Evolutionary Processes in the Italian Language of the Internet: Vocabulary and Word Formation

Abstract

The article is devoted to the evolutionary processes in the Italian language of the Internet, which are directly revealed at the lexical and word-formation levels. The article gives the general assessment of these processes from the point of view of a number of significant structural and sociolinguistic parameters in the context of the historical development of the Italian language. This research is based on the opposition of the language of the Internet to the structural norm of the Italian language; it is noted that the opposition is of slang nature. The key trend, as the author emphasizes, is the convergence of the oral and written forms of speech reflected in the used and normatively fixed forms of word-formation, in which traditional models as well as mixed polycodes (alphanumeric and/or alpha pictorial) are extensively used. Studying the media communication influence on the development of the Italian language, the author relies on the classification of the functional parameters of the opposition − convergence of written and oral forms of speech − by the Italian linguist G. Berruto. The main notions, which characterize such evolution, − diamesia, diastratia, diatopia, diafasia are studied. G. Berruto’s concept is developed by another Italian linguist G. Antonelli who singles out the language of the Internet communication as the culminating point of evolution. The article studies a large number of language examples revealing the picture of word-formation in the Italian language of the Internet. Word-formation is interpreted as the main factor in the normative evolution of the Italian language in the Internet communication. Particular attention is paid to contaminated word-formation methods, creolized forms of a language sign (contraction, pictogram), which are typical of the Internet language, as well as unregulated use of punctuation marks, and spelling violation. The article shows slang forms of lexical speech usage and word-formation in the Italian language of the Internet. The structural-linguistic and semiotic interpretation of the Italian Internet word-formation is given. The article carries out the rubrication of models and types of word-formation in the Italian language of the Internet. The article is suggested to specialists who are interested in semiotics of the Internet language, modern development trends of the Italian language, the peculiarities of Italian lexicology and word-formation.