Malay-English Code-Mixing Insertion: Why ‘Lepaking’ in Preference to ‘Hanging Out’?

Abstract

This study scrutinized the current media language culture of code-mixing insertion practice of English morpheme (-ing) into Malay lexical item (lepak) by Malaysians on Facebook. A collection of 227 Facebook postings of the usage of ‘lepaking’, where base language of the online postings is Malay, from January to January 2020 to August 2020, were analyzed to investigate on the reasons of ‘lepaking’ instead of ‘hanging out’ utilized by Malaysians on Facebook. This study shadowed Muysken’s (2000) typology of code-mixing insertion which defines ‘the insertion a well-defined chunk of language B into a sentence or word that otherwise belongs to language A’ and further operationalized by using "socially-realistic linguistics” theory of Kachru, Halliday and Firthian is to identify the reasons why ‘lepaking’ in preference to ‘hanging out’. The finding acknowledged a new phenomenon of code-mixing insertion since the ‘chunk’ inserted was in a form of morpheme (-ing), not a complete word. The reasons of the use of ‘lepaking’ identified were: a) Role identification: social, registral, educational, (b) Style identification: the language trend and (c) The yearning to clarify and interpret: the speaker’s attitude and relationship with other persons and the vice versa. In conclusion, ‘lepaking’ is an identification of language fashion of ‘New Englishization’ and it emerges when co-relationship occurs between speaker, linguistic forms and language function.

Infusing Dalcroze Eurhythmics in Improving Singing Skills Among Primary School Students

“…Indirectly, good values can be incorporated into group work plus value-added by teachers such as cooperation, obedience, discipline, respect, kindness and tolerance in the 21st century learning needs (Hayati, 2018). Although intervention in the present study has not integrated directive teaching method as applied by Kamis et al (2019; and Anuar et al (2020), we found movement activities has succesfully infuse learning values to kids. This does not only produce balanced individuals but also promotes humanitarianism.…”

Bridging Identities: Analysing Code-Mixing in Yuna's Conversation with a Local Malaysian Activist

“…This approach further promotes the use of code-switching and code-mixing in the country and other Asian regions. Anuar et al (2020) support this claim, noting that Malaysians frequently mix English and Malay languages in their daily interactions for various purposes and contexts. Code-switching involves shifting between different languages within the same conversation, whereas code-mixing entails blending two languages in a single word or sentence.…”

“…Furthermore, the ease of code-mixing usage on social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, has been facilitated by globalization, influencing the language choices of the younger generation in their daily conversations. Anuar et al (2020) suggest that the prevalence of code-mixing among social media users, particularly on Facebook, is influenced by the dominance of English on the internet. Their study on the cultural adoption of code-mixing, specifically involving Malay lexical items, found that many bilingual and multilingual social media users incorporate English morphemes into Malay verbs.…”

“…Their study on the cultural adoption of code-mixing, specifically involving Malay lexical items, found that many bilingual and multilingual social media users incorporate English morphemes into Malay verbs. Additionally, Anuar et al (2020) underscore the rapid technological advancements in Malaysia and the expansion of web usage, leading to the emergence of a spoken-written language concept. This study indicates that users code-mix on Facebook to reflect language trends and exhibit style awareness.…”

“…According to Musyken (2000), insertion is akin to borrowing, where foreign lexical or phrasal elements are incorporated into a specific linguistic construct. Another category of code-mixing is alternation, which Anuar et al (2020) define as the spontaneous switching between the grammatical and lexical structures of two languages. Congruent lexicalization, on the other hand, describes a scenario where two languages share grammatical structures that can be filled with lexical and grammatical terms from either language.…”