[DOI: 10.17959/sppm.2025.31.3.311]

[본문 파일]

디지털 커뮤니케이션 언어에서 사용되는 영어 이니셜리즘 연구

강은경 (상명대학교)

Abstract

A study of English initialisms in digital communication. This study examines the linguistic characteristics of English initialisms used in digital and online communication, such as AFK (away from keyboard), IMO (in my opinion), SMH (shaking my head), IDK (I don’t know) and IYKYK (if you know, you know). Unlike traditional initialisms, which derive proper nouns or technical terms such as UN or radar, these forms originate from a wide range of syntactic phrases, including noun phrases, adjectival phrases, adverbial phrases, prepositional phrases and verb phrases as well as full sentences. Most of these initialisms are alphabetisms rather than acronyms, typically preserving all the initials of their source expressions. Although they originate from syntactic phrases, they gradually undergo lexicalization through phonological, morphological, and semantic integration, ultimately functioning as independent, autonomous lexical items. These findings suggest that online phrasal initialisms constitute a productive and dynamic source of lexical innovation in contemporary English morphology.