Global Language Monitor: "We've Reached the Millionth English Word"

Global Language Monitor uses a math formula to track new words and has deemed Web 2.0 as number one million. However Global Language Monitor in making that assertion has invited criticism from many linguists. In fact Global Language Monitor has been held up as "nonsensical."

Reuters out of Los Angeles has posted an article titled "Web 2.0 crowned one millionth English word." This claim by Global Language Monitor has created a fairly vicious argument between the company and many in the linguistic community.

Global Language Monitor with their math formula which tracks words and phrases in electronic and print media has indicated that "Web 2.0" has appeared over 25,000 times and therefore should be crowned number "one million."

Linguists are not happy with this claim. Their position is that words cannot be counted and further, there are no standardized criteria for judging a word as legitimate.

Phrases, compound words and slang create further problems.

Geoffrey Nunberg, a linguistics at the University of California at Berkely doesn't mince words when he exclaims that "I think it's pure fraud...It's not bad science. It's nonsense."

However president of the Global Language Monitor, Paul JJ Payack says the method is technically sound. Remember Jimmy "JJ" Walker? I wonder if Payack includes "Dy-No-Mite!" in his word count.

Payack makes an interesting point when he says "If you want to count the stars in the sky you have to define what a star is first..."

Payack indicated that about 14.7 new words are generated daily and further says that our sounds are changing.

A couple of words that are used as illustrations are a Native American phrase "Jai Ho" meaning accomplishment. Another word is "slumdog" referring to poor kids in India from the movie "Slumdog Millionaire."

My question is what constitutes an English word?

When you consider the incredible number of people in this country who had to learn English from another language you will get all kinds of shorthand. Further African Americans also have a language that is unique to them. Words like "fly" and "hawk" are just a couple words used in a different and ever-changing context. Are they English? Further, how do they get counted since they usually don't see print often?

Very often I use my experiences in Vietnam to illustrate a point. I suppose that is because it was such a dramatic part of my life but also because I was not from that country so I saw things from a totally different perspective.

When you take two cultures and mix them you will get some interesting occurrences. Between soldiers and the Vietnamese people a new "phraseology" occurred that was easy to learn and got the point across. "Number 10" meant "terrible;" "Number one" meant "great." "Didi Mau" meant "get out of here."

Words are fascinating. The only thing I can think of that would make them boring is trying to count them.

Reference:

http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE55913M20090610