Abstract:
Universities and university students have long been a fertile source of slang, which can be defined as an
informal variety of language comprising words and expressions used by a particular social group. Research
in campus slang has a long history (see for example Mcphee 1927, Kannerstein 1967, Olesen and Whittaker
1968, Kutner and Brogan 1974, Hancock 1990, Murray 1991, Hummon 1994, Thorne 2005, Preece 2009,
Adamo 2013). Many of these studies present word lists and linguistic analyses of these unique lexical items
that reflect the academic, social, and personal experiences of student life. Studies of campus slang
conducted in American and British universities also indicate several similarities as well as significant
differences in the spread and functions of campus slang in Sri Lanka. This, along with the fact that the
slang of Sri Lankan university students has not been the focus of much research, provided the rationale for
the current study. Examples of slang were obtained from multiple participants at a university in the western
province to develop an initial wordlist. A linguistic analysis of each term was then conducted by identifying
their morphological features and semantic categories. Reflexive texts written by selected student
participants were also obtained to analyse their experiences of encountering, learning and using campus
slang. The analysis of this overall data was located in the theoretical framework of linguistic ideology, or
the linguistic behaviours that not only characterise a particular social group but also language practices that
aim to legitimise dominant political powers. The study concludes that there are significant ideological
implications in the usage, function and spread of the slang of the sociopolitically complex discourse
community of Sri Lankan university students.
