Languages don't change very quickly. We retain most of the same vocabulary, the same syllables and pronunciations, the same syntax and the same grammar. Our Americanized version of English is not terribly different now than it was one hundred years ago. Subjects still come before verbs, we don't have new conjugations, and we still use 26 letters in our alphabet.
What has changed, however, is our colloquial language and slang. From generation to generation, even within a single age group, the language metamorphoses and carries us along for the ride. But sometimes there is a strong resistance to it, and I'm seeing it happen now.
Odds are that, as a college student, you have computer. If you have a computer, then it's likely you have an Internet connection, and if so, you probably often use some form of messaging program along with it. Whether you use AIM or MSN or Trillian or Yahoo or whatever, you've also probably run into the occasional "chatspeak" acronym.
You might even use them. After all, we're busy people, so typing out an "OMG" or an "LOL" is a handy way to save some time or convey an emotion — like laughter — that doesn't translate well into writing. You've probably "ROFL'd," "WTF'd," "BBQ'ed," or simply sliced off unnecessary parts of words "u" didn't feel like typing. You may be so used to it, in fact, that you didn't notice it happen in the previous sentence.
"Chatcronyms" are a real and common part of written electronic communication; so much, in fact, that people actually use them in real life.
And, of course, the people who do use them are lampooned for being nerds. But I think that's unnecessary; like I said, colloquial language changes quickly.
It's no surprise that the way people speak in the electronic medium — a growing medium that is becoming more and more integrated into our lives — is worming its way into everyday speech.
And they actually have uses. Yes, you could laugh instead of saying "LOL" — however you want to pronounce it — but sometimes you don't actually need to laugh. Sometimes, you are only mildly amused and wish to communicate that without saying "this mildly amuses me," although I will admit the irony of using "LOL" when the opposite is true.
But maybe you drop a "WTF?" around kids to keep them from taking new words home to their parents. Maybe you feel that OMG is a handy substitute for using a certain deity's name in vain.
I see a lot of resistance to this, and I'm curious as to why. We already use simple acronyms in everyday speech and not just when we are just talking about PETA. Sometimes you just have to let somebody know ASAP that they're SOL. Why not add a few more to the list?
Ours is a culture of efficiency; everything is becoming smoother, faster and just plain easier. Why should the same thing not happen to our language?
If you like, you can send a "chatspeak"-infested e-mail to Rob at: robert.t.wright@asu.edu.
