LINGUISTIC CREATIVITY OF MODERN YOUTH: SLANG INNOVATIONS OF THE DIGITAL AGE

Abstract

The article examines the key aspects of modern youth slang formation. It emphasizes that «youth slang» should be understood as a distinct, living, and highly dynamic vocabulary that responds quickly to changes in the digital, social and cultural environment and is actively used by today's youth in everyday communication. Under these conditions, the youth slang of the digital era includes anglicisms, abbreviations, acronyms, internet memes, as well as computer, gaming, musical, athletic, and social vocabulary, phraseological units, and emotional, humorous, or modified expressions etc. It is determined that this linguistic layer emerged primarily under the influence of the era of computerization and internet technologies, with the development of blogging, social networks, digital communication, and gadgets.
The article characterizes the main categories of modern youth slang: by origin (anglicisms, abbreviations, internet slang, Japanese loanwords); by sphere of use (computer, gaming, musical, athletic, social); by theme (people, their qualities, behavior, and appearance; emotions and states; specific actions; concepts and objects). The study identifies a number of factors that led to the emergence of youth slang vocabulary, such as: linguistic (the desire to simplify communication and practise «economy of language»); communicative and technological (the influence of information technology, the internet, and social networks requiring rapid information exchange); social and psychological (the drive for individuality, creative activity, and wordplay); subcultural (the effort of young people to stand out from the crowd and assert themselves through specific vocabulary).
The article concludes that modern youth slang is not merely a set of «trendy» words and expressions or a «conversational toy», but primarily a unique marker of identity, a means of self-expression, and a powerful communication tool for the modern younger generation. It has a right to exist despite the fact that it introduces a significant amount of foreign and specialized vocabulary, humor, and occasional coarseness into the language.