Study on the Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases under Language Contact Theory

Xinjiang University,Xinjiang,China Email:969790750@qq.com

[Abstract]With the spread and development of globalization in the 20th century,letter words and letter-word phrases have frequently occurred in Chinese.They appear more and more in the spoken language of young people,and even begin to take a place in the written language.The paper is going to discuss the theory of language contact,features,attitude and standardization of letter words and letter-word phrases.

[Keywords]language contact;letter word;letter-word phrases;standardization

Introduction

There is no language in the world that is isolated and unaffected by other languages.It is the basic principle of language contact theory.Under the influences of globalization,English is now playing an increasing important role in international communication and cooperation.Also under the circumstances of globalization and language contact,Chinese is under constant influence.One of the results is that lexical borrowings flood in,among which letter words and letter-word phrases are most special.

Based on the theory of language contact,it studies the features of letter words and letter-word phrases from the perspective of lexical level.At the same time,the widespread use of letter words and letter-word phrases reflects people’s attitudes towards the use of them.More importantly,how to standardize the use of letter words and phrases deserves wide attention.

Language Contact and Related Theories

Language Contact

Language is changing all the time.Old varieties fade way,and new varieties keep popping up.Sometimes,the change is just in pronunciation,and sometimes the meaning of the same word increases or decreases.Some linguistic structures remain stable while others change fast.All in all,change is inherent in the nature of language.

But how does language change happen?Language contact is the main cause of language change.“internal factors”and“external factors”are involved(Gerritson&Stein,1992).The“internal factors”refer to the inherent state of a language.The“external factors”refer to the use of a language in society.

according to different media,language contact can be divided in to“direct language contact”and“indirect language contact”(Hsu,1994).“Direct language contact”is mediated by human interaction and restricted to oral competence,under which lexical borrowing occurs through spoken language contact.Whereas,“indirect language contact”is mediated by written language and extended to literary competence,within which bilingual communities and community-to-community contact are not involved.

Outcomes of Language Contact

any linguistic change is due at least in part to language contact(Thomason,2001,p.61).Factors,such as language contact and/or internal motivation,induce language changes.More often than not,language change is out of a particular language contact.Language contact has outcomes:contact-induced language change,extreme language mixture,and language death(Thomason&Kaufman,1988).

The most noticeable contact-induced change is borrowing,which ranges from the simple borrowing of words to borrowing of phonological,morphological,and syntactic structure.In the traditional studies,the language change is bi-directional.For example,borrowings pass from English to Chinese,and some Chinese words and terms have also been introduced into English.It is common that language change occurs under the interaction of internal and external factors.

Extreme language mixture refers to the very intricate code mixing and code switching.One code is used in informal contexts such as home or neighborhood.Whereas the other code is used in more formal settings such as school or government.

Language death refers to total shift to another language due to language contact.

Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases Induced by Language Contact

Under the great influence of the spread of English,which has already become an irresistible force in the whole world,language contact seduces borrowings into Chinese.Among these borrowings,letter words and letter- word phrases are the most interesting and special forms.Nowadays,letter words like“AI,5G,Apps,B 超,3+X,7-11,...”appear in front of us through mass media.Since 1994,studies on letter words and its phrases have widely involved from the form to pronunciation and semantic meaning.

Causes for Applications of Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases

Everything happens for a reason.The applications of letter words and letter-word phrases are no exception.Basically,there are two causes:the internal causes and the external causes.

as for the internal cause,the first is concerning the vitality of language.“Languages,like cultures,are not really sufficient into themselves.The necessities of intercourse bring the speakers of one language into direct or indirect contact with those of neighboring or culturally dominant languages.”(Sapir,2002,p.163)Any languages with vitality always welcome the contact with other languages.They often borrow words from other languages to fill the lexical gap.Chinese has been adopting new words through language contact to enrich its vocabulary during its development.Another cause is concerning the principles of economy in language.The principles of economy also govern human language activities.They make people consciously or unconsciously arrange language activities economically on the prerequisite that language should successfully satisfy the interactive and communicative functions.

There are also a lot of external causes for applications of letter words and letter-word phrases.Pragmatic psychology is the first one.Under the influence of English spread,more people,especially young people,desire to be thought fashionable and refined by using letter words and letter-word phrases in spoken and written Chinese.Secondly,under the influence of the global language--English,advanced digital device and internet connectivity,applications of letter words and letter-word phrase are helpful to receive the freshest information,facilitate international communication and avoid the problems arising from different translations.Finally,letter words and letter-word phrases are also used for the euphemistic purposes.In order to avoid embarrassment or unpleasantness,letter words and letter-word phrases take the role as the euphemism.For example,“TMD”is a Chinese coinage of English letter to curse,but it is less ruder than the same Chinese expression.

Definition and Types of Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases

Letter words and letter-word phrases are composed of alphabets,including Roman alphabets,Greek alphabets,and Chinese pinyin,symbols,figures and Chinese characters(Liu,2002).This basically includes main properties of letter words and letter-word phrases.

In recent decades,English letters have found an optimal use in Chinese spoken and written language.According to the use of letters,letter words and letter-word phrases can be divided into the following types:

(a)Individual letters

Chinese speakers are familiar with the letters of English alphabet.The letter“Q”is probably one of the earliest English letters that Chinese people are familiar with and can recognize,as it is the name of of Ah Q in the classic novelThe True Story of Ah Qwritten by Lu Xun in 1920s.

(b)English initialisms and acronyms

Combining only initials or initial sequences of two or more words is known as initialisms or acronyms.The former is generally read letter by letter,such as WTO and DNA,while the latter is usually read as a single word,such as APEC.These two types of letter words and letter-word phrases have enjoyed great popularity among Chinese speakers in recent years,which help to save time and avoid awkward translation.

(c)Combination of English letters and Chinese characters

Combinations of English letters and Chinese characters can yield three types of new words.The first type is the combination of individual letter and individual character.For example,“维C”is apparently a combination of a native morpheme and an English letter.The second type is formed by English words and Chinese characters,such as BASIC语言.The third type combines English initialisms or acronyms with Chinese characters,such as PH 值.

(d)Combination of English letters and numbers

Numbers and alphabetic letters or abbreviations are combined,such as F1.

(e)Chinese coinage with Chinese pinyin

This type is totally Chinese creations.Native Chinese characters are abbreviated in roman letters,and pronounced in that way.HSK,which is the abbreviation for hanyu shuiping kaoshi 汉语水平考试,is known as the Chinese Proficiency Test.

Functions of Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases

(a)Indefinite Reference

a 先生，B 同学，X 组,...are examples of letter words and letter-word phrases to designate indefinite persons or objects.

(b)Indefinite Pronouns

English letters are also used as markers of indefinite pronouns.For example,in the phrase“N 多个”,N refers to“many”or“a lot”.

(c)Abbreviations

“V”stands for“victory”in the letter-word phrase:V 手势.

(d)Description

Many people are familiar with the shapes of English letters.For example,“O 型腿”describes bow-legged people.Letter O is a vivid description.Another example is letter U in“U 型管”,which also describes the shape.

Attitudes toward Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases in Chinese Linguistic Circle

What attitude should we take towards letter words and letter-word phrases?Should letter words and letter-word phrases be introduced into Chinese?Generally speaking,there are two opposite attitudes towards letter words and letter-word phrases.One is that they are part and parcel of Chinese vocabulary and they should be accepted.The other is that it is not proper for us to use letter words and letter-word phrases in Chinese,and they should be refused.

Positive Attitude

There are basic requirements(Li,2002)for letter words and letter-word phrase to be included into Chinese:one is that letter words and letter-word phrases must be pronounced according to the Chinese phonology,and the other is that the meaning of letter words and letter-word phrases must be widely understood by Chinese.It has become a reality that letter words and letter-word phrases have been accepted and used widely in the spoken and written language.

Negative Attitude

Letter words and letter-word phrases are not part of Chinese vocabulary because both the written form and pronunciation are from foreign languages(Hu,2002).Letter words and letter-word phrases will endanger the national and cultural dignity and the artistic image of Chinese characters.There may be a tendency of latinization of contemporary Chinese.

Standardization of Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases

Letter words and letter-word phrases are new comers in Chinese.Having been used over a period of time,many of them are fixed.But many others are still in a chaos.Therefore,letter words and letter-word phrases need to be standardized.

Principles for the Standardization of Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases

(a)The Principle of Necessity

When there are not equivalent words in Chinese or equivalent words are not as concise as letter

words and letter-word phrases,we use letter words and letter-word phrases.

(b)The Principle of Generality

The most frequently used letter words and letter-word phrases are the top choices.

(c)The Principle of Tastefulness

We should use tasteful letter words and letter-word phrases and avoid and even get rid of

four-letter words and dirty words.

Concrete Measures for the Standardization of Letter Words and Letter-word Phrases

(a)Standardization for Pronunciation

At present,there is no definite standards on whether letter words and letter-word phrases should be read in English sounds or in Chinese sounds.

(b)Standardization for Written Form

Most letter words and letter-word phrases have fixed written forms,but some do not,such as the homograph“CT”and“C.T.”Which one should be chosen as the fixed form? It is suggested that the one used most frequently should be chosen on the basis of survey

(Li Xiaohua,2002).

(d)Limiting the number

We should take the proportion of letter words and letter-word phrases seriously,though they are

allowed to be used in Chinese.

Conclusion

With the close contact in the international context,new things are mushrooming.Accordingly,new words emerge.Letter words and letter-word phrases,as a unique form,are indispensable for the development and variety of Chinese.However,letter words and letter-word phrases should be studied and analyzed objectively and practically.We should face this phenomenon positively and accept and tolerate the letter words and letter-word phrases in our language.At the same time,we also pay attention to the practical problems,which call on government and concerning authoritative organizations to regulate the usage of letter words and letter-word phrases.

Acknowledgements

This is a project supported by Double First-class Construction Project in 2020:Construction of Public Teaching Platform for Undergraduates,50012000108.