Adaptation of Loanwords in Chasu
Abstract
Abstract
It is generally agreed that, in a multilingual context, the incorporation of
foreign words into a native language is inevitable. However, owing to variations
in languages’ systems (phonology, morphology, syntax), each language has its
own strategies for adapting loanwords to its system. This paper presents the
strategies through which loanwords are integrated into Chasu vocabulary. The
data were obtained from Kamusi ya Chasu-Kiingereza-Kiswahili (Mreta 2008)
and the fieldwork conducted in Rundugai and Chemka villages in Kilimanjaro
Region. The paper is guided by two theoretical approaches, namely the Theory
of Constraint and Repair Strategy (TCRS) (Paradis & Lacharité, 1997) and
Assimilation Theory (McMahon, 1994; Campbell, 1998; Winford 2003). The
paper shows that loanwords are subjected to both phonological and
morphological modifications when they are borrowed by Chasu. It is posited
that the influx of loanwords in Chasu will eventually lead to the introduction of
foreign phonemes into the language’s phonemic system.
Key words: loanwords, phonological adjustments, morphological adjustments,
phonemic system, Chasu
Full Text:
PDFReferences
References
Boen, P. C. (2014). Loanwords in Nandi from English and Swahili.
Unpublished M.A. Dissertation. University of Nairobi.
Campbell, L. (1998). Historical Linguistics: An Introduction.
Edinburgh University Press.
Guthrie, M. (1948). The Classification of the Bantu Languages.
London: OUP.
Harvey, A. & Mreta, A. Y. (2016), Swahili Loanwords in Gorwaa and
Iraqw: Phonological and Morphological Observations. Jarida
la Taasisi ya Taaluma za Kiswahili, 79: 156–177.
McMahon, A. M. S. (1994). Understanding Language Change.
Cambridge University Press.
Maho, J. (2009). NUCL Online: The Online Version of the New
Updated Guthrie List, a Referential Classification of the
Bantu Languages. Consulted online on May 13, 2018 at
| Adaptation of Loanwords in Chasu
http://brill.com/fileassert/downloads.../35125_Bantu-Newupdated-
Guthrie-List.pdf
Mreta, A. Y. (1998). Analysis of Tense and Aspect in Chasu: Their
Form and Meaning in the Affirmative Constructions.
Bayreuth. PhD Dissertation LIT Verlag, Hamburg.
Mreta, A. Y. (2000). Nature and Effects of the Chasu-Kigweno
Contact. In K. Kahigi, Y. M. Kihore & M. Mous (eds.). Lugha
za Tanzania /Languages of Tanzania. Research School for
Asia, Africa, and Amerindian Studies (CNWS), Leiden,
University.
Mreta, A. Y. (2008). Kamusi ya Chasu-Kiingereza-Kiswahili. LOT.
Msuya, E. A. (2014). Mâatha: Descriptive Study of Litigation among
Chasu Speaking People. International Journal of Linguistics,
(4): 238–257.
Mwita, L. C. (2009). The Adaptation of Swahili Loanwords from
Arabic: A Constraint–Based Analysis. The Journal of Pan
African Studies, 2(8): 46–61.
OUT East Africa, & Taasisi ya Uchunguzi wa Kiswahili. (2004).
Kamusi ya Kiswahili Sanifu. Oxford University Press.
Paradis, C. & Lancharité, D. (1997). Preservation and Minimality in
Loanword Adaptation. Journal of Linguistics, 33: 379–430.
Peperkamp, S. (2004). “A psycholinguistic Theory of Loanword
Adaptations”. In M. Ettlinger, N. Fleisher & M. Park-Doob
(eds.). Proceedings on Berkeley Linguistics Society: 341–352.
Schadeberg, T. C. (2009). Loanwords in Swahili. In Haspelmath, M.
and Tadmor, U. (eds.). Loanwords in the World's Languages:
A Comparative Handbook. Berlin, New York: De Gruyter
Mouton: 76–102.
Winford, D. (2003). An Introduction to Contact Linguistics. Oxford:
Blackwell.
Yohana, R. (2009). A Sociolinguistic Analysis of Variation in a Rural
African Community: Chasu in Same District, Tanzania.
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
[ISSN 0856-9965 (Print)]