GLOBALIZATION AND LEXICAL BORROWING: THE IGBO EXAMPLE

Abstract

Issues related to globalisation can hardly be discussed in isolation of language. Lexical borrowing is a global issue since languages borrow from one another in order to enrich their lexicon. No language can exist in isolation of others. The case of Igbo is not an exception and that is why this paper aims at studying the effects of globalization on lexical borrowing with examples from the Igbo language. The nature of this study will be correlational, finding out the cause and effect of globalisation on lexical borrowing. The paper finds that the relationship between globalisation and lexical borrowing is a case of cause and effect action, since the former presupposes the birth of new technologies that will effectively give rise to the need of naming these new technologies. Also, the Igbo language conforms to the globalisation trend in the area of getting lexical items from other languages. It is recommended that in as much as lexical borrowing is a viable means of enriching a language's lexicon, users of a particular language should make standardize and popularize lexical items that are hitherto not standard. An appendix of one hundred and twenty four (124) words used during the study is attached at the end of the paper.

Keywords: Globalisation, lexical borrowing, Igbo language