April 10, 2011
GIVEN THE AMOUNT OF COMMUNICATION IN MODERN LIFE...:
Why did LOL infiltrate the language? (James Morgan, 4/10/11, BBC News)
Love it or loathe it, "lol" is now a legitimate word in our lexicon, says Graeme Diamond, the OED's principal editor for new words."The word is common, widespread, and people understand it," he explains.
The word serves a real purpose - it conveys tone in text, something that even the most cynical critics accept.
"I don't 'LOL'. I'm basically someone who kind of hates it," says Rob Manuel of the internet humour site b3ta.
"But the truth is, we do need emotional signifiers in tweets and emails, just as conversation has laughter. 'LOL' might make me look like a twit, but at least you know when I'm being arch." [...]
So why has "LOL", above all other web phrases, become such a phenomenon?
Because it's simple and multipurpose, says Tim Hwang, founder of ROFLCon, a whole festival dedicated to "internet awesome".
"The magic of LOL is that it's both exclusive and inclusive," he says. "On one level, it's simple to understand.
"But it also conveys something subtle - depending on the situation. It means more than just 'funny'. For example, if I had my bike stolen, my friend might reply 'LOL'. It helps overcome an awkward moment."
For school kids, acronyms like "LOL" and "KMT" (kiss my teeth) are a kind of secret code, a badge of belonging, says Tony Thorne, author of the Dictionary of Contemporary Slang.
"I go into schools and record slang words - all the new terms kids are saying - words like 'lolcano'. And if you talk to kids they will say this is our language - this is what identifies us."
But aren't these slang words also harmful to children's vocabulary? Not at all, says Thorne.
"Government educationalists get all worked up about words like LOL - they see them as substandard and unorthodox.
"But the small amount of research on this issue shows that kids who use slang abbreviations are the more articulate ones. It's called code switching."
...anything that abets clarity and concision is helpful.
Posted by oj at April 10, 2011 7:21 AM
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