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| Mind your slanguage | Mind your slanguage |
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| Slang is sabotaging language, with some teenagers unable to speak in any other way, say critics. So should it be banned? | Slang is sabotaging language, with some teenagers unable to speak in any other way, say critics. So should it be banned? |
| From the Cockney rhyming calls of London's East End traders to teen speak, slang has always been part of Britain's rich and diverse language. | From the Cockney rhyming calls of London's East End traders to teen speak, slang has always been part of Britain's rich and diverse language. |
| A job interview, innit | A job interview, innit |
| But young people are increasingly unable to distinguish when it's appropriate to use it, say some linguists. Their language is becoming saturated by slang, leaving them ill-equipped to communicate in the wider world. | But young people are increasingly unable to distinguish when it's appropriate to use it, say some linguists. Their language is becoming saturated by slang, leaving them ill-equipped to communicate in the wider world. |
| Paul Kerswill, professor of sociolinguistics at Lancaster University, is studying street language in London. He says an entirely new dialect is emerging. | Paul Kerswill, professor of sociolinguistics at Lancaster University, is studying street language in London. He says an entirely new dialect is emerging. |
| "Young people are growing up with a new form of composite language. It's a bit cockney, a bit West Indian, a bit West African, with some Bangladeshi and Kuwaiti - and it seems to be replacing traditional cockney." | "Young people are growing up with a new form of composite language. It's a bit cockney, a bit West Indian, a bit West African, with some Bangladeshi and Kuwaiti - and it seems to be replacing traditional cockney." |
| This "multicultural English" is now the ordinary way of speaking for many young people, he says. Instead of just using it to be cool or to fit in with peers, they use it when they speak to everyone. | This "multicultural English" is now the ordinary way of speaking for many young people, he says. Instead of just using it to be cool or to fit in with peers, they use it when they speak to everyone. |
| And those who use it are losing any sense of "appropriacy" - the important skill of turning it on and off in different situations. | And those who use it are losing any sense of "appropriacy" - the important skill of turning it on and off in different situations. |
| FIND OUT MORE... Mind Your Slanguage is on BBC Radio 4 at 1100 GMT, Tuesday 8 DecemberOr listen to it on BBC iPlayer | FIND OUT MORE... Mind Your Slanguage is on BBC Radio 4 at 1100 GMT, Tuesday 8 DecemberOr listen to it on BBC iPlayer |
| "Appropriacy simply means using the right variety of language for the right context - using business jargon in business meetings, formal English in exams or slang in school playground," says slang expert Tony Thorne. | "Appropriacy simply means using the right variety of language for the right context - using business jargon in business meetings, formal English in exams or slang in school playground," says slang expert Tony Thorne. |
| "Language isn't just about communication, there is a strong social, political and emotional charge to it." | "Language isn't just about communication, there is a strong social, political and emotional charge to it." |
| Teachers warn of the damage caused by slang and its "sabotage" of literacy, he says. | Teachers warn of the damage caused by slang and its "sabotage" of literacy, he says. |
| Don't say 'innit' | Don't say 'innit' |
| But what is the answer? One school in Manchester is so concerned it has recently banned slang. | But what is the answer? One school in Manchester is so concerned it has recently banned slang. |
| "It was clear many students found it difficult to get through a sentence without saying 'innit' or 'do you know what I mean'," says Maria Nightingale, principal for operations at the Manchester Academy. | "It was clear many students found it difficult to get through a sentence without saying 'innit' or 'do you know what I mean'," says Maria Nightingale, principal for operations at the Manchester Academy. |
| WHAT'S THAT YOU SAID? Nanging - excellentBait - obviousLong - boringBare - lots of, veryGhost - goneSik - coolMoist - awful or terrible Source: Tony Thorne | |
| "We're a business and enterprise academy. It is really important our youngsters go into the world equipped with the appropriate use of language so they are not disadvantaged." | "We're a business and enterprise academy. It is really important our youngsters go into the world equipped with the appropriate use of language so they are not disadvantaged." |
| Exam results have soared as a consequence, she says. So should such a ban be more widespread and if it was, would it work? | Exam results have soared as a consequence, she says. So should such a ban be more widespread and if it was, would it work? |
| It's a ban that would be impossible to achieve, says Jamaican poet Benjamin Zephaniah. | It's a ban that would be impossible to achieve, says Jamaican poet Benjamin Zephaniah. |
| "There's no official language police. When does slang become every day normal use, part of communication? I hear politicians 'bigging up' an organisation or charity - 'big up' comes straight from Jamaican. Ann Widdecombe said 'let me fix up' when she put on her microphone, that's Jamaican." | "There's no official language police. When does slang become every day normal use, part of communication? I hear politicians 'bigging up' an organisation or charity - 'big up' comes straight from Jamaican. Ann Widdecombe said 'let me fix up' when she put on her microphone, that's Jamaican." |
| The very nature of English language - and what it means to be British - is its flexibility, he says. | The very nature of English language - and what it means to be British - is its flexibility, he says. |
| "A long time ago slang was about work. Market workers, carpenters, public houses, farmers had their own slang. Now slang comes from people bringing new words from other languages. | "A long time ago slang was about work. Market workers, carpenters, public houses, farmers had their own slang. Now slang comes from people bringing new words from other languages. |
| Don't understand their slang? You're not meant to | Don't understand their slang? You're not meant to |
| "Zoo came from France, pyjamas from India, shampoo comes from Urdu. Television is part Latin, part Greek, yet we think of it as one word. The English language no longer simply belongs to the English, it's multicultural." | "Zoo came from France, pyjamas from India, shampoo comes from Urdu. Television is part Latin, part Greek, yet we think of it as one word. The English language no longer simply belongs to the English, it's multicultural." |
| Slang is also a natural human tendency, says Mr Thorne. | Slang is also a natural human tendency, says Mr Thorne. |
| "All groups - it doesn't matter whether they are soldiers, policeman, criminals or whatever - always generate to some extent their own language. It's not just to communicate information, it's in order to include people into your group and exclude people out of your group." | "All groups - it doesn't matter whether they are soldiers, policeman, criminals or whatever - always generate to some extent their own language. It's not just to communicate information, it's in order to include people into your group and exclude people out of your group." |
| Slang has not become more prevalent, simply more public, he says. | Slang has not become more prevalent, simply more public, he says. |
| "This kind of language has always been there, but it's been liberated. Even in the punk era in the 1970s and 80s, newspapers wouldn't print slang. Now there are very few constraints - in media, TV soaps, rap lyrics - it's much more in your face." | "This kind of language has always been there, but it's been liberated. Even in the punk era in the 1970s and 80s, newspapers wouldn't print slang. Now there are very few constraints - in media, TV soaps, rap lyrics - it's much more in your face." |
| He said, she said | He said, she said |
| So if banning slang is not the solution, might the key be to understand it better? | So if banning slang is not the solution, might the key be to understand it better? |
| You can slip into the perception there is good language and bad language, and make the false link between bad language and bad people Prof Kerswill | You can slip into the perception there is good language and bad language, and make the false link between bad language and bad people Prof Kerswill |
| That's the conclusion of one sixth form college in south London, which has put slang on the syllabus. | That's the conclusion of one sixth form college in south London, which has put slang on the syllabus. |
| "A-level students learn where slang comes from," says Dan Clayton, a teacher at St Francis Xavier in Clapham. "They analyse it linguistically and think about what function it serves in conversations, as well as its links to identity." | "A-level students learn where slang comes from," says Dan Clayton, a teacher at St Francis Xavier in Clapham. "They analyse it linguistically and think about what function it serves in conversations, as well as its links to identity." |
| Older generations - which tend to associate slang with the values of American gangster rap culture and social decline - would benefit from studying it too because it would make slang seem less alien, he says. | Older generations - which tend to associate slang with the values of American gangster rap culture and social decline - would benefit from studying it too because it would make slang seem less alien, he says. |
| Education is essential, says Prof Kerswill, so people understand how different social groups speak, and how their language relates to ethnicity or social class. | Education is essential, says Prof Kerswill, so people understand how different social groups speak, and how their language relates to ethnicity or social class. |
| "You can very quickly slip into the perception that there is good language and bad language, and then make the false link between bad language and bad people." | "You can very quickly slip into the perception that there is good language and bad language, and then make the false link between bad language and bad people." |
| A spiv meets his Richard III - slang for bird - in 50s London | A spiv meets his Richard III - slang for bird - in 50s London |
| Talking about slang also reinforces a sense of appropriacy, much in the same way as political correctness has made people more sensitive to how language can hurt and discriminate, says Mr Thorne. | Talking about slang also reinforces a sense of appropriacy, much in the same way as political correctness has made people more sensitive to how language can hurt and discriminate, says Mr Thorne. |
| And all of us should learn how important it is to spot when slang is inappropriate, says Mr Zephaniah. | And all of us should learn how important it is to spot when slang is inappropriate, says Mr Zephaniah. |
| "Whether we like it or not, the way we talk affects the way people see us and this can have very serious consequences. | "Whether we like it or not, the way we talk affects the way people see us and this can have very serious consequences. |
| "I see slang like martial arts. So long as you have strong foundations, you are free to improvise." | "I see slang like martial arts. So long as you have strong foundations, you are free to improvise." |
| Add your comments on this story, using the form below. | Add your comments on this story, using the form below. |
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