A Study Of Chinese Loanwords In English From The Perspective Of Language Contact

Language contact is a dynamic process and loanwords are a contact-induced phenomenon.English is the most widely used language in the world,while Chinese is used by the largest population in the world.The contact between Chinese and English is a continuous linguistic and cultural phenomenon,which has been of great interest to the linguists.Therefore,the study of Chinese loanwords in English is a subject keeping pace with the times.Chinese loanwords are the product of the contact between Chinese and English and the cultural exchange,induced by the social factors outside the language.Meanwhile,after infiltrating into English,Chinese loanwords will have been inevitably changed in order to adapt to the English language system because of the differences between Chinese and English language system.This is the contact-induced internal change.This research applies the Language Contact Theory and utilizes the quantitative and qualitative research methods,discussing three questions: 1.What are the main social factors that affect the use of Chinese loanwords in English? 2.What linguistic changes will occur after Chinese loanwords enter English? 3.How do the social factors and linguistic factors jointly influence Chinese loanwords in English?Through elaborating the social factors that impact Chinese loanwords importing into English,like economic,political,cultural factors and influence of social media,it illuminates that social factors are the decisive factors of language contact,and language borrowing is also influenced by the economic power and political ideology between countries,as well as the social culture and philosophical thinking mode of a nation,which also determine the absorption and transformation of foreign language elements in one language.Media coverage of China and the loanwords using in the reports will also impact the native speakers' attitudes to the language and culture of China.The contact-induced internal evolution of language refers to the changes of language structure,including vocabulary,pronunciation,and grammar.The result shows that loanwords would be naturalized in English language system in the phonetic,semantic and grammatical aspects so as to adapt to the habits of native English speakers.In the aspect of phonetics,the Chinese loanwords will change with the phonetic supplement,phonemic substitution,and the syllable subtraction,so as to adapt to the phonetic system of English.In the aspect of semantics,the change of meaning is in the way of narrowing,extending and meaning shift.In the aspect of grammar,language fusion is mainly manifested in morphological function,i.e.the changes of singular and plural form and the suffix additions.Social factors often coupled with linguistic changes,determining the consequences of language contact and affecting the extent to which English borrows Chinese words.