A study of the word structure and processes involved in word formation in sheng: a case study of Eastlands area of Nairobi

Abstract

This thesis presents an analysis of words in "Sheng" - a linguistic variety that is commonly spoken in the urban areas of Nairobi. "Sheng" is a mixture of the already existing languages. The major interests in this research are: -

(i) The formation of words in "Sheng". (ii) To find out to what extent the structure of "Sheng " vocabulary reflects the borrowing of elements from the existing languages spoken in Kenya.

The research also encompasses the grammatical aspect of the linguistic forms and their variations.

In chapter one, an introduction of the "Sheng" vocabulary is given and the background to the problem in the study is stated. The scope and limitations of the study, the objectives, the rationale and the conceptual framework of the study are also presented.

Chapter two contains a review of the related literature on "Sheng" and other similar linguistic phenomena. Word-formation processes have also been identified and examined as they occur in other language varieties.

In chapter three, the methodology in gathering data from the speeders of "Sheng" is explained.

Chapter four contains a discussion of the analysis of the data. The actual analysis is presented in appendix I.

Finally in chapter five, a general summary and conclusion are given: based on the data findings and analysis. Recommendations for further research in other linguistic areas in "Sheng" such as semantics and syntax are advanced.

My objective in this dissertation is to draw attention to the importance of "Sheng" as a speech variety that should be recognized as a language variety like any other. Children growing up in the urban areas like Nairobi grow up speaking "Sheng" and we cannot dismiss this variety as merely a "distortion" of language.

"Sheng" has a cultural and linguistic significance in our society today.