Anglicisms in the Macedonian political discourse: A serious threat or a welcome addition

Abstract

The widespread presence of Anglicisms in the Macedonian language is undisputable. Anglicisms are particularly conspicuous in political discourse as politicians seem to have pronounced tendency to insert English borrowings in their public statements, speeches, discussion and debates quite frequently. While politicians thus clearly attempt to reinforce the persuasiveness of the political messages they impart to the masses, the question that arises is whether the general public endorses or condemns such a linguistic strategy. The aim of this paper is to shed some light on Macedonian native speakers’ perceptions and understanding of a list of Anglicisms that have become an integral part of Macedonian political discourse. For the purposes of this research, a tailor-made questionnaire was conducted among Macedonian speakers of different ages and educational levels. The aim was twofold – to inspect the influence of age and education on the informants’ understanding of Anglicisms, and to ascertain whether they perceive Anglicisms as a serious threat to the purity of their mother tongue or as a welcome addition that enriches it and increases its expressive potential.