ABSTRACT

Chapter 6 presents eight case studies which focus on lexical formations in different varieties and their reciprocal influences. The varieties observed are mainly spoken in Nigeria, East Africa, South Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Philippines, India, and Jamaica.

The aim is to investigate neologisms across these varieties, attempting to combine corpus perspectives with what is ultimately a qualitative approach. Thus, words are observed in terms of formation processes, and special attention is paid to morphological patterns. This is integrated with reflections on the social and pragmatic implications of such formations. The discussion focuses not only on those terms which are typical of a specific variety, and which display peculiarities from a cultural perspective, but also on their cross-fertilization potential and on how they circulate across varieties.