Is internet lingo making us vulgar?

Internet lingo, a linguistic phenomenon that originated with young web users, has become an increasingly interesting part of online culture.

With the help of social media, online expressions such as “prehistoric power” ( honghuang zhili), “the ship of friendship” ( youyi de xiaochuan), “veteran netizen” (laosiji) and “blue thin mushroom” ( lanshou xianggu, meaning “upset and wanna cry”) are frequently used among young Chinese in their daily conversations.

These phrases are also included in the annual cyber words lists released by various organizations.

While many young people welcome these changes with open arms, people who consider it their duty to protect the purity of language are alarmed.

Zeng Jieling, amemberof theChinesePeople’s Consultative Conference Human Committee, recently spoke up about the internet lingo.

Zeng proposed the idea of regulating internet lingo, particularly vulgar terms that have become popular on the internet, such as gou dai, the homophonic expression of the English phrase “go die” from Chinese singerHuang Zitao’s rap lyrics.

These internet terms, according to Zeng, pose a threat to the Chinese language and core socialist values because of their vulgarity.

However, defenders of internet lingo say trying to keep the Chinese language from being invaded by internet language is wrong, because languages evolve with the times and it’s natural for them to absorb new elements. They point to imported elements in languages, as well as to elements particular to certain periods in history, as proof that internet lingo is just one of countless influences that languages borrow over time.

So, is internet lingo threatening the purity of our language?