Lexical shortening as a morphological phenomenon in English and Arabic Languages: A comparative study
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Abstract
The present study looks to identify and compare the processes associated with lexical shortening, in both English and Arabic languages. It focuses on abbreviations, acronyms, clippings and blends. The study aims to find out the similarities, differences, and universalities of the four prementioned processes in the two languages. The study has followed the descriptive qualitative method in addition to the historical method. The data have been collected from the research conducted on morphology, newspapers, mass, and social media in both English and Arabic languages. The data have been sorted morphologically and then analyzed via content analysis. The study has hypothesized that English and Arabic share similar lexical processes of shortening words and share similar needs for forming new lexis. The study has found similar universal linguistic commonalities of shortening words in both English and Arabic, although they belong to different language families. It is also found that the language family of either English or Arabic determines the linguistic differences of the processes of lexical shortening due to its morphological patterns. The new lexis resulted from the various forms of shortening are necessary to meet the need for generating new vocabulary in both languages and cover new lexical items in AI, culture, science, technology, and sustainable development to cope with modernization and globalization. They also contribute to facilitating and accelerating the communication worldwide in an economic way. The study has suggested and recommended studies that may assist future studies in the field.
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