Neologisms in literature

Many neologisms have come from popular literature, and tend to appear in different forms. Most commonly, they are simply taken from a word used in the narrative of a book; for instance, McJob [10] and cyberspace [19] Sometimes the title of the book will become the neologism. For instance, Catch-22 [2] and Generation X [6] have become part of the vocabulary of many English-speakers. Also worthy of note is the case in which the author's name becomes the neologism, although the term is sometimes based on only one work of that author. This includes such words as Orwellian [1] and Ballardesque [16]. Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle was the container of the Bokononism family of Nonce words. Lewis Carroll's poem "Jabberwocky" has been called "the king of neologistic poems" as it incorporated some dozens of invented words. The early modern English prose writings of Sir Thomas Browne 1605-1682 are the source of many neologisms as recorded by the OED.

Conclusion

Neologisms tend to occur more often in cultures which are rapidly changing, and also in situations where there is easy and fast propagation of information. They are often created by combining existing words or by giving words new and unique suffixes or prefixes. Those which are portmanteaux are shortened. Neologisms can also be created through abbreviation or acronym, by intentionally rhyming with existing words, or simply through playing with sounds. Neologisms often become popular by way of mass media, the Internet, or word of mouth. Every word in a language was, at some time, a neologism, though most of these ceased to be such through time and acceptance.

Every nation is known by the language, and every aspect of the life of a people is reflected in their vocabulary. Like the history of a country, its vocabulary bears witness of its past and present. As the community changes in its technological development or social transformation, so does its language. Some words get out of usage or get transformed; new words are created to represent the reality brought to us by mass media in particular through news reporting. The term neologism was coined around 1800 and can also refer to an existing word or phrase which has been assigned a new meaning. Neologisms are especially useful in identifying inventions, new phenomena, or old ideas which have taken on a new cultural context. Coinage of new lexical units in the system of language may be traced along different lines: 1. derivation; 2. composition; 3. word-combination; 4. root-creation; 5. new application of existing words. The pace of change in the structure of a language is dictated by the evolution of society, by social, economic and historical factors. As the community changes in its technological development or social transformation, so does its language. Some words get out of usage or get transformed; new words are created to represent the reality brought to us by mass media in particular through news reporting.

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