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Neologisms in Revitalizing Indigenous Languages in Northeast Brazil

Jarl, Göran LU (2026) ALSK13 20261
Division of Linguistics , Cognitive Semiotics and Rhetoric
General Linguistics
Abstract
This paper compares neologism formation in five Indigenous languages of Northeastern Brazil that are currently undergoing revitalization or post-dormancy recovery. With a focus on the coining of nouns and numerals, the study categorizes neologisms according to morphological (e.g. compounding, derivation, borrowing) and semantic processes (e.g. extension) and assesses their distribution of these across languages of different levels of endangerment. The analysis shows that while compounding and borrowing are broadly preferred strategies, the type of borrowing and other coining strategies vary substantially and correlate with sociolinguistic history rather than typological constraints. Languages with uninterrupted transmission display... (More)
This paper compares neologism formation in five Indigenous languages of Northeastern Brazil that are currently undergoing revitalization or post-dormancy recovery. With a focus on the coining of nouns and numerals, the study categorizes neologisms according to morphological (e.g. compounding, derivation, borrowing) and semantic processes (e.g. extension) and assesses their distribution of these across languages of different levels of endangerment. The analysis shows that while compounding and borrowing are broadly preferred strategies, the type of borrowing and other coining strategies vary substantially and correlate with sociolinguistic history rather than typological constraints. Languages with uninterrupted transmission display neologism profiles closer to those of fully living languages, whereas languages with prolonged interruption rely more heavily on borrowed or engineered forms. These findings highlight the importance of sociolinguistic context in shaping lexical innovation in revitalized languages. (Less)
Popular Abstract (Portuguese)
Este artigo compara a formação de neologismos em cinco línguas indígenas do Nordeste do Brasil que estão atualmente em processo de revitalização ou recuperação pós-dormancia. Com foco na criação de substantivos e numerais, o estudo categoriza os neologismos de acordo com processos morfológicos (por exemplo, composição, derivação, empréstimo) e semânticos (por exemplo, extensão) e avalia sua distribuição entre línguas com diferentes níveis de ameaça de extinção. A análise mostra que, embora a composição e o empréstimo sejam estratégias amplamente preferidas, o tipo de empréstimo e outras estratégias de criação variam substancialmente e se correlacionam com a história sociolinguística, em vez de restrições tipológicas. Línguas com... (More)
Este artigo compara a formação de neologismos em cinco línguas indígenas do Nordeste do Brasil que estão atualmente em processo de revitalização ou recuperação pós-dormancia. Com foco na criação de substantivos e numerais, o estudo categoriza os neologismos de acordo com processos morfológicos (por exemplo, composição, derivação, empréstimo) e semânticos (por exemplo, extensão) e avalia sua distribuição entre línguas com diferentes níveis de ameaça de extinção. A análise mostra que, embora a composição e o empréstimo sejam estratégias amplamente preferidas, o tipo de empréstimo e outras estratégias de criação variam substancialmente e se correlacionam com a história sociolinguística, em vez de restrições tipológicas. Línguas com transmissão ininterrupta apresentam perfis de neologismos mais próximos dos de línguas totalmente vivas, enquanto línguas com interrupção prolongada dependem mais de formas emprestadas ou criadas artificialmente. Essas descobertas destacam a importância do contexto sociolinguístico na formação da inovação lexical em línguas revitalizadas. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Jarl, Göran LU
supervisor
organization
alternative title
Neologismos na revitalização das línguas indígenas no Nordeste do Brasil
course
ALSK13 20261
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Revitalization, Neologism, Indigenous Languages, Brazilian Northeast, Coining Process, Noun, Numeral
language
English
id
9225673
date added to LUP
2026-04-23 07:28:32
date last changed
2026-04-23 07:28:32
@misc{9225673,
  abstract     = {{This paper compares neologism formation in five Indigenous languages of Northeastern Brazil that are currently undergoing revitalization or post-dormancy recovery. With a focus on the coining of nouns and numerals, the study categorizes neologisms according to morphological (e.g. compounding, derivation, borrowing) and semantic processes (e.g. extension) and assesses their distribution of these across languages of different levels of endangerment. The analysis shows that while compounding and borrowing are broadly preferred strategies, the type of borrowing and other coining strategies vary substantially and correlate with sociolinguistic history rather than typological constraints. Languages with uninterrupted transmission display neologism profiles closer to those of fully living languages, whereas languages with prolonged interruption rely more heavily on borrowed or engineered forms. These findings highlight the importance of sociolinguistic context in shaping lexical innovation in revitalized languages.}},
  author       = {{Jarl, Göran}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Neologisms in Revitalizing Indigenous Languages in Northeast Brazil}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}