E-Thesis 185 views 83 downloads
The Word made Welsh: The semiotics of code-switching and borrowing in a minority language / Bethan Tovey-Walsh
Swansea University Author: Bethan Tovey-Walsh
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PDF | E-Thesis – open access
Copyright: The Author, Bethan Siân Tovey-Walsh, 2024. Licensed under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial No–Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) license. Third party content is excluded for use under the license terms.
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DOI (Published version): 10.23889/SUthesis.68868
Abstract
This study examines the previously little-studied phenomenon of orthographic adaptation of English-origin lexical items in Welsh-language discourse. Using the semiotic framework of enregisterment (Agha, 2005), orthographic practices themselves, as well as orthographically adapted lexemes and texts,...
| Published: |
Swansea, Wales, UK
2024
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| Institution: | Swansea University |
| Degree level: | Doctoral |
| Degree name: | Ph.D |
| Supervisor: | Fitzpatrick, Tess ; Jones, Rhys |
| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa68868 |
| Abstract: |
This study examines the previously little-studied phenomenon of orthographic adaptation of English-origin lexical items in Welsh-language discourse. Using the semiotic framework of enregisterment (Agha, 2005), orthographic practices themselves, as well as orthographically adapted lexemes and texts, are situated as highly salient ways of performing Welshness. Welshness is examined as a cultural, political, and geographical identity as well as a linguistic one, and the interaction of language skills with cultural authenticity is explored, leading to the conclusion that prescriptivist ideals and fears of language loss drive the construction of artificial and emotionally unsatisfying registers of Welsh. An examination of Welsh-English bilingualism on Twitter through the lens of enregistered orthography shows Welsh linguistic identity to be a complex and expansive semiotic construct. In conclusion, I propose that both scholarly and pedagogical approaches to Welsh would benefit from a deeper understanding of the enregisterment of Welsh orthography, viewing multiple layers of language-mixing as a variable feature of Welsh stylistic richness, rather than treating it as an exclusively transgressive practice. |
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| Item Description: |
ORCiD identifier: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0559-2952 |
| Keywords: |
Linguistics, Semiotics, Welsh, Codeswitching, Loanwords, Bilingualism |
| College: |
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Funders: |
CorCenCC |