African American slang : a linguistic description / Maciej Widawski.

Format:

• Book

Author/Creator:

• Widawski, Maciej, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

• Black English.
• African Americans--Languages.
• English language--United States--Slang.
• English language--Social aspects--United States.
• African Americans--Social conditions.
• African Americans--Education--Language arts.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xv, 296 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2015.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In this pioneering exploration of African American slang - a highly informal vocabulary and a significant aspect of African American English - Maciej Widawski explores patterns of form, meaning, theme and function, showing it to be a rule-governed, innovative and culturally revealing vernacular. Widawski's comprehensive description is based on a large database of contextual citations from thousands of contemporary sources, including literature and the press, music, film and television. It also includes an alphabetical glossary of 1,500 representative slang expressions, defined and illustrated by 4,500 usage examples. Due to its vast size, the glossary can stand alone as a dictionary providing readers with a reliable reference of terms. Combining scholarship with user-friendliness, this book is an insightful and practical resource for students and researchers in linguistics and general readers interested in exploring lexical variation in contemporary English.

Contents:

• Cover; Half-title; Title page; Copyright information; Table of contents; Introduction; Acknowledgments; List of abbreviations; 1 Foundations; 1.1 Terminology; 1.1.1 African American; 1.1.2 Related terms; 1.1.3 Slang; 1.1.4 Related terms; 1.2 Methodology; 1.2.1 Scope; 1.2.2 Collection; 1.2.3 Description; 2 Forms; 2.1 Combining; 2.1.1 Compounding; 2.1.2 Affixation; 2.1.3 Phraseology; 2.2 Shortening; 2.2.1 Clipping; 2.2.2 Initialism; 2.2.3 Acronym; 2.3 Conversion; 2.3.1 Verbification; 2.3.2 Nominalization; 2.3.3 Other processes; 2.4 Blending; 2.5 Borrowing; 2.5.1 Loanwords
• 2.5.2 Loan translations2.5.3 Eponyms; 2.5.4 Brand names; 2.6 Creating; 2.6.1 Coinage; 2.6.2 Onomatopoeia; 2.6.3 Respelling; Summary; 3 Meanings; 3.1 Figuration; 3.1.1 Metaphor; 3.1.2 Metonymy; 3.1.3 Other processes; 3.1.4 Figuration themes; 3.2 Shifting; 3.2.1 Generalization; 3.2.2 Specialization; 3.2.3 Melioration; 3.2.4 Pejoration; Summary; 4 Themes; 4.1 Common themes; 4.1.1 Body; 4.1.2 Physiology; 4.1.3 Sexuality; 4.1.4 Alcohol; 4.1.5 Drugs; 4.1.6 Categorization; 4.2 Specific themes; 4.2.1 African Americans; 4.2.2 Africana; 4.2.3 Racism; 4.2.4 Whites; 4.2.5 Violence; 4.2.6 Entertainment
• 4.2.7 Luxury4.2.8 Geography; Summary; 5 Functions; 5.1 Social functions; 5.1.1 Identification; 5.1.2 Rebellion; 5.1.3 Interaction; 5.1.4 Secrecy; 5.2 Psychological functions; 5.2.1 Emotions; 5.2.2 Humor; 5.2.3 Toughness; 5.3 Rhetorical functions; 5.3.1 Informality; 5.3.2 Stylization; 5.3.3 Conciseness; 5.3.4 Forcefulness; 5.4 Cultural functions; 5.4.1 Wordplay; 5.4.2 Word battle; 5.4.3 Assimilation; Summary; Conclusion; Glossary; A; B; C; D; E; F; G; H; I; J; K; L; M; N; O; P; Q; R; S; T; U; V; W; X; Y; Z; Bibliography; Sources; Internet; Film; Music; Press; Literature; Television
• ConversationIndex

Notes:

• Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).
• Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

• 1-316-23683-8
• 1-316-25385-6
• 1-316-25007-5
• 1-316-25196-9
• 1-107-42440-2
• 1-316-24818-6
• 1-316-23494-0
• 1-139-69656-4