A CRITICAL STUDY ON THE MORPHOLOGICAL PROCESSES USED BY SRI LANKAN FACEBOOK USERS IN DEFINING SRI LANKAN VARIETY IN ENGLISH.

Abstract

A morphological process is a word formation process which adds new vocabulary into a language. Sri Lankan English (SLE) is an emerging concept of varieties in English that has links with native languages in Sri Lanka. In every language, vocabulary plays a pivotal role in verbal and written communication. This study investigates the application of morphological processes by Sri Lankan Facebook users and their contribution in forming a new set of vocabulary in English with special reference to bilingual speakers in Sri Lanka in using Facebook as a Social platform. Qualitative Research methodology involved in collecting and anodizing data in this research and 30 posts from a personal blog called “Nimesh” were analyzed. Only four morphological processes such as borrowing, compounding, clippings, and acronyms were employed to signify the process of word forming and generation of neologism in relation to a new concept of English language Varieties called “Sri Lankan English”. Thus, the study signifies that these four processes apparently scaffold the generation of neologisms in this new variety in relation to social media platforms in Sri Lanka. Moreover, the discussion on the results of the study indicates that the Sinhala and Tamil languages have affected the expansion of SLE vocabulary. Additionally, the study illustrates that the Facebook users are very close to these word formations and a new set of vocabulary of SLE. Therefore it is obvious that these research findings witness the skills of humans and their behaviors to form new language changes in relation to the aforesaid linguistic categories of word formation. It also provides an insight on cultural, social, and linguistic characteristics to spread a positive attitudinal change among the people about Sri Lankan English