies in the fact that the structural and semantic features of youth slang units are studied in a comparative aspect using the example of German- and English-language media discourse based on texts published over the past five years. The obtained results make a definite contribution to the study of the peculiarities of the language of individual social groups.

Slang is an integral part of the language and an important area of study of lexicology, as it reflects the linguistic and cultural characteristics of society. In addition, slang is one of the most open and mobile systems existing in linguistics today ^[1]. Today, slang is used not only as a means of informal communication, it is also found in the media ^[2]. Slang is considered as a special layer of vocabulary located outside the literary language and representing a set of metaphors, phraseological units, less often words in the direct meaning ^[3].

It should be noted that linguists are increasingly interested in the processes of linguistic transformations that occur during the interaction of languages, which makes it relevant to conduct a comparative study of the structural and semantic features of youth slang using the example of German and English.

Many linguists have dealt with the problem of studying slang, for example, L. M. Tsekova, E. V. Shelestyuk, D. B. Khanova, S. H. Zhuraeva, Yu. V. Lapteva, K. V. Kulakova, E. Partridge ^[4], however, today there is no unity in the interpretation of the term "slang" in linguistics. Slang researchers offer various definitions for this phenomenon. Following E. V. Shelestyuk, we understand "slang" as a lexical unit, a word or phrase that is used by young people or individual groups, depends on fashion, retains reduced connotations and often has metaphorical imagery ^[5].

According to D. B. According to Khanova, slang is an open subsystem of lexical and phraseological means, often having an expressive character and used in the speech of representatives of different social groups ^[6].

Some authors recognize slang as an important element of any language and culture, and urge to pay special attention to it, since it contains a large number of idiomatic expressions and informal speech phrases, which is of particular importance when learning a foreign language ^[7]. In addition, the use of slang in speech allows you to make it more vivid, concise; with the help of slang, you can convey a thought more fully and freely, which allows you to be concise, but at the same time original ^[8].

L. V. Mileshina believes that slang is most often used in the speech of young people, since they are the most socially active segment of the population. Age limits, the use of youth slang from 12 to 23-30 years old ^[9]. L. M. Tsekova understands youth slang as a way of communication and self-expression of young people, which has increased emotionality ^[2]. There is an opinion that youth slang is more lively and personal compared to the standard language in communication ^[10].

Linguists identify a number of features of youth slang: imagery of speech, emotionality and expressiveness of speech ^[11].

Slang has certain functions, but there is no consensus on their number. Some scientists distinguish communicative, cognitive and nominative functions. Others add ideological, esoteric, identification, expressive, and time-saving functions to these functions ^[12].

The theoretical provisions discussed above allow us to proceed to a comparative study of the structural and semantic features of youth slang in German and English, for which the above-mentioned features of German-speaking ^[13] and English-speaking slang units ^[14] were previously considered separately. Methods of replenishment of youth slang, the structure of slang words and their semantics are subject to linguistic analysis. The semantic analysis was performed in line with the semantic approach proposed by K. V. Kulakova ^[15].

The results of the comparative analysis of ways to replenish youth slang units in German and English are presented in the following table (Table 1).

Table 1

Ways to replenish youth slang units

For the German language, the most productive is the use of two methods at once, namely, borrowing and word formation (36%). It should be noted that the borrowings came from English, which confirms its great popularity. Examples of such slangisms are the words: die Gammelfleischparty – "party of rotten meat", which is formed by adding two nouns das Gammelfleisch – spoiled meat and party - party. This slang unit is intended to identify meetings of the elderly; die Speckbarbie – "bacon Barbie". The word is formed by adding the nouns der Speck – fat and Barbie – beauty, doll. Slangism is used to describe an overweight girl who is wearing too tight-fitting clothes.

Meanwhile, the analysis of German slang units revealed not so many net borrowings – only 12%. For example, chillen is to relax from the English verb to chill, the noun cringe is shame, etc.

It should be pointed out that the German language retains its word-formation tendencies, since German slang units formed according to modern word-formation models (vocabulary, word production, abbreviation) also have a high percentage – 35%. This is confirmed by the following examples: the noun der Bildschirmbraun is used to describe a person who spends too much time in front of a computer and has a pale complexion. This noun is formed by adding the noun der Bildschirm – screen and the adjective braun – brown; the verb unterhopft sein – to get drunk – is formed from the participle of the verb hopfen – to hop, the prefix unter-, which indicates the presence of something "below", "under" and the verb-bundle sein – to be; Hallochen – hello, which It is formed from the greeting word Hallo and the German diminutive suffix -chen.

Thus, in total, word-formation processes are involved in replenishing the composition of slangisms in 71% of units, which unequivocally confirms the high productivity of word formation as a way to replenish the composition of German youth slang.

As for the ways to replenish the vocabulary of English youth slang, word formation has also become the most productive way for this language (60%). Examples of slang units formed according to word–formation models are: the noun avotoast – avocado toast (which is a popular photo theme for social media posts), which consists of two nouns avocado – avocado and toast - toast; the verb to rent–free - "live" in someone's head, formed from the words rent-free – free rent; the adjective parasocial – parsocial, which is obtained by attaching the prefix para- to the adjective social – public.

At the same time, we emphasize that in German and English slang, word-formation models have different degrees of productivity. Thus, the word-formation model of "Word Production" is approximately similar in productivity: 19% in English youth slang and 16% in German youth slang (plus 11% from the group "Borrowing and word production"). But the "Vocabulary" model is only 7% in English slang, while 10% in German slang (plus 15% from the "Borrowing and Vocabulary" group). On the contrary, the word–formation model of "Abbreviation" in English slang represents 34%, unlike in German, where its percentage is quite small - only 9% (plus 10% from the group of "Borrowings and abbreviations").

Meanwhile, the method of replenishing the vocabulary of slang by changing the meaning has a completely different percentage: 9% in German slang, and 32% in English slang, that is, it is the second largest block. Examples of German slang units obtained by changing the meaning are: französisch duschen – to use deodorant or literally "take a French shower"; the verb baggern – to roll up (flirt) was previously used in the meaning of "working on an excavator", but after expanding the meaning it began to be used in the context of playing volleyball and served to describe a special batting ball. and after some time, this verb began to be used to describe a way of dating – "podkat", flirting. Examples of English slang units obtained by using this method are: w ig snatch – "rip off the wig" – a slang term that is used for public criticism; the phrase soft launch means publishing a photo that hints at the existence of a "special" person in your life. The photo may contain only half of the face or silhouette.

It should be noted that there were no borrowings in English youth slang. This is a significant difference from German youth slang, where borrowings occur both in their pure form (12%) and as part of word-formation models (36%). This allows us to judge that this method is very productive for the formation of German slang units, but not for English. Of course, this is due to the fact that English is an international language of communication, the so–called "donor language", which does not need to borrow words from other languages. Conversely, the German language, in which borrowings have always played a very important role, is now experiencing the dominance of English borrowings, which often act as redundant synonyms.

In addition, it should be emphasized that in English slang, a method of replenishment using phonetic techniques has been identified, although this method has a fairly small percentage – 2%, however, this method is not represented in German. For example, the slang unit shock comes from the English noun shock, in which 1 letter o is immediately replaced by 2 for greater expressiveness, while the letter c is lost in combination with ck, possibly for ease of spelling; the noun bozz is a leader (from the word boss – boss, boss), which also occurred replacing the final deaf consonants ss with voiced zz, which, in our opinion, serves as a way to add more emotion.

An interesting way to replenish slang units was the use of emojis. This method was identified both in German slang – 1% (Emo-CV – emoji usage when writing a resume for a job) and in English slang – 2% (crying emoji, skull emoji). The first emoji is used to mean "funny to the point of tears," and the second emoji means "something funny in a jokingly evil sense." Perhaps the use of emojis will be a new trend in replenishing the vocabulary of slang units.

Based on the analysis, it can be argued that the most productive way to replenish the vocabulary of slang is word formation (35% in German and 60% in English), while this method is even more productive for the formation of German slang units in combination with borrowing (plus 36%). Thus, borrowing in German youth slang in total represents almost half of the units (48%) – both in pure form (12%) and as part of hybrid words (36%).

Let us turn to the data of the structural classification of German and English youth slang (Table 2).

Table 2

Structural classification of slang units

Complex words consisting of two or more bases predominate among German slang units (31%). For example, the noun die Facebookschlampe – a girl who adds "suitable" men to her "friends" consists of two bases – Facebook and die Schlampe – "a girl of easy virtue". This structural type is very characteristic of the German language.

However, in the structural classification of English slang units, complex words are not a frequency type, they represent only 6%. For example, the noun babygirl is "baby", which is formed by adding two bases: baby – child and girl – girl.

The next most common type in German is derived words (28%), i.e. those words that are formed as a result of word production (in our case, conversion or affixation). For example, the verb abgehen – to admire is formed by attaching the prefix ab- to the verb gehen – to go. In English, derived words are represented less frequently – only 19%. For example, the noun rizzler is a guy who successfully "rolls up" to girls, formed by attaching the suffix –ler to the base.

At the same time, the most frequent type of English slang words were simple words – 36% (brain – smart), in contrast to German, where simple words make up only 19% (der Lauch – idiot).In our opinion, the frequency of this type of slang units is due to the fact that words that are simple in structure prevail when replenishing the vocabulary of slang by changing the meaning. At the same time, as noted above, it is the change in meaning that is the second most productive way to replenish the vocabulary of English slang (32%).

The next frequency type of English slang units is an abbreviation of 35% (bestest – best of the best – the best of the best). In our opinion, such a high percentage is due to the language economy function, which is quite pronounced in English. On the contrary, in the structural classification of German slang, slang units representing an abbreviation have a rather small percentage – only 9% (Stip scholarship, "stip")

It should be noted that compound words are the least frequent type both in German youth slang – 5% (the noun der Discopumper – a young man who "worships" a beautiful body – is formed from the English nouns disco – disco, pumpkin – pumpkin and the German suffix -er), and in English, where they are not represented at all. such examples.

The analysis allows us to conclude that the structure of slang units in German and English is quite different. So, for German slang, slang units representing complex words are the most common, and for English slang, slang units representing simple words are the most common.

The next point of comparison is the semantics of slang units (Table 3).

Table 3

Semantic classification of slang units

The most frequent thematic group in German youth slang was "Human characteristics" – 32% (die Tinderella – girls who constantly sit on dating sites; der Schatzlos – single, without a couple), comparable in percentage terms in English youth slang is the group "Expression of emotions" – 33% (PROPS from proper respect – due recognition; for sho from the word sure – absolutely, of course).

The next most popular area of slang usage in German was the block "Expression of emotions" – 29% (durch sein – to be out of oneself; isso – expression of consent), and in English – the block "Vital activity" – 32% (finsta – fake Instagram profile; spilling tea – gossip).

In third place are the following blocks: "Vital activity" – 28% in German youth slang (Hopfensmoothie – beer; napflixen – sleeping while watching the series) and "Human characteristics" – 30%) in English youth slang (goblin mode – a type of behavior consisting in laziness, sloppiness and greed; rizz – romantically attractive or charming person).

It can be argued that these thematic groups, identified during the semantic classification of German and English youth slang, have approximately the same percentage, which means that they are equally often used in these areas by both German-speaking and English-speaking young people.

It was found that the least popular thematic areas were "Politics" and "Covid-19". In the semantic classification of German youth slang, the "Covid-19" block accounts for 6% of the total (die Lockdown-Kinder – children who have problems in various fields during the pandemic; d ie Freitesten – unvaccinated people who can circumvent restrictions using a coronavirus test), and the "Politics" block – 5% (guttenbergen – write off; merkeln – postpone decisions for later). In a similar classification of English youth slang, the percentages are even lower – 3% and 2%, respectively. An example of slang included in the "Politics" block is the slang word trumpism, which is used as the name of Donald Trump's policy, and an example from the "Covid-19" block is the abbreviation sus from suspicious.

The unpopularity of these blocks, in our opinion, is due to the fact that young people have little interest in these areas of life. Young people are much more interested in their own lives, what happens to them and their friends, parties and problems specific to their age. It is interesting for young people to come up with new words that are incomprehensible to other people, describing feelings, emotions, actions, and even appearance.

A comparison of the semantic features of German and English youth slang led to the following results: the thematic blocks "Expression of emotions", "Human characteristics" and "Vital activity", having approximately the same percentage, are the most popular areas of slang usage in both languages. On the contrary, "Politics" and "Covid-19", which show equally low percentages in their respective semantic classifications, have become the least frequent areas of youth slang usage in both languages.

Thus, after conducting a comparative analysis of the structural and semantic features of German and English youth slang, we came to the conclusion that there are generally similar trends in the slang of both languages. Word formation has become the most productive way to replenish slang units in both languages, while changing the meaning has become less productive. We consider the use of emojis, which can replace some words in correspondence, to be a promising trend in replenishing the vocabulary of slang. This method is not only an expression of linguistic economy, but also provides an opportunity to assess a person's emotional state.

It is important to note the great importance of borrowing in German, which is the second most productive way of replenishing the vocabulary of youth slang. As noted above, words from English and a number from Turkish are massively borrowed into German slang. It is no coincidence that in the German language there is such a linguistic phenomenon as Denglisch, i.e. the use of both German and English words. This phenomenon has a negative impact on the development of the German language, as German words may lose their uniqueness and relevance under the influence of numerous English equivalents.

The structure of slang units in German and English differs. For example, German youth slang is more characterized by complex words, including hybrid ones (that is, with a borrowed component), while English slang is more characterized by simple words.

The semantic features of German and English youth slang confirm that slang units are used by German-speaking and English-speaking youth in almost identical fields.

The conducted research provides an opportunity to consider youth slang, its formation and usage trends in sufficient detail, thereby making a definite contribution to the development of the theory of sociolinguistics, and may also be of practical importance, in particular, for students of language universities planning to participate in international exchange programs, as familiarization with the trends in the development and functioning of slang provides the opportunity to integrate more easily into a foreign language environment.

The article is published in the version approved by the reviewers (after receiving a positive review recommending the manuscript for publication) with corrections made by the author (after receiving the editor’s comments, if any).
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