The four seasons of language

Sunday, December 23rd, 2012 In Swedish By Roman A living language follows our world’s evolution like the seasons. It will burgeon when spring brings out a cultural revolution, doze off in summer, giving way to the future stars of the dictionary, it will lose its leaves in fall, looking for a new identity, hibernate in winter while a conflict between generations is raging outside and will come back to life at the next spring. A language may evolve with the progress of knowledge and technology, for example, the word “telephone” did not exist in the Middle Ages – what is the use of course? What is the first word to your opinion? Food? House? Which came first? The chicken or the egg? And what is the most recently invented word? Apparently, in many languages, the invented word turns out to be the last Apple application! There are also words who die away, trendy words, phoenix words, words that take on a new meaning, and words who wear out and become old fashioned – it is the entire evolution of a society who talks and communicates. There are two types of new words: words coming from a spontaneous oral creation or an artificial creation. The latter includes the scientific and technological fields; as for the former, you will encounter it while listening to political speeches, in philosophy or in professional jargon. Language is our most useful tool ever yet to be invented, and like all life, it lives and dies with us. If you are a fan of languages and want to share your most recent neologism, don’t hesitate to contact us to translate it!