Evolution Of Emerging Referring Expressions In Network Language

Referring expressions are important in linguistic study. However, the previous studies mainly focus on analysis of referring expressions in traditional context, which are lack of exploration of emerging referring expressions in network language. In order to supplement the studies of referring expressions in Internet context in China, this thesis explores emerging referring expressions in network language with Chinese Inventory as the object of the research in the case of Sina microblog. Through qualitative and quantitative methods,this thesis points out that evolution of emerging referring expressions in Sina microblog context can be classified into three types from the perspectives of their referring meaning and function:creative microblog referring expressions, cross-context microblog referring expressions and rewritten microblog referring expressions. And then this thesis explores the three types from the perspectives of personal referring expressions, time referring expressions, space referring expressions, social referring expressions and discourse referring expressions. Each type of evolution of emerging referring expressions is analyzed within the concrete Sina microblog cases. It is pointed out that two reasons of the evolution of emerging referring expressions in network language in this thesis are the demand of Internet co-culture and the pragmatic demand. It provides new perspective for pragmatic referring expressions' extension research by exploring the types of emerging referring expressions in network language and the reasons it originates.