The present study aims to investigate the use of Japanese loanwords in Mandarin Chinese-speaking Otaku communities by combining database observation with three elicitation tasks: 1) a questionnaire...Show moreThe present study aims to investigate the use of Japanese loanwords in Mandarin Chinese-speaking Otaku communities by combining database observation with three elicitation tasks: 1) a questionnaire on knowledge and using circumstances of the loans, 2) a set of read-aloud tasks following the questionnaire in Task 1 for tonal assignment strategies, and 3) a timed loanword-identification task. Linguistic dimensions of the data are carefully investigated, and variations in different individuals’ uses are also observed. Based on these findings, the role of misperception and identity in tonal adaptation, the limbo between code switching and lexical borrowing, as well as the role of orthographic representations are reflected on.Show less
This thesis studies the lexical items in youth language, henceforth Straattaal, currently used by Dutch youths in the city of Almere, in order to identify possible developments in Straattaal...Show moreThis thesis studies the lexical items in youth language, henceforth Straattaal, currently used by Dutch youths in the city of Almere, in order to identify possible developments in Straattaal lexicon 20 years after Appel’s (1999) first analysis of Straattaal words, which was conducted in Amsterdam. The investigation is directed at finding out to what extent the lexicon of Straattaal has changed, and what this change may possibly tell us about the dynamics of language. Previous research that has been done on Straattaal has for the most part focused on the perceptions and attitudes towards Straattaal and its social significance. The scope of this thesis is focused on testing students’ knowledge of Straattaal, and comparing the Straattaal words currently used by youngsters aged between 16 and 30 who live in Almere to those collected and analyzed in the studies performed some twenty years ago by Appel (1999), Appel & Schoonen (2005), and Nortier (2001). The aim of this investigation was to find out whether Straattaal is indeed, as Nortier (2001) notes, subject to continuous change. In order to gather data for this study, an online survey was conducted among 150 students, between the ages of 16 and 30, of an intermediate vocational school in the city of Almere. The survey consisted of a list of 50 words, identified as Straattaal words compiled for earlier studies. The survey first addressed the issue of the contemporaneity of Apple’s list of most commonly used Straattaal words from 1999, including the list that was compiled in Appel & Schoonen’s 2005 study and the list compiled by Nortier in 2001. Participants were asked if they could identify the words in the list as being Straattaal words, if they knew their meaning, and if they used the words themselves. The data showed that Straattaal is quite prevalent. 58% of respondents claimed to use Straattaal regularly. With regard to the extent to which Straattaal has evolved over the past 20 years, no considerable changes were found.Show less
