Youth speech article. . .

If you look at the change in the English language over the last 20 years you might think that it is not the same language at all.

Slang/abbreviations 

Over the last 5 years a new type of dialect has emerged in the English language, with words like 'Fleek' (looking good) and 'Bae' (before anyone else) being used more and more in daily conversations between friends. More words have been emerging in the last 2 years because of things like social media which are causing these words to become so popular.The use of this 'text speech' is baffling parents and adults who don't have any link to social media as they are hearing it more often when out in public. A survey was carried out and 86% of parents who took part in the survey said that they felt teens spoke an entirely different language on social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook. This is proof that the English language is evolving over time into a set of sub-languages frequently used by young people across the British Isles.

Fillers

When you think of fillers you most likely think of 'um' and 'er' but now teenagers are using words as fillers such as 'Like'. The use of word fillers is infuriating to several people such as actress Emma Thompson who says that this makes her feel ''insane''. However some Language experts say that this is simply a way of breaking up sentences as our brains process what to say next. John Ayto editor of the oxford dictionary of slang says, ''Fillers are a way we all stall time when speaking and historically always have. it has nothing to do with sloppiness''. But why does this irritate some people? Robert Groves explains that ''using 'um may seem more correct to Emma Thompson because using 'like' as a filler is not a feature in her language'' So if a word is not a feature of some peoples idiolect they can become confused as to why they use it and the more often they hear this word the more aggravated they become. We all have our own quirky phrases and we pick them up and pass them on from person to person so the example of the word 'like' it has caught on by being passed from friend to friend. if they (young people) do deploy the sort of language they're using on the streets in formal settings then it could well be a disadvantage to them but at other times its quite clearly the way they get along, the way that they signal they belong in a group, the way that they fit in.'' ''And we all do that in out professional lives as well. We've got all our acronyms and our little words that we use to send a signal.- I'm one of the club'' says Professor Clive Upton.


Sources-  http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/may/01/icymi-english-language-is-changing-faster-than-ever-says-expert

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11426737