THE ROLE OF NEOLOGISMS IN BRITISH NEWSPAPERS

Аннотация

В этой статье рассматриваются теоретические основы и историческая эволюция неологизмов в английском языке. Она иллюстрирует основные языковые теории — структурную, этимологическую, стилистическую и лексикографическую, — которые используются для изучения неологизмов. В исследовании рассматриваются технологические и социокультурные элементы, которые влияют на создание новых лексических единиц, и оценивается их вклад в постоянно меняющийся словарный запас английского языка. Особое внимание уделяется процедурам образования слов и стандартам, по которым неологизмы входят в обиход. Согласно заключению статьи, неологизмы являются важнейшим компонентом лингвистической эволюции и отражением изменений в обществе. Ключевые слова: неологизмы, словообразование, лексические инновации, развитие словарного запаса, стилистический подход, структурная теория, этимология, социокультурные факторы, эволюция языка, лингвистические изменения, новые лексические единицы. In today’s fast-paced and ever-evolving society, language constantly adapts to reflect new realities, technologies, and cultural shifts. One of the most vibrant indicators of this adaptation is the emergence of neologisms. The English language, like many others, is currently experiencing what researchers call a "neological boom." https://scientific-jl.com 9 5 45-son_2-to’plam_May -2025 ISSN:3030-3621 Ta'lim innovatsiyasi va integratsiyasi Neologisms—newly coined words, expressions, or meanings of existing words—are a crucial component of linguistic evolution. [1] The Cambridge English Dictionary defines a neologism as “a new word or expression, or a new meaning for an existing word.” In academic contexts, linguists also refer to this phenomenon as "coinage". [5] According to Algeo, neologisms regularly enter the language due to social, cultural, and technological changes, constantly expanding vocabulary boundaries. [6] From a theoretical perspective, neologisms are analyzed through several linguistic lenses. The stylistic theory explores how new words function in different discourse types. [7] The denotation theory emphasizes the connection between a word and the concept it names. The structural theory studies the internal construction of neologisms. Meanwhile, etymological theory focuses on word origins, and lexicographic theory addresses how neologisms are recorded in dictionaries. These approaches reflect the interdisciplinary interest in neology, revealing how neologisms are born, evolved, and entrenched in everyday use. [4] The development of neologisms is deeply rooted in history. Ancient civilizations like Greece and Rome introduced new terms—such as “philosophy,” “democracy,” and “drama”—to express abstract concepts and social systems. During the Renaissance (16th–17th centuries), scientific and artistic progress surge led to a massive influx of borrowed terms from Latin, Greek, French, and other languages. This period was marked by the rise of so-called "inkhorn terms," which provoked controversy among purists who feared for the integrity of the English language, for example, inkhorn word- Eximious -> Modern Equivalent / Meaning = Excellent; Ingent = huge, vast. The Industrial Revolution and subsequent technological advancements in the 19th and 20th centuries necessitated new words to describe inventions like the automobile, airplane, and computer. The 20th century also gave rise to specialized jargon in fields such as medicine and engineering. More recently, the digital age has significantly accelerated neologism formation. Terms like blog, selfie, tweet, and emoji have become ubiquitous, reflecting the influence of technology and global communication. [3] Neologisms are primarily the result of extralinguistic factors—societal changes, scientific breakthroughs, technological innovations, and cultural shifts. However, intralinguistic factors also play a role, such as productive word-formation patterns and the adaptability of language structures. For instance, new terms may be formed through affixation (e.g., eco-friendly), blending (e.g., brunch), abbreviation (e.g., app), or borrowing (e.g., karaoke from Japanese). According to Russian linguist V. I. Zabotkina divides neologisms into phonological (to the group of phonological neologisms, we conventionally include new words formed from interjections, for example:"zizz" — means a short sleep (simulates the sounds produced by a sleeping person, often used in comics with three https://scientific-jl.com 9 6 45-son_2-to’plam_May -2025 ISSN:3030-3621 Ta'lim innovatsiyasi va integratsiyasi letters zzZ)), borrowing (meme (in the modern internet sense — a spreadable cultural element) — although the word was coined by Richard Dawkins, its origin is connected to the French word même ("the same").), semantic (Cloud- original meaning: A mass of condensed water vapor in the sky; New (Neologistic) meaning: Internet storage system ("cloud computing")) and syntactic (Most new lexical units in English are created on the basi