Will Italian disappear because of English

The language spoken by Generation Z-those born between 1997 and 2012-incorporates many expressions derived from English. But what effect does this trend have on spoken Italian? Laura Baranzini, a lecturer at the Faculty of Communication, Culture, and Society at Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) and a staff member of the Linguistic Observatory of the Italian Language, explored this topic in an article published by Ticinonews.

The tendency of younger generations to adopt a vocabulary that differs, at least in part, from that of their predecessors is not a new phenomenon. Today, new terms-primarily of English origin-are mainly acquired through video games, the internet, and social media. Despite the ongoing criticism from those who disapprove of the anglicisation of the Italian language, this trend shows no signs of stopping. Our language is increasingly adopting terms from English. As Laura Baranzini noted, this will likely continue "unless the world's economic and cultural balances change significantly in the near future." She explains that we should not be surprised when linguistic innovations predominantly stem from the most culturally influential language, which is currently English-the dominant language in the online world and a rich source of new linguistic models.

The acquisition of English terms should not be seen as a threat. In some cases, the introduction of a new word can lead to the creation of a pair of terms, where the English-origin word assumes a more specific meaning. "The result is that Italian is enriched with a form and new shades of meaning: where English has only mail, we have mail and posta, and instead of to chat, we choose, depending on the context, chiacchierare or chattare. The English form can also bring with it part of the world in which it was born and spread, a certain number of connotations linked to English, or a greater capacity for synthesis than in Italian, charging the English word or expression with an evocative force that its Italian counterpart would not have (think for example of okay boomer, me too or ghostare)".

Laura Baranzini also warns against an inconsistent attitude towards foreign terms in our language: "We tend to use without hesitation those terms that have been part of the Italian language for a long time and that we have always heard (think, for example, of films, bars, sports, hobbies, computers, etc.). In contrast, we tend to react negatively to newer terms that surprise or challenge us, finding them more annoying". Over time, even words that currently sound exotic to us will become fully integrated into the language and will no longer be seen as foreign. It's important to note that not all foreign terms remain part of the Italian language in the long term; only a small portion of them are chosen to become part of the current vocabulary.

Again, it is important not to overestimate the phenomenon of anglicisation. On the one hand, because it only concerns the lexicon, a particularly permeable linguistic level (i.e. one that has always been susceptible to influences from other languages but which 'does not deeply affect the linguistic system'), and on the other because according to a 2009 study, "anglicisms in a corpus of spoken Italian in the Italian-speaking regions of Switzerland account for 0.27% of the total number of words considered, and for the most part these are 'long-standing' anglicisms such as okay or hobby. A significant factor contributing to the overestimation of anglicisms is their prominent presence in high-visibility areas, such as journalism and social media".

To better understand the language of young people, it's essential to immerse in their world and grasp their cultural references. However, a natural linguistic gap often exists between generations, as the language of young people is designed to differentiate them from the previous generation. This tendency to create distance is one of the reasons why youth language evolves so rapidly. At the same time, it should be remembered that for young people, strong language skills involve mastering not only multiple varieties of Italian but also various language registers. Additionally, they should be able to adapt these skills to fit different communication situations. Often, then, it is adults - journalists, institutions, etc. - who use (less spontaneously than young people) a very high number of English expressions in public communication.

The full interview with Laura Baranzini, edited by Andrea Scolari and published in Ticinonews, is available at the following link. (Italian only)