ICLSL 2016
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://repository.kln.ac.lk/handle/123456789/14246
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Item An Examination on the Semantic Adversation of the Sinhalese Language(Department of Linguistics, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2016) Sameera, M.A.G.J.As a living language, the Sinhalese language has come to its present status after going through a numerous number of changes to all its components. Any given word of a language has a meaning of its own, which cannot be easily changed. However, it is not entirely impossible to change the given meanings of the words of a living language since it is infinitely modifiable and extendable according to the changing needs of its speakers. Any change that happens to the meaning of a word is known as semantic change. Semantic adversation which can be defined as acquiring a meaning entirely opposite to the existing one is one of the processes that can be seen under this. This study is an attempt to examine the semantic adversation in the Sinhalese language. Data has been collected through a comparison between classical Sinhalese and contemporary Sinhalese. The older meanings given to words were identified from their usage in selected classical Sinhalese literary work and it was evident that though many words used then are still being used, many of them are affected by semantic change in a number of ways. Since the range of this study is limited to semantic adversation, other processes of semantic change such as semantic expansion were not examined. Accordingly, a considerable amount of words in relation to which semantic adversation has happened is identified. However, exact reasons that can be pointed out as responsible for the semantic adversation or distinguishable processes of semantic adversation are not identified, which leads to the judgment that semantic adversation in the Sinhalese language is purely an accident of history.Item A Study on the Use of English and Sanskrit Borrowings in Contemporary Sinhalese(Department of Linguistics, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2016) Pawithrani, C.English and Sanskrit occupy significant places among the languages that have influenced the Sinhalese language. English and Sanskrit words have entered the lexicon of the Sinhalese language as both borrowings and derivative words. This study is concerned on the use of English and Sanskrit borrowings in contemporary Sinhalese. Data was collected by observing the use of English and Sanskrit borrowings in both spoken and written sources representing contemporary Sinhalese. The words directly borrowed from a different language without altering its form are known as borrowings. Borrowing Sanskrit words into Sinhalese has its history stretching at least up to Polonnaru era and most of those words are still being used in written Sinhalese. English can be considered the language with the biggest impact on contemporary Sinhalese. However, as opposed to those of Sanskrit, English borrowings are mostly used in spoken Sinhalese. The usage suggests that Sanskrit borrowings are preferred in written Sinhalese whereas English borrowings are preferred in spoken Sinhalese. As far as the Sinhalese language of the early eras is concerned, Sanskrit borrowings were used as an attempt to show one‟s erudition. Though this appears valid to a certain extent in contemporary Sinhalese, the major reason behind the use of Sanskrit borrowings in contemporary written Sinhalese appears to be spontaneity. The use of English borrowings in speech is also a matter of showing one‟s erudition and social status. In addition, as the case of Sanskrit borrowings, spontaneity can also be pointed out as a major reason for the use of English borrowings in spoken Sinhalese.