Orality versus literacy in the Nigerian SMS discourse

Abstract

As an emergent form of technological communication, SMS texting has engendered a different type of language use and a new orthography which remarkably deviates from language norms (Essoh et al 2014; Odey et al 2014; Barasa and Mous 2013; Awoyemi 2013; Soffer 2012; Richardson and Lenarcic 2009; Feuba 2009; Bodomo 2006, Ling 2005). This emergent language use and postmodern orthography – which is variously labelled as webslang, internet slang, digital language, netlingua or textese – often combines qualities of both the oral and written language. Indeed, the textese linguistic form is generally considered as a fruit of linguistic creativity. It is an independent written register which, somehow borrows from the standard written language. Yet, it lies on such creative methods of sentence framing as multilingualism (tag switching), as well as on word/ sen-tence shortening techniques such as graphones, word/number homophones, abbreviation, single pronounceable letters, and the use of numerals among others.