Alterity marking and enhancing accessibility in lexical borrowing: meta-information techniques in the use of incipient anglicisms in French and Italian

Abstract

Abstract Previous research has highlighted that the use of lexical borrowings is often accompanied by metalinguistic elements that have been analysed as flags or alterity markers. This paper aims to investigate the use of these markers from a usage-based perspective, focusing on their functions in communication. It will first be argued that lexical borrowings may pose certain challenges to recipient-language speakers; these challenges will be rephrased as features of reduced accessibility. The notion of reduced accessibility will be elaborated by commenting on both form-related aspects concerning the items’ conformity with respect to the RL system (pronunciation, spelling, morphology) and content-related aspects concerning semantic transparency as defined in diachronic cognitive onomasiology. It will then be argued that in addition to the function of alterity marking, the markers also serve to enhance the accessibility of lexical borrowings. A revised categorisation of three types of relevant meta-information techniques will be proposed (flagging, metalinguistic comments, frame information). A survey on the use of recent anglicisms in French and Italian newspaper articles will reveal how the use of meta-information techniques can be seen as a strategy to communicatively negotiate and facilitate the use of borrowed items. Finally, implications of the usage-based approach to alterity marking and enhancing accessibility will be discussed.